Nuclear Garden

Welcome to Port Hope, Ontario, 1994. Located at the mouth of the Ganaraska River and perched on the north shore of Lake Ontario, this picturesque town of mid 19th Century heritage buildings and lush gardens sits upon a toxic secret. Buried beneath the town, and used as landfill, is the nuclear waste created by Eldorado Mining and Refining Limited (now under the ownership of Cameco). "Nuclear Garden" documents and confronts Port Hope's toxic past at a time when a new refinery was proposed to be built and an old plant was to be decommissioned. Interviews with concerned citizens on the front lines explore the real costs of nuclear energy production as well as how to sustain life after nuclear. 23 years later and the processes of toxic waste removal are still underway while the long-term health risks are yet to be fully understood. The town still contains the largest volume of historic low-level radioactive wastes in Canadian history and the soil remediation project remains the largest of its kind, projected to be complete in 2022. Created and Produced by Toronto based Artist, Michèle White and Directed by Magi Oman this documentary film was accompanied by a series of mixed media works. The resulting exhibition toured public galleries and artist-run centres across Ontario. michelewhite.ca Contains Interviews with: Patricia Lawson Marion Walker Garland Robert Sculthorpe Music by David Findlay Special Thanks to: The Explorations Program of the Canada Council The Ontario Arts Council The People of Port Hope, Ontario