“That was the initial spark,” Gillian says, who works as an Environmental Scientist as part of our assessment team. “When I was picking my university program, I knew I enjoyed chemistry, physics, and biology, so it was nice there was a program where I could apply all of those into an area with real-world application.”
Gillian Dunlop, Environmental Scientist
That program was at the University of Guelph, where she completed an undergraduate degree in environmental science. After that, she completed a PhD at the University of Toronto in environmental chemistry, getting experience in fieldwork, sampling, lab analysis, and computer modelling.
Today, much of Gillian's work is focused on nuclear projects, though she also works with mining and property development. She joined Ecometrix after hearing it was a tight-knit community of experts that focus on a range of technically challenging projects with “space to develop tools that are really valuable and set us apart from other companies.”
One of those tools is IMPACT™, a recognized environmental pathways and exposure modelling solution that’s customizable and informed by the demands of the nuclear industry. For Gillian, a typical day can see her working on various projects at different stages, reviewing data, writing reports, or running the IMPACT model.
In her spare time, Gillian enjoys playing hockey.
“We’re supporting nuclear clients on regulatory requirements they need to meet, like annual dose calculations or assessment of low-level releases based on what’s happening at their sites. What does that look like? What are the concentrations in the environment? What are the risks? They need to report all of this, so we support them in doing those calculations, writing the reports, and dealing with the regulatory agencies.”
Given that Ecometrix has been working on some of these projects for decades, she shares how she enjoys the continuity and being able to apply new knowledge and experience to something with such a long history.
There’s also a collaborative part to the work that she loves. “We have people on the team from different backgrounds. On the assessment team alone, there’s people with backgrounds in chemistry, ecology, and statistics. It’s the people that drive that holistic view.”
In the future, Gillian shares how she wants to keep growing her expertise within the nuclear sector and the IMPACT model alongside her other projects. When Gillian isn’t helping clients, she spends most of her time outside, hiking, kayaking, or playing hockey with her daughter.
Explore the benefits of small modular reactors (SMRs)
As the climate crisis continues, our director and environmental risk assessment specialist discusses how SMRs are playing a key role in helping Canada meet its net-zero emissions goals.
