Nuclear waste repository: search may take decades longer than planned
In a report, the Ă–ko-Institut doubts that the search for a final storage site for highly radioactive nuclear waste will be completed by 2031.
Visualization of the highly radioactive nuclear waste in Castor containers that has to be stored.
(Image: BASE)
A final repository for highly radioactive nuclear waste in Germany will probably not be found in the early 2030s as planned, but 45 years later than previously planned. According to a report prepared by the Ă–ko-Institut on behalf of the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Disposal (BASE), testing times are taking longer than expected.
According to the report (PDF), the target date of 2031 set out in the Site Selection Act (StandAG) cannot be achieved under any circumstances due to the legally prescribed procedural steps. "Even with an ideal project schedule, it must be expected that the procedure cannot be completed until 2074."
In 2020, the search for a site for a nuclear waste repository was still expected to be completed in 2031 and containers with highly radioactive waste could be stored from 2050. At the time, the regions in question were narrowed down to 54 percent of the federal territory. Now the Federal Ministry for the Environment has stated that the process will probably not be completed by 2034 as required by law. However, it will be able to significantly shorten the testing times assumed in the study through future optimizations in the ongoing search process, reports Deutschlandfunk.
Risk scenarios
The Ă–ko-Institut has identified various risks that could prolong the search for a final repository. These include the fact that numerous siting regions are proposed, which could have an impact on the following procedural steps. Regional conferences (RK) would have to be set up in proportion to the number of siting regions. According to the report, the probability of conflicts and delays due to content-related queries, the need for scientific clarification and procedural ambiguities increases with the number of RCs.
As the number of siting regions increases, so too does the effort required to prepare and process the review and comment procedures, as well as the total number of discussion meetings that have to be held for each siting region. "The consideration of all results from the higher number of these appointments also causes increased expenses for the project sponsor and, on the other hand, an increased review effort for the regulatory and supervisory authority."
The report had been available to BASE since February and was handed over to the Federal Ministry for the Environment in July, reports Deutschlandfunk. It was only after the broadcaster reported on it that BASE posted it on the internet. The highly radioactive waste is temporarily stored in over 1000 Castor containers at various locations in Germany. The permits for the Ahaus and Gorleben sites expire in 2034, for other storage facilities in the 2040s. The casks are not designed for such a long period of use in interim storage facilities.
(anw)
