nuclear-news

The German government, together with the opposition, hopes to approve a so-called depository site law for nuclear waste ahead of federal elections in September. The Bundestag, Germany’s lower house of parliament, on Friday (June 28) will vote on the planned legislation.

After a nearly 35-year controversy over the suitability of a salt mine in Gorleben in northern Germany as a potential site for storing high-level nuclear waste, the search for a storage site will begin again. The bipartisan compromise is considered historic.

A 33-member commission will have until 2016 to establish the scientific criteria for the search for a long-term storage site in Germany. Politicians will make up half of the commission with the rest of the seats being filled by scientists, anti-nuclear activists and other representatives of society. A storage site could be found by 2031, but it is not likely to start operation before 2040.

Million-year storage Finding a suitable location for the storage of nuclear waste poses a huge challenge, since it must be able to contain radiation for a million years. Experts believe deep underground locations in rock salt, clay or granite would be possible.

Salt is well suited for dissipating the heat of radioactive waste and enclosing it. But there is a risk of water seepage. While clay is not soluble in water, it has the disadvantage of lower thermal conductivity and stability. Granite, on the other hand, offers stability, but the waste containers would still also have to shield the radiation.

The aim of the proposed search method is to find particularly suitable storage sites in Germany and predict their shielding quality for more than a million years, based on the latest geological knowledge. So-called scenario analyses should help in estimating possible changes in groundwater, earth movements and erosion. “All of these scenarios must ensure that even with changes, no radiation seeps outside,” Michael Sailer, chairman of the German Waste Commission, told DW.

Huge storage costs

Improper disposal of nuclear waste poses, above all, a long-term risk to people and the environment – and generates high costs. The Asse nuclear waste site in Germany is an example. Nearly 126,000 barrels of nuclear waste were stored there between 1967 and 1978; some 14,000 barrels, however, lack accurate documentation about their contents……http://www.dw.de/what-to-do-with-nuclear-waste/a-16755844