nuclear-news

Officials said work would soon begin on building the Beishan Underground Research Laboratory 400 metres (1,312 feet) underground in the northwestern province of Gansu.

Liu Hua, head of the National Nuclear Safety Administration, said work would be carried out to determine whether it was possible to build a repository for high-level nuclear waste deep underground. ……..   [China] needs to find a safe and reliable way of dealing with its growing stockpiles of nuclear waste. …..

Some Chinese scientists said the country had the chance to lead the world in this area of research but others have expressed concerns about safety. ……

Despite broad scientific support for underground disposal, some analysts and many members of the public remain sceptical about whether it is really safe.

Lei Yian, an associate professor at Peking University’s school of physics, said there was no absolute guarantee that the repositories would be safe when they came into operation…….

China is also building more facilities to dispose of low and intermediate-level waste. Officials said new plants were being built in Zhejiang, Fujian and Shandong, three coastal provinces that lack disposal facilities.

At present, two disposal sites for low and intermediate-level waste are in operation in Gansu and Guangdong provinces. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3025903/china-earmarks-site-store-nuclear-waste-deep-underground