Geneva: Switzerland has announced plans to build a nuclear waste storage facility on its border with Germany, raising concerns among communities over safety and clean drinking water supplies. The project, which is backed by power plant operators, needs approval from the Swiss government. Germany's federal environment ministry has criticized Switzerland's decision to build a nuclear waste repository right on its border with Germany.
Switzerland's Haberstal, near the German border, could become a new storage site for nuclear waste by 2050. Switzerland has announced plans to build a nuclear waste storage facility on its border with Germany, leaving communities concerned over issues of safety and clean drinking water supplies.
The National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste (NAGRA) is behind the proposal. It suggested the Nordliche Lagerne region, north of Zurich, close to the border with Germany. How is this plant to treat radioactive waste?
The Swiss Haberseral near the German border could become a new repository for nuclear waste by 2050. Waste from five Swiss nuclear power plants will be collected. Medical and industrial sectors will be allowed to donate their waste.
There are currently four nuclear power plants operating in Switzerland. As long as their safety is assured, they can continue their work. This means by the 2040s. The National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste (NAGRA) is behind the proposal. The Swiss Federal Office of Energy said it proposed the Nordlich Lagern region, north of Zurich and close to the border with Germany. Nagra was set up by power plant operators with the Swiss government to tackle the controversial question of how to dispose of radioactive waste.
How to ensure the safety of waste?
According to Nagra official Patrick Studer, this waste is deposited hundreds of meters underground in opaline clay. "The required detention time is about 200,000 years for high-level waste and about 30,000 years for low- and medium-level waste," Nagra's website stated. The waste will be collected from five Swiss nuclear power plants. The medical and industrial sectors will be allowed to contribute their waste. However, for spent nuclear fuel and other radioactive waste The deep underground reserves need to be approved by the Swiss government and parliament, a process expected to take several years.
There were two other sites to choose from, also very close to the German border. In Germany, a decision on a dedicated repository site for highly radioactive nuclear waste will not be discussed until 2031.
Nagra said a planning application would be submitted by 2024. The Swiss government will decide on the application, after which Parliament must give its consent. Given this process, it is unlikely that the storage facility will start operating sometime before 2050.
Nördlich Lägern ist der sicherste Standort für ein Tiefenlager: Dort eignet sich das Gestein am besten.
— Nagra (@Nagra_Schweiz) September 10, 2022
Die genaue Begründung wird die Nagra am kommenden Montag an einer Medienkonferenz in Bern darlegen. #Jahrhundertprojekt #Endlager #Medienmitteilunghttps://t.co/9v6vy3YGzt
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