There is hardly a political problem as complex as the disposal of highly radioactive waste generated by nuclear power plants. This is evident in the fact that this issue remains largely unresolved to this day in almost all countries in the world where there are or have been nuclear power plants, a total of 31 countries around the world. This is despite the fact that the first large nuclear power plant that became operational was in Russia in 1954.
In Finland, for the first time in the world, approval has been given to establishing a final repository for highly radioactive nuclear waste. This warehouse is located 400 meters underground on an island located in the west of the country on the site of one of the two Finnish nuclear power plants. It took the Finns about 40 years to complete it.
Germany is looking for a solution to bury nuclear waste underground
But in all other countries, including Germany, there remains a problem that can best be illustrated by an everyday image familiar to many: garbage is already placed on the street in front of the house, ready for collection, but the garbage truck is late in arriving. That's because there is no landfill to take it to. It's not a pretty sight. But no one wants to live near a garbage dump like this.
The same applies to Germany as well, but at least: the Federal Company for the Final Storage of Nuclear Waste (BSE), which was created specifically for this purpose for nearly ten years, has been searching for a suitable site, as is the case in Finland, deep underground. Most experts have long agreed on one point: Nuclear waste should be buried underground, especially spent fuel elements from nuclear power plants that will continue to emit nuclear radiation for thousands of years.
Germany is limiting its options to find a repository for nuclear waste
Germany hopes to find a site for a finished warehouse by 2050. That's still a long time away. Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) therefore wants to conduct a study to see if it is possible to significantly speed up the research process.
That's why Environment Minister Stefan Gabriel Haufe's spokesman said: "Russia, the United States, Britain and Japan do not all have measures as advanced as we do. Finland is definitely the fastest progressing country globally. But Germany belongs to the first group."
The BSE announced this week that only 5 percent of Germany's area could still be considered as a site for a final nuclear waste repository, in 11 of the 16 federal states. The organization conducts dialogues with geologists, nuclear energy experts and physicists, as well as with citizens and politicians. What is clear in this regard is that nuclear waste resulting from decades of operating nuclear power plants must remain within the country and not be exported abroad.
Why does the search for a final repository for nuclear waste take decades?
Currently, waste is stored at facility sites. Among them are 19 former nuclear power plants under dismantling, in addition to some research facilities. In 2011, following the Japanese Fukushima reactor disaster, Germany abandoned the commercial use of nuclear energy, and in 2023 the last plant was disconnected from the grid. But the waste remained where it was.
Journalist Dagmar Demmer is Head of Communications at BSE. In response to a question from DW about why the search for a final storage site took so long, she replied: "Because safety has to be proven for a very long time. In Finland for 100 thousand years and in Germany, Switzerland and France for a million years."
But the effort spent remains very great, regardless of future expectations. There is a need to correlate developments and interactions between geology, technology and radionuclide decay over time and evaluate them for safety.”
How does Germany choose a safe site to bury nuclear waste?
Thus, experts follow these steps: Potential sites are examined to ensure their geological integrity. If mountains stand at a depth of 400 metres, can groundwater be contaminated? The plan is to find a location where the warehouse will be surrounded by a layer of rock about 100 meters thick to act as a barrier. Possible formations include layers of clay, granite or salt rock.
These requirements are being tightened step by step and the potential locations are gradually decreasing. Other aspects, such as proximity to major cities, are not taken into account until a later stage. It is clear that there will be no enthusiasm for establishing a final repository for radioactive waste anywhere, neither in the cities nor in the countryside.
Trust and cost... Challenges of burying nuclear waste in Germany
Therefore, Dagmar Demmer's mission is to build trust. It must explain repeatedly why it is necessary to deal with the waste of the nuclear energy era. Regardless of the position on nuclear energy.
Demmer believes that Finland has succeeded in this: “Finland has high confidence in the country’s performance. The Finnish Supervision and Licensing Authority is among the most respected institutions in the country. Germany can learn from Finland by constantly persevering, not constantly changing direction, and having the necessary patience across generations in order to reach a good result.”
Final storage is ultimately above all else: very expensive. So far, the cost of searching for a final storage site and storing nuclear waste in previous sites is about 1.4 billion euros annually. Experts estimate the cost of the final storage site, if it is ever completed, at approximately 14 billion euros. It is hoped that the 28,000 cubic meters of radioactive waste underground will then disappear forever.
Prepared in Arabic by: M.A.M
