Another 30 years to go - The final storage of high-level radioactive waste
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The final storage of high-level radioactive waste is not scheduled to start in Germany until 2050 at the earliest. There are still many steps to be taken along the way. The Sub-areas Interim Report identifies a total of 90 regions in Germany which, based on current knowledge, are suitable for consideration as a future repository site. Surface and subsurface explorations will follow at a later date, but for now, the Interim Report is being discussed at sub-areas conferences.
The current issue of eco@work focuses in detail on the search for a repository site. We turn the spotlight on the Sub-areas Interim Report and the extensive process for public participation. The fact is that the search for a site faces a monumental task, namely that its outcome has to be accepted and tolerated by the whole of society.
An international perspective on the search for a repository site is provided by nuclear expert Dr Allison Macfarlane from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. In the interview, she talks about the factors that contribute to a successful search, and where the repository issue has got to in her home country, the US.