Preparation of the First Repository Search Forum

Source: Graphic Recording des Forums Endlagersuche,© Lorna Schütte

Preparations for the first Repository Search Forum are underway. At a public meeting on 23 March 2022, the members of the planning team presented their initial thoughts on procedures and conceptual planning of the forum.

The forum will focus on the development of methods for the representative preliminary safety investigations (repräsentative vorläufige Sicherheitsuntersuchungen (rvSU)) as carried out by the Federal Company for Waste Disposal (Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung (BGE mbH)). The investigations are an important component of the search for a siting region. In addition, all interested parties will be invited to take part in a "call for questions" to help prepare and co-design the forum.

Following the publication of the methodology paper by BGE mbH at the end of March, the draft programme will be further substantiated and subsequently presented and discussed with the public at the 4th public meeting of the planning team on 27 April.

Online consultation on methodology development to start end of March

The online consultation on the methodology paper of the representative preliminary safety studies of BGE mbH started on March 28. The eight-week online consultation will offer an opportunity to comment on and criticise the method development. At the start of the online consultation, BGE mbH will organise a series of information events on the different host rocks (rock salt in steep bedding, salt in shallow bedding, crystalline, clay). The methods to be developed must take into account the different geological situations of the various sub-areas and at the same time ensure comparability of the host rocks. BGE mbH will present the results of the consultation to the public in June.

Call for Questions - Your questions on method development

Following the publication of the BGE methodology paper and the launch of the online consultation, the planning team will issue a "call for questions". In this context, you will be able to ask questions regarding the rsVU method development. The planning team will collect the questions and organise a discussion on the submitted topics at the Forum on Repository Search with BGE mbH.

Work focus and members of the planning team

In other news, the group was renamed and personnel changes were made: From now on, the simplified group name will be Planning Team Forum Repository Search. In addition, the planning team announced a personnel change on the side of BASE: To bring in even more participation expertise, Ina Stelljes (Head of Department B) will support the group, and Matthias Riede will step down.