10 years of the Site Selection Act - an interim assessment

Source: picture alliance / photothek | Thomas Koehler

With the entry into force of the Site Selection Act on 23 July 2013, the German Bundestag laid the first foundations for a new start in the search for a repository site. This was a breakthrough after decades of debate about the use of nuclear energy and the path towards a repository for high-level radioactive waste. After evaluation and adaptation of the law, the search was launched in 2017. It is time for an interim assessment.

Ten years after the first Site Selection Act (StandAG) was passed, the search for a repository site has made initial progress. The shutdown of the last nuclear power plants in April 2023 (in German) also means more safety for Germany. However, the permanent safety of the highly radioactive legacy has not yet been clarified, because a definite site for the repository is still to be found.

What progress has been made so far?

The decision in 2011 to phase out nuclear power has led to cross-party cooperation to find a solution for nuclear waste management. Influenced by the experiences of decades of disputes, particularly over the Gorleben exploration mine, the pluralistically composed Final Repository Commission, which met in the German Bundestag from 2014 to 2016, derived recommendations from positive experiences, but also from past mistakes. It established the demands for permanently safe disposal and a fair, comprehensible procedure based on scientific findings as guiding principles.

The search for a repository site is implemented by the newly founded federal company Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung mbH (BGE), and supervised by the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE) as the regulatory authority.

In addition, German utility companies had to pay accrued provisions for interim and final storage into a specially established fund. Responsibility for interim and final storage is thus entirely in the hands of the federal government.

The National Citizens’ Oversight Committee (NBG) was established as an important format to involve civil society. The NBG acts as a mediator between the public and the responsible actors. The establishment of this new institution has proven its worth.

After the start of the search for a repository site in 2017, BGE mbH, the company commissioned with the search, published a first milestone in September 2020: In the interim report on sub-areas, it identified areas that seemed, in principle, suitable for hosting a repository. These still cover 54 per cent of Germany's surface area.

Despite the Corona pandemic, BASE successfully carried out public participation events during this intermediate step. Several thousand people attended the meetings of the expert conference on sub-areas, thus playing an active role in the process.

The last commercial nuclear power plants in Germany were shut down in April 2023. This constitutes another important milestone in the search for a repository site, because it allows for a reliable calculation of the quantities of waste to be emplaced in the repository. This creates planning certainty, and increases confidence that the solution to the disposal issue does not involve negotiating the pros and cons of the use of nuclear energy.

What has not yet been achieved?

The interim report published by BGE mbH in 2020 still shows very many and large areas of Germany. The fact that half of Germany's territory is still in the process means that there is relatively little regional interest, which is important for regional participation. Another central step for the progress of the procedure, namely the reduction to a few siting regions to be investigated in more detail, is still outstanding.

When the law was passed, it was assumed that the narrowing down of the search area in the first phase of the procedure from the so-called "white map" to sub-areas to siting regions would take place within a few years’ time. This goal, as well as the goal of naming a site in 2031 as stipulated by the law, will be missed by a wide margin, as the company in charge of the search for a repository site, BGE mbH, announced in autumn 2022. The company is currently envisaging a target corridor between 2046 and 2068.

The process thus lacks a visible and continuous progress that keeps attention going for the topic and underlines the seriousness of a timely construction of a permanently safe repository in Germany. The question arises as to whether the requirement of intergenerational justice and safety is currently being met.

What are the next steps now?

BASE expects BGE mbH to submit a proposal for the delimitation of a few siting regions to be investigated in more detail as soon as possible. This is because postponing the identification of siting regions, and consequently also that of a repository site, will have an impact on different areas of nuclear safety.

At the same time, the responsible actors should jointly review the procedure and the experiences made so far. BASE has analysed the report of BGE mbH from autumn 2022, and published a statement with recommendations for the further procedure. Interactions with other areas of nuclear waste management and financing should also be considered to draw conclusions for the further procedure. Delays must be avoided as far as possible.

Interactions include the necessary interim storage of radioactive waste. The current safety standards for the protection of humans and the environment must apply also in the case of extended interim storage (in German). Therefore, impacts of extended storage must be reviewed in time, and clear time horizons must be defined.

What is needed in the long term?

for the process to succeed, we need:

• a shared will from society and politics to take responsibility
• decades of attention to the legacy of a technology that is no longer exercised. The knowledge of this technology must be maintained. This concerns both know-how preservation and collective memory - both are needed for a scientific process with public participation.
• clear structures and a reliable timeframe by which a permanently safe site for a repository can be found in Germany. The search must focus on safety. On the other hand, the process must not take too long, because time can also become a risk factor.

Therefore, it is necessary to set a clear target to bring the process to a successful conclusion within a timeframe that is deemed reasonable from a safety perspective. The implementer BGE mbH has named 2046 as the best-case scenario. However, our analyses show that this date cannot be reached if the search continues as is. All actors involved in the procedure should gear their planning towards the year 2046 (in German) Adjustments to the procedure must be seriously discussed. This is the only way to fulfil our responsibility towards future generations. BASE has therefore initiated talks with the relevant players in nuclear waste management.