The communities bordering interim storage facilities for high-level radioactive waste must be able to see that progress is being made in the search for a repository site in Germany, and that the interim storage facilities are not gradually being turned into a substitute for a final repository. Thus the statement BASE presented at an annual meeting of the Association of Site Communities with Nuclear Facilities in Germany (ASKETA) in Rheinsheim near Philippsburg. "Reaching the upcoming milestone in the search for a final repository site, i.e. the proposal for the site regions to be investigated by the Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung (BGE) mbH, as quickly as possible, would send an important and strong signal, especially regarding the credibility of the site selection procedure," says Ina Stelljes, head of the department for participation in the site selection procedure at BASE.

BGE mbH was founded as a federally owned company to implement the operational steps in the search for a final repository site. In autumn last year, BGE mbH announced a considerable delay to the site selection procedure. This may mean that the containers with highly hazardous materials currently stored at the 16 existing interim storage facilities in Germany will not be moved to a permanently safe final repository deep underground until the end of this century. Following the shutdown of the last nuclear power plants in April 2023, there are up to 1,900 containers with high-level radioactive waste awaiting final storage.

Safety issue with regard to interim storage facilities

The interim storage facilities for high-level radioactive waste will lose their licences after 40 years of operation. Not least against the background of the Russian war of aggression, which does not stop at nuclear facilities, the safety guarantee of above-ground interim storage facilities will remain on the agenda for longer than originally anticipated. The interim storage communities bear part of the responsibility for nuclear waste management in Germany. The demand for greater involvement is thus understandable.

Even after the shutdown of the last German nuclear power plants in mid-April, the interim storage facilities are a stark reminder that the legacy of this form of energy use must be disposed of in a permanently safe manner in the interest of all future generations. The goal is to establish a final repository with the best possible safety.