What are the procedural steps in the search for a repository for high-level radioactive waste? An exhibition of the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE) provides answers to this question. As part of a nationwide tour, the BASE Infomobil will stop in numerous cities across Germany.

In the coming years, a repository providing permanent safety for high-level radioactive waste is to be found in deep geological layers. The exhibition gives a quick overview of the search process, and provides information on how citizens can get involved. Individual questions can be answered on site, and various aspects of final disposal can be discussed. Citizens are invited to learn about this important environmental project with the help of exhibits, films and digital content.

Online Information

Those who do not have time to visit the Infomobil in person can also visit the virtual exhibition (www.base.bund.de/virtuelle-endlagerausstellung). In addition, BASE organises digital information events to provide information about the repository search, the next event will take place on 7 September (information at www.endlagersuche-infoplattform.de). The event takes place as a video conference on the first Wednesday of each month. It is aimed in particular at newcomers who would like to be brought up to date on the search process, and provides a good base for participation in other formats.

The Search Procedure

All German federal states and regions are involved in the search for the site that offers the best possible safety for the permanent storage of high-level radioactive waste in particular. Citizens can help shape the selection process and exert influence at various levels. The members of parliament will decide by law on which areas should be further explored, and where the repository should be built.

The Players

BASE supervises the search for a repository and involves the public. It provides information on the procedure, organises the conferences stipulated by law, and offers informal participation and dialogue opportunities.

The federal company for radioactive waste disposal, Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung mbH, is in charge of geological data evaluation. At the end of September 2020, it published the Interim Report on Sub-Areas, in which about 50 per cent of the Federal Republic of Germany were further designated as so-called sub-areas, i.e. areas that appear to be geologically suitable in principle.

Infomobil Dates:

• Flensburg:15/16 August
• Federal Government Open Day, Berlin, Potsdamer Platz: 20/21 August
• Oldenburg: 29/30 August
• Osnabrück: 01/02 September
• Leipzig: 08/09 September
• Göttingen: 12/13 September
• Bamberg: 06/07 October
• Stuttgart: 10/11 October

Online information event

7 September from 5pm-6:30om: Basics on the search for a repository.