Czech Constitutional Court rejects municipalities' complaint over repository near Horka

A group of municipalities near Horka in the Třebíč region, one of the sites under consideration for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel, has failed to win its case at the Constitutional Court (ÚS). The municipalities sought to overturn rulings by the Municipal Court in Prague and the Supreme Administrative Court (NSS), which declined to consider the merits of their objections to a government resolution from December 2020. The government had then narrowed the selection of possible sites to four, approved plans by the Radioactive Waste Repository Authority (SÚRAO) and updated some of the tasks and subsequent steps in the preparations. The ruling is available in the ÚS database. The Czech News Agency (ČTK) is seeking comment from the municipalities.

The challenged rulings did not violate any constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights, so the court dismissed the complaint as manifestly unfounded, the resolution states.

An administrative lawsuit over the repository was filed by the market town of Budišov and the municipalities of Hodov, Nárameč, Oslavice, Oslavička, Osové, Rohy, Rudíkov and Vlčatín. The Municipal Court in Prague dismissed the lawsuit, explaining that the government resolution itself did not affect the municipalities’ rights in any way. Through the resolution, the government coordinates the activities of ministries and SÚRAO.