CZK 510bn nuclear waste repository to be built just 2 km from German border

Earlier this week, Switzerland selected its preferred site for the construction of a nuclear waste repository. The cost of building the repository, which is intended to serve all radioactive waste originating in Switzerland, is estimated at CHF 20bn (around CZK 510bn).

After more than 14 years, the Swiss organisation NAGRA (the National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste) has decided on the most suitable site for a nuclear waste repository. Northern Lägern was selected as the site with the best geological conditions – although the precise location is just two kilometres from the German border.

The site was selected solely on the basis of geological surveys. According to NAGRA, which was established by nuclear power plant operators and the government, conditions there are ideal. A special type of clay known as Opalinus Clay, found in the area, is expected to provide maximum geological protection, overall rock stability and sufficient flexibility for an underground repository compared with the other sites considered.

"Geology decided. It is the best location with the highest level of safety. This grey, inconspicuous rock is at the heart of the deep geological repository. Time has virtually stood still here," said Matthias Braun, director of NAGRA, referring to the site's exceptional geological stability.

The repository is intended, among other things, to store radioactive waste from Switzerland's four nuclear power plants for at least 200,000 years.

However, completion of the repository is not yet on the agenda. If everything proceeds according to schedule, it is not due to enter operation until 2050. NAGRA is expected to obtain a licence to establish the repository in 2024, with government and parliamentary approval due by 2029.

Construction itself is planned to begin in 2034. Until then, the decision may still be overturned in a local referendum.

The site is not being criticised by Swiss Greens or Germany

The site selection has so far not been criticised by either Germany or the local Greens. A member of the regional government said that criticism of the operation of nuclear power plants must be distinguished from criticism of a waste repository – as the waste has already been produced as a result of electricity generation.

"We have a responsibility to ensure that this waste is stored using our best knowledge and with the highest level of safety. That means you cannot oppose its disposal," said Martin Neukom, a member of the Zurich cantonal government and the Green Party.

No significant criticism has yet come from Germany either, although German public attitudes towards nuclear power are generally negative. State Secretary Christian Kühn welcomed the fact that geological conditions are the decisive criterion for siting the repository in Switzerland.

At the same time, however, he said that the repository "places a major burden on communities near the site, both during the construction phase and in operation". This is also linked to the issue of compensation, which NAGRA will have to resolve before construction begins.