The Swedish government today gave the green light for the final burial of radioactive waste from nuclear power plants in the Scandinavian country, in an underground space designed to last for … 100,000 years.
The announcement of the social democratic government comes after years of procrastination and a few weeks after the departure of the government of environmentalists, which was opposed to this solution.
The selected site is in Forsmark, near one of Sweden’s two operating nuclear power plants, about 130 km north of Stockholm, near the Baltic Sea.
The Finnish model
With this decision, the country imitates neighboring Finland, which is currently leading the construction of a so-called “final” landfill in Eurayoki, on the southwest coast of the country. The construction, which is currently being completed, will receive the first test loads in 2023 and will be operational in 2025.
The two Nordic countries are the first to give the green light for this type of installation. In France, a landfill project is in the process of being approved in Beirut, in the north-east of the country.
“With Finland, we are the first in the world to take responsibility for our nuclear waste. “This will be a safe final storage solution that provides security for both the environment and the population,” Environment Minister Anika Strandel told a news conference.
As in Finland, used fuel rods are first introduced into cast iron trays. These cases then slide into 2,800 copper silos, which, sealed, should theoretically remain sealed for 100,000 years.
At 500 meters below the ground, these silos must then be inserted into vertical cavities sealed by large bentonite, clay caps with low hardness, very low permeability and flexibility.
Currently, nearly 7,500 tonnes of radioactive waste are stored at a “medium-term” site that opened more than 40 years ago in Oskarsamn, on Sweden’s east coast.
The project is led by SKB, a company set up by Swedish nuclear generators to manage waste. The latter hailed “a historic decision”, while Greenpeace condemned a decision with consequences that will last for 100,000 years.
The environmental NGO complained that the solution was causing “too much insecurity”, citing an “irresponsible” government decision.
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