An interim storage facility for radioactive nuclear waste is to be built in the Höxter district (NRW). Initial plans include the construction of a reinforced concrete hall. Nuclear opponents sharply criticize the plans.
- A nuclear waste storage facility is to be built on the site of the former Würgassen nuclear power plant.
- The area in the district of Höxter is in the state triangle of NRW - Hesse - Lower Saxony.
- Nuclear opponents criticize the project and fear unnecessary transportation of radioactive materials.
NRW - where to put rubbish that will be dangerous for centuries? Countries such as Germany, which have relied on nuclear energy in the past years and still do so in part, have to deal with this question.
Where to put radioactive waste? Interim storage planned in NRW
The problem: The waste - including components from nuclear reactors or tools that were used there - is radioactive and must therefore be kept safely for a long time. Germany seems to have found a solution for this, as RUHR24.de reports. The contaminated sites are to find a home for eternity in a disused mine in Salzgitter (Lower Saxony) from 2027.
Until now, the nuclear waste from the various decentralized interim storage facilities, such as nuclear power plants , had to be brought directly to Salzgitter. However, the responsible authorities have apparently rejected this plan: As the German Press Agency (dpa) reports, a central interim storage facility for radioactive waste from all over Germany is to be built in North Rhine-Westphalia .
Interim storage facility in North Rhine-Westphalia is to function as a "logistics center" for nuclear waste
It is therefore planned to build an above-ground reinforced concrete hall on the site of the former Würgassen nuclear power plant in the Höxter district, which will act as a "logistics center". There the nuclear waste is collected, sorted and then brought to the final storage facility in Salzgitter, which is around 90 kilometers away, writes the dpa . However, the interim storage facility is only intended for low and medium-level radioactive waste.
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The Federal Agency for Temporary Storage (BGZ) had presented the first plans in Würgassen on Friday (March 6), according to the news agency. The ideas had previously been discussed with the Federal Ministry of Economics. However, no approval process has been initiated by the responsible district government in Detmold, and no building application has been made.
"After careful consideration and consideration of potential locations and in coordination with the Federal Environment Ministry for Würgassen, we decided to use our logistics center ," said Ewold Seeba, the chairman of the BGZ management, according to a press release. A total of 450 million euros are to be invested in the project. 100 permanent jobs are to be created on site.
Interim storage facility in NRW: nuclear opponents with sharp criticism
Opponents of nuclear energy , like the organization "broadcast", sharply criticized the plans on the day of their publication. An additional interim storage facility would only lead to further transports of the radioactive waste. The organization also doubts that the repository in Salzgitter will actually be put into operation.
Central # nuclear waste warehouse planned for all of Germany at the #AKW Würgassen. Number of #atom transports doubles.https: //t.co/QseMwEyq92#antiatom #dontnuketheclimate
- .broadcast (@broadcast) March 6, 2020Because in the view of "broadcast" it no longer meets current requirements. If the commissioning "is delayed or the project fails altogether, huge quantities of nuclear waste would remain in Würgassen for an indefinite period", the organization speculates.
Interim storage facilities in North Rhine-Westphalia should speed up work in the repository
Those responsible for the BGZ see advantages in the intermediate storage . Among other things, this should enable faster storage of the radioactive waste in the Salzgitter repository . After all the nuclear waste has been brought there, the camp in the Höxter district is to be closed again. with dpa material
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* RUHR24.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network