Repository in Stadel ZH Authorities "define cornerstones of the project"

Nagra has submitted a general license application for a deep geological repository for nuclear waste in Stadel ZH. The authorities will provide information about the process at 10 am.

The Swiss people are to vote on the future nuclear repository in the Zurich municipality of Stadel. This is what the National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste (Nagra) demanded when submitting the application documents to the federal government.

On Tuesday, Nagra submitted two general license applications, one for the nuclear repository near Stadel and a second for the fuel element packaging facility in Würenlingen AG. It wants to prove that the site proposed in 2022 is the best location and that a deep geological repository there will meet the highest safety standards in the long term.

"We are demonstrating that we can build and operate a deep geological repository safely, even if it is challenging," Nagra CEO Matthias Braun was quoted as saying in a press release on the submission of the applications. Nagra has also demonstrated that the repository is compatible with environmental protection. It is to be built from 2045.

Examination in several stages

The nuclear repository for radioactive waste and the packaging facility for fuel elements will be built at two different locations. Nagra therefore had to submit two general license applications. According to the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE), these will now first be checked for completeness by spring 2025.

Once all the necessary documents have been submitted, the applications will be published. The content review will then begin. This will be carried out by the nuclear supervisory authority Ensi and the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC) and is expected to last until 2027.

It will then be the turn of the federal authorities and the cantons to submit their comments. The affected regions in Switzerland and Germany will also be able to comment. These comments will also be made public. All interested parties will then be able to comment on them, wrote the SFOE.

Referendum is possible

The SFOE will draw up the general permits on the basis of the reviews and comments. Towards the end of the decade, the Federal Council and then Parliament will decide on this. A referendum can be held against the decisions of the councils and thus a vote can be brought about.

When submitting the applications on Tuesday, Nagra also called for a broad debate on its plans and direct democratic legitimization with a referendum. It assumes that a referendum could take place in the federal election year 2031.

A committee that is critical of the repository had already called for a national referendum on Friday. It argued that the electorate should have the final say on such a complex matter.

Reasons for the choice of site

"We are voting on cow horns. Then even more so on a highly toxic, highly radioactive nuclear waste disposal site in the middle of the Zurich conurbation, under the approach path of Kloten Airport, in close proximity to the Rhine and the national border."

The general license applications include a safety and security report as well as a justification of the site proposals for the facilities. It also includes specifications on the maximum permissible radiation exposure for people in the surrounding area as well as the size and location of the most important buildings.

The repository in Stadel is to be a combined storage facility. It will accommodate highly radioactive waste as well as low- and intermediate-level waste. According to the SFOE, the application for the deep geological repository specifies the maximum amount of material that can be stored at the site, what the protection zone in the ground will look like and how the repository will be sealed.

Read the minutes of today's media conference.

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10.43 a.m.

End of the media conference

Thank you for your attention.

10.42 a.m.

What about the costs?

The deep geological repository is estimated at 12 billion. A detailed cost study is planned for 2026.

10.40 a.m.

What if ENSI disagrees?

Altorfer says that ENSI does not approve, but only prepares the expert reports. The SFOE is responsible. SFOE-Mayer does not believe that the Federal Council will approve the project if ENSI objects.

10.34 a.m.

Is there enough space for any new nuclear power plants?

Mayer says there are too many unknowns to answer that. It starts with the fact that we don't know whether the industry even wants it, how much nuclear waste more modern plants produce and so on. New nuclear power plants would probably entail new procedures. This would also have to be initiated by those responsible for waste disposal.

10.30 a.m.

Start of the Q&A session

How long can nuclear power plants really run without overloading the repository? Around 80 years would be possible, according to the panel.

10.27 a.m.

Hardly any radiation exposure

A maximum of one sixtieth of the radiation dose that Mr. and Mrs. Swiss experience each year may be released from the repository into the biosphere. ENSI also checks the feasibility of construction. It is carried out systematically, says Altorfer. The expert reports are published.

10.22 a.m.

What is planned in Würenlingen

Felix Altorfer from ENSI talks about the scope of the reviews of the applications submitted. Experts are consulted on a case-by-case basis. Eight professors from Switzerland and abroad advise the authority independently. The situation in Würenlingen AG is well known due to the interim storage facility. The packaging plant for spent fuel elements is to be built there.

10.19 a.m.

It takes years for the electorate to decide

It will be several years before politicians and voters can decide, says Braun. He is convinced that a safe storage facility can be built. The company will remain in close contact with parliament throughout the entire process.

10.17 a.m.

On the planned storage capacities

10.14 a.m.

"We define the cornerstones of the project with the general license applications"

There is a precise picture of the subsurface, says Braun: "I'm a geologist: I've never seen anything like it," he says of the technical reports. Nagra proves that the 900-metre-deep repository will be "many times below" the strict limit values. "We define the cornerstones of the project with the general license applications."

10.11 a.m.

Braun calls for "broad, fact-based debate"

Matthias Braun, CEO of Nagra, speaks of a "major step" being taken with the application. "The problem of radioactive waste" is about to be solved. The application provides the basis for a "broad, fact-based debate". Now it is the turn of the experts before society votes.

10.08 a.m.

The procedure

According to Mayer, the first general permit defines the location and main features of the project. The canton of Zurich, as well as the cantons of Schaffhausen and Aargau, were involved. A second permit for the location is issued by the Uvek, and a third permit concerns the operation.

10.05 a.m.

Two sites to choose from

According to Mayer, safety and environmental protection are the top priorities in the process, which has been ongoing since 2008. The official describes the stages that have been taken in the process. Two municipalities were on the shortlist.

10.03 a.m.

"Today is the day"

Roman Mayer from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy has the floor. A combined storage facility for low- and high-level radioactive waste has been sought in Stadel ZH. "Today is the day": after more than 16 years, the general license applications have been submitted. This is a "milestone", says Mayer.

10 a.m.

Start of the media conference

Marianne Zünd from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy welcomes the audience.

9.32 a.m.

Media conference begins at 10 a.m.

It's about to start.

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