Germany Seeks Atomic Waste Dump After Contentious Site Dropped

Gorleben saline rock repository shelved as potentially unsafe
Safe site sought by 2031 for 27,000 cubic meters of waste

A warning sign hangs on display at the entrance to an underground shaft at the Gorleben salt mine, in Gorleben, Germany, on Thursday, June 16, 2011. German authorities are probing the Gorleben salt dome to determine whether the location is suitable for a planned nuclear waste storage facility.Photographer: Michele Tantussi

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By Brian Parkin

September 28, 2020 at 3:22 PM UTC

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Germany dropped a plan to deposit high-radiation waste from its nuclear plants at a controversial site in the north of the country, creating new pressure to find an alternative location.

Salt caverns near Gorleben, a town in the state of Lower Saxony, were excluded as a potential resting place for Germany’s spent nuclear rods, the nation’s BGE atomic waste disposal unit said on Monday. The country is legally bound to find a suitable site by 2031.