K. Kuhn et W. Hawickhorst, Waste management and final storage in Germany failed for lack of content and a technical basis? Part 2, ATW-INT Z K, 45(8-9), 2000, pp. 540
The assertion by the political parties at present in government in Germany,
SPD and Alliance 90/The Greens, that "the previous waste management concep
t for radioactive waste had failed in terms of content and no longer had an
y technical basis," is a purely ideological statement utterly devoid of any
realistic reason. In actual fact, die waste management concept so far purs
ued in Germany has been transferred into industrial practice in many areas:
Transports of radioactive waste and spent fuel elements can be carried out
safely at any time; spent fuel has been reprocessed on an industrial scale
for many years. The central interim stores of Ahaus, Gorleben, and Lubmin,
all of which are in operation, actually represent sufficient capacity for
the interim storage of spent fuel elements. The successful exploration of t
he Gorleben salt dome has advanced far. No result so far would detract from
its suitability. Consequently, the federal government should not try "to e
laborate a (new) national waste management plan fbr the inherited burden of
radioactive waste," but rather invest all its power to make functional as
quickly as possible the missing building blocks in the existing waste manag
ement concept. In doing so, it would make an important contribution to dome
stic peace and to the international recognition of Germany as a high-tech c
ountry. Part 1 of the article, which was published in atw 7 (2000) pp. 453-
456, covers reprocessing and direct final storage of spent fuel elements wi
th interim storage in special casks while part 2 in this issue contains a s
urvey of the final storage options and the final storage projects in German
y.