700 tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste reaches Germany, triggers uproar
A massive amount of highly radioactive nuclear waste has reached the northern German port of Nordenham, Lower Saxony. The waste that came via a specialist nuclear transport vessel triggered uproar in the region.
The waste is result of reprocessing fuel elements from decommissioned German NPPs at the U.K.’s Sellafield site. The nuclear waste came to Germany after its transport license was approved in December 2024.
Germany’s Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE) revealed that until 2025, utilities shipped used fuel from NPPs to La Hague in France and Sellafield in the UK for reprocessing. After melting down the resulting liquid into glass, the waste is then returned to Germany.
One more nuclear waste shipment planned
“The last shipment of this waste from France was returned in November 2024. There is one more shipment planned, after the current one, from the UK to complete the repatriation,” revealed BASE.
Officials have sealed the port in Nordenham as the nuclear waste’s transport to Germany has triggered a number of protests by anti-atomic energy groups.
The first of the containers, which are four meters (13 feet) long and weigh over 100 tons, was lifted off the special “Pacific Grebe” transport ship by a large crane on Tuesday morning and underwent inspection to measure radiation levels and ensure they matched those taken in Sellafield, reported DW.
Waste is massively shielded from external radiation
Reports have revealed that the waste is massively shielded from external radiation.
The waste was mixed with liquid silicate glass and poured into cylindrical stainless-steel containers in the reprocessing plant. After sealing the containers tightly, these are filled with glass molds, a type of glass mixture.
Molds are placed in more than 100-ton cast iron and stainless-steel containers. These containers have proven their effectiveness in extensive tests. These containers provide robust shielding and ensure safety in extreme conditions.
Suitable location for permanent underground storage
Germany’s Federal Company for Radioactive Waste Disposal (BGE – Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung) is in the process of identifying a suitable location for the permanent underground storage for 27,000 cubic metres of nuclear waste produced over the course of 60 years of German nuclear energy production.
Reports have also revealed that until 2011, reprocessed waste was sent to the Gorleben interim storage facility in Lower Saxony, where 108 casks of vitrified radioactive waste have been stored, which was”already a large proportion of the total waste to be returned from reprocessing.”
From 2023, Germany started phasing out the use of nuclear power and the country accelerated this process after Japan’s Fukushima tragedy in 2011. In 2023, the European country shut down its remaining power plants.
However, reports highlighted that the country is still obligated to take back nuclear waste produced by used elements from its plants which, up until 2005, were regularly transported to reprocessing plants in Sellafield and La Hague, France. The transport of processed German nuclear waste back to the country has often been subject to protests.