Swedish court approves construction of nuclear waste storage facility

• a day ago (2024-10-29)
• David Flin

Europe 1087 Nuclear 659

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A court in Sweden has approved the start of construction for a nuclear waste disposal site in Forsmark, 130 km north of Stockholm.

The Forsmark site, located near one of Sweden’s nuclear power plants, will accommodate around 6000 capsules containing nearly 12 000 tons of radioactive waste from Sweden’s current reactors.

The company SKB (Svensk Kärnbränslehantering AB) is responsible for managing radioactive waste in Sweden plans to maintain the integrity of the facilities for 100 000 years. Spent nuclear fuel rods will be enclosed in cast-iron capsules, then placed in sealed copper canisters at a depth of 500 m underground. These canisters will be installed in cavities closed with bentonite plugs, a material that minimizes the risk of radioactive leaks due to its low permeability.

The site will store waste from Sweden’s 12 active or previously active reactors.