3 ms·
> Is flooding a problem for nuclear waste? It's hard to imagine it being stored in a way that it could contaminate water. Schacht Asse II was never a sound cho
by redprince 6y ago
> Is flooding a problem for nuclear waste? It's hard to imagine it being stored in a way that it could contaminate water.
Schacht Asse II was never a sound choice for waste storage because of several incidents of water ingress even during the time it was an active salt mine. Water ingress became worse after the facility was reused to dump low and medium level waste into it. This wasn't some orderly storage either. Drums of waste were unloaded into caverns by dozers and then closed off with salt. It was accepted that drums would crack open right there and then.
Saltwater is highly corrosive and it will eat these drums in short order. Waste immobilized with concrete will also not resist for long. The current plan is to extract the waste out of this mine again before it floods and widespread nuclear contamination will result. This cock-up will cost the German tax payer an estimated 4 to 6 billion EUR.