Expert opinion for WG 2 of the Repository Commission

In 2013, the German Bundestag passed the “Act on the Search and Selection of a Site for a Repository for Heat-Generating Radioactive Waste”, or Site Selection Act (StandAG) for short. The aim of the site selection procedure is to find the best possible site for a final disposal facility in Germany for waste generated domestically, particularly highly radioactive waste, in a science-based and transparent process (Section 1 (1) StandAG). The site selection procedure should be completed by 2031. This will be followed by concrete planning and the construction of a facility for final disposal. In all likelihood, the project will not be realized before 2050.

The “Commission on the Storage of High-Level Radioactive Waste” set up by the German Bundestag and Bundesrat began its work in May 2014. It is made up of 33 members, who in turn are representatives of science and social groups, members of the German Bundestag and state governments. The commission works in five different working groups and is due to submit its report to the German Bundestag and the public by June 30, 2016.

Working Group 2 “Evaluation” of the Repository Commission focused on the critical review of the Site Selection Act and thus supports the Commission in fulfilling its review mandate pursuant to Section 4 (1) StandAG. The focus was on topics such as the design of the official structure for the repository issue, the requirements for the design of legal protection and the associated requirements under European law, as well as the ban on changes in Gorleben.

For WG 2, UfU prepared a report (including thematic interim reports) in which key opinion-forming processes, arguments and results for individual key topics were systematically analyzed, processed and presented.