EAGE/DGG Workshop on Radioactive Waste Storage

6 March 2026 | Münster, Germany

Safe repositories for high-level radioactive waste (HAW) are a current issue of highest priority for countries throughout the world operating nuclear power plants. A deep geological repository is generally the accepted concept for the realization of long-term safe final disposal facilities for HAW. Different countries have different strategies to find a permanently safe and reliable repository, but they all have in common that the final site must meet high geological criteria, for example regarding impermeability. Detailed information is not only required from the potential host rock, but also from the surrounding area up to the earth’s surface to create reliable geological models, as for example transport models for water. The exploration in the site selection process and the characterization of the final site is therefore challenging and require the application of high-resolution exploration methods and method combinations. The workshop shows the complexity of the exploration requirements, the different scales to be explored and discusses innovative approaches from waste management organizations (WMO), authorities, academic entities and the exploration industry.