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Posted on 04/11/2026 1:49:12 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Finland is preparing to launch the world’s first permanent underground structure for storing nuclear waste, marking a major breakthrough towards finding a solution for one of nuclear energy’s most difficult problems. The Onkalo nuclear waste repository, is built deep inside 1.9 billion year old bedrock and is designed to store highly radioactive waste for up to 100,000 years. Authorities are expected to grant the facility a licence within months.
A facility deep underground, hosuing thousands of tonnes of nuclear wast Onkalo (meaning “cave” in Finnish) will become the first facility to offer a long-term nuclear waste disposal solution once it is operational. More than 400 metres underground, nuclear waste will be sealed in corrosion-resistant copper containers. They will be packed with bentonite clay, which swells when wet, and buried in tunnels carved into the bedrock, offering multiple layers of protection from any potential radioactive waste leaks.
Engineers have chosen the site due to the low seismic activity and its ability to contain the radiation for long periods of time. The €1 billion facility has been under construction for decades.
Nuclear energy: ‘Clean’ energy with a very big catch
On its own, nuclear power is considered a viable energy solution; it produces low carbon emissions, it can improve the air quality by replacing fossil fuels, and it is one of the most reliable sources of energy, able to operate at full power most of the time. However, the spent nuclear fuel poses a significant issue: nuclear waste can remain radioactive for millenia, and must be isolated from humans and the environment as a result.
According to Posiva Oy, the Finnish company developing the Onkalo facility, it can store up to 6,500 tonnes of spent nuclear fuel. Once the tunnels are filled, they will be permanently sealed and the waste will be successfully isolated for tens of thousands of years.
Potential challenges even tens of thousands of years in the future
Though the prospect of a long-term solution to nuclear waste storage is enticing, the facility still poses some challenges. There are still uncertainties regarding how the materials will behave over extremely long periods of time; the copper canisters, despite best efforts, could eventually corrode, for instance.
“My view of nuclear waste disposal is that there’s no good option, but it’s important to find the least bad option,” said Edwin Lyman, director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists, an American nonprofit organisation.
According to Lyman, geologic disposal is likely “the least bad option among a range of, you know, bad options.” This is because the spent fuel can stay totally isolated from both environments and people.
Additionally, researchers are facing a new challenge: how to warn future generations about the dangers buried deep in the facility. Experts are working on creating long-term markers, with symbols that could be understood even thousands of years from now.
The Onkalo nuclear waste repository is expected to operate until the 2120s
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I prefer putting it in secure drums in marine subduction zones.
This one seems to be pretty universal:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skull_and_crossbones
. Actual skulls and bones were long used to mark the entrances to Spanish cemeteries (campo santo).
......
Since the mid-18th century, skull and crossbones insignia has been officially used in European armies as symbols of superiority. One of the first regiments was the Frederick the Great’s Hussars in 1741, also known as the “Totenkopfhusaren”. From this tradition, the skull became an important emblem in the German army. Identical insignia has been used in the Prussian army after the First World War by Freikorps and in Nazi Germany by the Wehrmacht and the SS. The idea of elitism symbolized by the skull and crossbones has influenced sub- and pop culture and has become part of the fashion industry.[7]
I have always been confused about nuke waste.
If it still energetic enough to be toxic,
why can’t we use that energy?
It is not a chemical or biologic
poison, it emits particles that
can destroy our cells.
Hell, our own Sun does that!
There two things you can do to solve a problem.
Bury it,
or make it useful.
Spent nuclear fuel can be recycled to recover valuable materials and reduce waste, but the U.S. currently does not engage in this practice, unlike several other countries.
What is Nuclear Waste Recycling?
Nuclear waste, particularly spent nuclear fuel, can be recycled to extract usable materials such as uranium and plutonium. This process not only reduces the volume of waste but also recovers about 90% of the potential energy still contained in the spent fuel, even after years of use in reactors.
Current Practices
Countries Recycling Nuclear Waste: Countries like France, Japan, and Russia have established recycling programs for spent nuclear fuel. They utilize advanced technologies to separate and reuse plutonium and uranium, which can then be fabricated into new fuel rods for reactors.
U.S. Status: The United States does not currently recycle spent nuclear fuel, primarily due to political and economic factors. Instead, it treats this material as waste, leading to significant amounts of spent fuel accumulating at reactor sites.
Benefits of Recycling
Energy Recovery: Recycling allows for the recovery of valuable materials that can be reused as fuel, thus maximizing the energy output from the original fuel.
Waste Reduction: By recycling, the volume of high-level waste that requires long-term storage is significantly reduced.
Environmental Impact: Recycling can potentially lessen the environmental footprint of nuclear energy by minimizing the amount of waste that needs to be managed and stored.
Challenges
Technological and Economic Barriers: The infrastructure for recycling spent nuclear fuel is complex and costly to develop. Many countries have opted for direct disposal instead, which is simpler but less sustainable.
2
Public Perception and Policy: There are significant public concerns regarding nuclear waste management, which can influence policy decisions and the development of recycling programs.
1
In summary, while recycling nuclear waste presents numerous benefits, including energy recovery and waste reduction, the practice is not currently implemented in the U.S. due to various challenges. Other countries continue to lead in this area, showcasing the potential for a more sustainable approach to nuclear energy management.
the above from the net
https://iowaclimate.org/2025/03/29/recycling-power-rethinking-nuclear-waste/
The United States should establish a recycling policy so that the 90,000 metric tons of UNF in the country can be recycled and fabricated into mixed oxide fuel (“MOX fuel”). The resulting MOX fuel can be used in nuclear reactors to create reliable and clean energy.
Through establishing a recycling policy, the following four problems would be solved, and create economic opportunities:
First, the United States can solve the national problem of moving UNF away from reactor sites as it is obligated to do. Second, the U.S. can restart the discontinued payment program of the nuclear utilities for the removal of the UNF so that the Treasury can be replenished at the rate of $2 billion annually. Third, the concern of interim or long-term storage of UNF near our population centers is also addressed. Finally, MOX fuel can replace the 20% of U.S. nuclear fuel currently purchased from Russia.
I could have saved you a lot of typing.
Our American problem is Democrat voters.
You are correct in your tome!
It is doable!
“…. the world’s first permanent underground structure for storing nuclear waste…”
We’ve had one that’s been THIS CLOSE to completion for decades…..
Yucca Mountain, from Wiki:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yucca_Mountain_nuclear_waste_repository#Opposition
https://www.ans.org/news/2025-09-08/article-7348/us-nuclear-fuel-recycling-takes-two-steps-forward/
st important factor in bringing advanced nuclear energy to market,” said Jacob DeWitte, Oklo cofounder and CEO. “By recycling used fuel at scale, we are turning waste into gigawatts, reducing costs, and establishing a secure U.S. supply chain that will support the deployment of clean, reliable, and affordable power.”
Curio CEO Ed McGinnis noted, “We are moving at a pace the industry has never seen to deliver a fundamentally new, safeguarded-by-design platform that will redefine the economics and security of the entire nuclear fuel cycle. These unprecedented results demonstrate the strength of public–private collaboration in advancing sustainable nuclear solutions.”
” prefer putting it in secure drums in marine subduction zones.”
No those are fully hydrated and seismic active.
Stable continental granite, shales or salt layers that are 100s of millions of years stable are the answer. Dry below any water table and tectonically immobile other than the couple of cm per year of continental.drift.
Yeah I am a PhD geologist.
If they are burying spent fuel this is a crime against humanity. Spent fuel is 96% fuel and has 99% of it’s energy value still in it.
The only thing that should be in geological repository is fission products in a broom silica.glass matrix inside coppers them stainless steel capsules packed in bentonite clay bore holes. 300 years of decay to reach natural uranium.background levels and no wasted fissile isotopes.
Ask France, Russia ,China or Japan they have the tech , the UK did but they got cucked into giving it up like the USA did.
The waste can be stored in Gaza tunnels. They’re no longer in use. And no harm to real humans. Just cover it over with demolition debris and dirt.
Learn English grammar, PhD; "seismic" is an adjective.
By the time hardened drums of the type we're using in Yucca Mountain are subjected to tectonic shear sufficient to rupture them, they'll be so deep in mud to be entrained into the mantle the material isn't going anywhere else.
If you had any knowledge of the ides you would have cited leakage from the minimal efforts the Soviets made in their dumping of ALL their waste in cheesy steel drums into exactly such trenches. You did not.
Stable continental granite, shales or salt layers that are 100s of millions of years stable are the answer.
Government contractors and agencies selecting Yucca Mountain (which I am absolutely certain included many PhD geologists) were unable to sell that idea. On the other hand, Earth's crust can be recycled and re-emerge from volcanoes in as little as 500 million years, with not a little dilution involved. I'll take that one, but there may not be a contract in it for you.
Are they going to use NASA, SpaceX, Blue Origin?
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