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webfarmerMore bad news from the nuclear "experts" in Europe.
20-Year-Long German Nuclear Leak Scandal Engulfs Country and Disturbs Europe - Bellona - 08 Sep 08
"Helmholtz spokesman Heinz-Joerg Haury told German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung that researchers 'did not consider that the leaks were worth a declaration to the press. We did not have the feeling that the public would be interested in knowing that radioactive brine is leaking in Asse II.'
Asse II, a former salt mine, is the oldest nuclear waste deposit in Germany. The abandoned mine was transformed into a deposit for nuclear waste in 1967, following the scientific hypothesis that rock salt pits are the best geological structure to store radioactive waste. But in 1988, radioactive brine started to leak through the mine's walls. The site operator never informed the public.
Many thousands of barrels in the mine have been overturned and are rusted through – and many were already damaged before they were buried. Water runs into the mine and ground water could be radioactively contaminated as a result. Further, the entire mine could collapse by 2014.
'This shows how problematic handling radioactive waste is now that one of Europe’s most democratic and well-regulated countries is handling it so badly,' said Nils Bøhmer, Bellona’s nuclear physicist. "
20-Year-Long German Nuclear Leak Scandal Engulfs Country and Disturbs Europe - Bellona - 08 Sep 08
"Helmholtz spokesman Heinz-Joerg Haury told German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung that researchers 'did not consider that the leaks were worth a declaration to the press. We did not have the feeling that the public would be interested in knowing that radioactive brine is leaking in Asse II.'
Asse II, a former salt mine, is the oldest nuclear waste deposit in Germany. The abandoned mine was transformed into a deposit for nuclear waste in 1967, following the scientific hypothesis that rock salt pits are the best geological structure to store radioactive waste. But in 1988, radioactive brine started to leak through the mine's walls. The site operator never informed the public.
Many thousands of barrels in the mine have been overturned and are rusted through – and many were already damaged before they were buried. Water runs into the mine and ground water could be radioactively contaminated as a result. Further, the entire mine could collapse by 2014.
'This shows how problematic handling radioactive waste is now that one of Europe’s most democratic and well-regulated countries is handling it so badly,' said Nils Bøhmer, Bellona’s nuclear physicist. "
