Lower Saxon Environment Minister Stefan Wenzel pays visit to Konrad mine

Lower Saxon Environment Minister, Stefan Wenzel, welcomes the present journalists to the Konrad information centre

Following visits to Gorleben and Asse, the Lower Saxon Environment Minister, Stefan Wenzel, also paid a visit to the Konrad mine in Lower Saxony.

In the showrooms of the Konrad information centre located in the centre of Salzgitter-Lebenstedt the President of the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), Wolfram König, explained at first the concept of disposing of radioactive waste with negligible heat generation in the Konrad mine.

Restoration of shaft 1

On the premises of shaft 1, Minister Wenzel found out more about construction measures on the surface and underground. Currently shaft 1 is being restored. In order for the Minister to get a clear idea of the measures, the conveyor cage stopped at around 400 metres, where new tube consoles are currently being installed. At present the BfS is examining whether these measures will have an impact on the completion of the repository.

Retrievability of the waste

Underground, Minister Wenzel visited the construction site for the “emplacement transport gallery” connecting shaft 2 – via which the waste is to be taken underground – to the mine. In one of the future emplacement chambers Minister Wenzel emphasised that he did not consider the discussion about the retrievability of the waste to be terminated. BfS President König explained the BfS storage model that does not provide for retrieving the waste. The waste will generate gases; therefore it is necessary to seal the chambers with concrete.

Repository according to the state of the art of science and technology

The Minister emphasised his positive impression of the progress the project was making. However, there remained one matter of crucial importance: The repository was to be constructed according to the state of the art of safety and technology. BfS President König committed himself to obtaining this goal.

At the end of the visit, Minister Wenzel took stock: “The Konrad project has been adopted by a supreme court, however, there are many, many questions associated with it.”