Germany’s waste disposal programme has had a troubled history:
- The Gorleben salt dome in Lower Saxony was investigated for decades as a potential HLW repository
- Political opposition and scientific concerns led to its abandonment
- In 2017, a new federal site selection process was initiated under the Site Selection Act
- Gorleben was formally excluded from the process in 2020
- All geological formations (salt, clay, granite) are being considered
- A site is expected to be selected by the mid-2030s, with a repository operational by approximately 2050