Brochure 2 «Radioactive waste»

Switzerland has radioactive waste

Radioactive waste is produced mainly in nuclear power plants but also arises from numerous applications in the areas of medicine, industry and research. The waste has to be disposed of safely. Humans and the environment must be protected on the long term.

Where and how much?

We know exactly where the waste is located and how much there is. The nuclear power plants and the centralised interim storage facility operated by Zwilag AG in Würenlingen have sufficient storage capacity for all of Switzerland’s radioactive waste from the power plants or from the reprocessing of spent fuel assemblies. With the planned expansion of the Federal Government’s interim storage facility, there will also be sufficient capacity for waste arising from the fields of medicine, industry and research.

The goal is deep geological disposal

Radioactive waste can be disposed of safely in deep geological repositories, until the radioactivity has decayed to natural levels. The technical feasibility of realising such repositories has been demonstrated by Nagra and approved by the Federal Council.