Debate Over Radioactive Waste Storage: A Call for Transmutation Technology
In Zurich’s Unterland, plans have been submitted for a deep storage facility for radioactive waste, which would entomb spent fuel for a million years. Physicist Harald Jenny argues this concept is outdated, advocating for transmutation—a recycling method that transforms radioactive materials into less harmful elements. He emphasizes the need for funding research in alternative solutions rather than entombing waste, suggesting a competition between research institutions and private enterprises for innovative waste management technologies.