Implementing Geological Disposal

This White Paper sets out the UK Government’s framework for managing higher activity radioactive waste in the long term through geological disposal. This will be implemented alongside ongoing interim storage and supporting research.

To identify potential sites where a geological disposal facility (GDF) could be located, the UK Government favors a voluntarist approach based on working with communities that are willing to participate in the siting process. A GDF is likely to bring significant economic benefits to a community that hosts it, in the form of long-term employment and infrastructure investment, and in the form of additional community investment that the UK Government has committed to provide.

This White Paper sets out a number of initial actions that will be undertaken by the UK Government and by the developer (Radioactive Waste Management Limited) to help implement geological disposal. It also sets out a number of key principles and commitments that will shape the subsequent process of working with communities to identify and assess potential sites.