Environmental impact assessments and geological repositories for radioactive waste : Volume 1: Main Report

In the EU, an environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a necessary and important part of the development of a case for a geological repository for the long-term or final storage of radioactive waste. Under Directive 85/337/EEC, EIA is a mandatory requirement for all installations 'solely designed for the permanent storage or the final disposal of radioactive waste'. Under the amending Directive 97/11/EC, this requirement is extended to 'installations designed solely for the storage (planned for more than 10 years) of radioactive waste in a different site than the production site'. The present report presents the findings of a 15-month study that examined the following aspects of EIA in relation to geological repositories for radioactive waste. The report is in four separate volumes: Volume 1 - Main report; Volume 2 - Appendices; Volume 3 - Central and east European countries; Volume 4 - Workshop report (workshop held in Brussels, 20 and 21 April 1999).