Anyone wishing to construct a deep geological repository needs sufficient knowledge of the subsurface at an early stage. In particular, a general licence for a deep geological repository can only be granted if the results of the geological investigations confirm the suitability of the selected site.
A wide range of geoscientific methods are available to assess the suitability of a site. Depending on the method chosen (e.g. the drilling of boreholes or the construction of exploratory structures), these investigations can have an environmental impact or affect property rights. Investigations could also damage the geological subsurface to such an extent that this would have an impact on the safety of a possible deep geological repository at this site.
For these reasons, geological investigations that serve as a basis for knowledge with regard to a potential deep geological repository are subject to authorisation. Licences are granted by the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC).
The SFOE is the authority in charge of the licencing procedure for geological investigations and involves the federal authorities and the cantons concerned. Applications for geological investigations must be made public and affected persons can lodge an objection.
Before the National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste (Nagra) made its site selection for the submission of a general licence application in September 2022, it carried out 9 deep boreholes and 11 Quaternary boreholes in the siting regions of eastern Jura, northern Lägern and north eastern Zurich between 2019 and 2022 in order to deepen its knowledge of the subsurface of the potential siting regions and to achieve a sufficient level of knowledge to enable a site comparison from a safety perspective. This enabled Nagra to assess the geological situation with regard to the possible repository types. These boreholes supplemented findings from earlier and further investigations.
Nagra plans to carry out further geological investigations at the proposed site of the surface facility of the deep geological repository. The aim is to gain additional insights with regard to the submission of the construction licence application for the deep geological repository.
