Radioactive Waste In Belarus Is Planned To Be Stored In Special Hangars For 600–700 Years
- 3.09.2026, 9:17
Three potential sites for the facility are being considered.
A decision on the location of a radioactive waste disposal site could be made by the end of the year, BelTA reports, citing Energy Minister Denis Moroz.
Three potential sites are currently being considered for the facility: in the Khoyniki District (Gomel Region), Ostrovo (Grodno Region), and Mstislavl (Mogilev Region). The decision on the location will be made by the end of 2026. According to Denis Moroz, the site in question will cover an area of no more than 100 hectares.
The Minister of Energy also explained what radioactive waste disposal entails.
“The waste is placed in a special concrete container. Inside this container, it is transformed into a vitreous mass: either cemented, poured with liquid glass, or processed using other methods. It then becomes a solid material that is not affected by water or anything else. These containers are placed in special hangars. And once these hangars are filled, they are backfilled with inert materials—essentially sand—to ensure there is no external impact. These hangars are then sealed, and we forget about them for the next 600–700 years. Our disposal site does not involve the removal of radioactive waste. It will remain there and require no human intervention,” he stated.
As a reminder, members of the nongovernmental organizations “Ekodom” and Solutions for Resilient Communities Inc. (USA), as well as an expert from the international program “Radioactive Waste Safety” Andrei Ozarovsky and radiation safety and technological risk specialist Sergei Besarab previously presented preliminary results of a review of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Report for the project “Construction of a Radioactive Waste Disposal and Temporary Storage Facility” in Belarus.
Their main conclusion: decisions regarding radioactive waste management in the project have been made “in favor of dangerous and outdated Russian technologies”, without analyzing existing global alternatives, writes “Ekodom.”
“The quality and completeness of the documentation do not allow for an objective assessment of its environmental impact. Until this is corrected, the project cannot be implemented,” Sergey Besarab noted on his Telegram channel.