The only fully-functioning nuclear power plant in Africa is on the brink of reaching its capacity for nuclear waste store. Koeberg’s cooling pools – which are used to help rid the facilities of uranium and plutonium excesses – are at the brim, and Eskom have confirmed the issue is far from being resolved.
Where is Koeberg Nuclear Plant?
Koeberg is a 45-minute drive north of Cape Town. It straddles the Atlantic Ocean, sitting solitary in a barren location. However, a failure to properly dispose of the nuclear fuel rods could have disastrous environmental and health effects for the Mother City. Being so close to the sea, improperly-disposed radioactive waste could pollute the coastal regions – including the marine wildlife.
In a statement shared with Reuters, Eskom confirmed that they are waiting on a usage license to allow them an alternative location for their storage:
“The Koeberg spent fuel pool storage capacity is currently over 90% full. [These] pools will reach [their] capacity by April 2020. Nine of our casks are presently stored empty on the Koeberg site while Eskom is in the process of applying for a usage licence from the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR).”
Eskom
When nuclear storage reaches capacity
So what exactly happens with nuclear waste when we run out of places to store it? Well, Anton Eberhard is an energy specialist and senior scholar. He has stated that our low-level waste is buried in pits at Vaalputs in the Northern Cape. But high-level waste, radioactive for thousands of years, still has no long-term solution.
This utter hopelessness is echoed by Arne Jungjohann, who compiled the World Nuclear Waste Report. He says the entire world is struggling to cope with the disposal. The only “advisable” way to get rid of fuel rods is by burying them underground in facilities that are isolated and cavernously deep.
“We still don’t know where to put the waste safely in a way that nobody will get harmed, that it is not vulnerable to terrorist attacks, that it is not being stolen to build nuclear bombs.”
Arne Jungjohann
Koeberg and the rest
In fact, the Western Cape is a radioactive hot-spot. Certain geological formations – like what we see in Paarl – can give rise to excessive risks of radon exposure. Meanwhile, mine waste from uranium prospecting in The Karoo still remains a threat to this day. Houses built on stockpiles of uranium ore are likely to experience the worst effects of the substance.
