The nuclear sector in Finland has made great advancements, especially in terms of caring for nuclear waste in the Onkalo deep geological repository. With applications for operating licenses and safety assessments stretching into the 2020s, questions emerge on Finland’s nuclear future, environmental accountability, and public opinion.
Posiva takes audacious strides in Finland’s repositories for nuclear waste under Onkalo
In Finland, Posiva, the nuclear waste concern, has made great strides in discarding its used nuclear fuel safely. In 2021, it filed its application to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment for an operational license to operate the Onkalo repository from March 2024 to 2070.
Such long-term strategic plan is such that for Finland nuclear energy very much involves waste management that has been an intricate way for the country. The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority considered completing safety assessments-hence by December this year, but now that has been pushed towards completion by 2025 due to postponement.
Despite these challenges, Onkalo is regarded as a critical infrastructure project for the Finnish nuclear energy sector. Apart from its operational plans, Posiva has also applied for the expansion in the capacity of the repository from 6,500 tonnes to 12,000 tonnes of used fuel, which included wastes from the Olkiluoto 4 and Loviisa 3 reactors.
This support plan has been made by STUK to provide storage solutions for the long term, and the technology applied for this is KBS-3. This multi-barrier disposal involves encapsulating spent nuclear fuel into steel and copper canisters and is recognized as good for waste isolation from environment for millennia. Continuous construction of new waste disposal tunnels is proof that Posiva is serious about providing long-term solutions in nuclear waste management for generations to come.
Finland’s changing attitude toward nuclear energy: A journey of shifting public opinion
Finland’s public attitude on nuclear energy keeps changing over time, much like everything and has done so quite often in close connection with much greater public debates with the parameters of being environmentally responsible and energy sustainable.
According to the Gallup survey of 2010, nuclear energy was found to be supported by 48% of respondents. More youth support that, as 30% of individuals aged 15-24 are noted to present positive attitudes towards nuclear energy.
This continued into 2014, when a Gallup poll revealed that 41% of Finns supported nuclear energy, whereas only 24% voiced their opposition to it. By 2022, nuclear power in Finland reached its zenith in approval ratings among Finns.
A Kantar Public survey in fact reported that 60% of respondents held favourable views about nuclear energy, while only 11% opposed it. This blast of support can be attributed to Finland’s future for implementing safe and long-term waste disposal solutions, in addition to the perceived reliability of nuclear energy as a low-carbon power source.
The general trend observed, however, is one of increasing acceptance among the public about the possibilities that nuclear power can offer within Finland’s energy mix. Not that support is non-existent for the growing but still present opposition, with communities that house the facilities taking up a great deal of the opposition.
STUK and MEAE: The Finnish duality in nuclear safety and risk management
Finland’s nuclear energy activities are under strict regulations for the protection of safety and risk mitigation. All operations are approved through STUK inspection and licensing guidelines by MEAE. And definitely Finland will be with strong non-proliferation promises as it signed the NPT in 1972 and made these safeguards available with IAEA, Euratom to ensure that nuclear materials are always put to peaceful uses.
This is all, of course, in the run-up to the evidence again asserting Finland’s commitment to safety and international security. The waste management even with nuclear innovations in regulation and public activities is an integral part of this country. That commitment towards long-term waste ideas is the Onkalo repository.
But there has been a widening support for nuclear energy, and combined with the constantly favorable economic outlook, that leaves faith in the overall regulatory framework-deploying efforts toward non-proliferation. Nuclear policies in Finland are expected to keep on moving ahead in the way of safety, sustainability, and responsibility, which are prima facie issues of concern.
