5. What do we do with the waste?

There are several solutions to nuclear waste. One option is to recycle it. During the fission process, only about 3% of the uranium is used before the fuel has to be swapped out for fresh fuel. This means there is uranium that can be recovered from this spent fuel to make new fuel rods. France is a great example of this.

For nuclear fuel that can’t be recycled or for countries that don’t recycle fuel, direct disposal is another management strategy. With this method, used fuel is placed in robust canisters and then placed in tunnels underground and sealed with rocks and clay. Finland’s deep geological repository is near completion.

For countries that don’t have long-term direct disposal solutions or recycling infrastructure, spent fuel is stored in large above-ground silos at the power plant. These casks are robustly built, designed to contain radiation and eliminate the possibility of fission, and are able to withstand earthquakes, projectiles, tornadoes, floods, and other extreme scenarios.