A study on a potential site for a spent fuel repository in the Czech Republic has been put on hold.
The country's environment minister has sided with environmental and civic groups opposed to researching the site. Czech news agency CTK reported Friday that he determined the government did not properly consider their objections. Known as Cow Mountain (Kravi Hora), the site is in South Moravia. Votes in nearby towns, which would receive payments from the state during the study period, were split on the project.
Currently, spent fuel from commercial reactors at Dukovany and Temelin is stored at facilities on site. According to the World Nuclear Association, site selection for a permanent repository was scheduled for 2015 with construction starting after 2050. The project would be funded with a per-kilowatt-hour fee for nuclear waste disposal that Czech utility CEZ has set aside since 2002.