EURIDICE

EURIDICE contributes to the RD&D programme to assess the safety and feasibility of geological disposal of high-level and/or long-lived radioactive waste in a deep clay formation in Belgium.

The name “EURIDICE” stands for “European Underground Research Infrastructure for Disposal of nuclear waste in a Clay Environment”.

EURIDICE is a General Partnership between Ondraf/Niras, the Belgian Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS) and SCK CEN. In Belgium, ONDRAF/NIRAS is responsible for radioactive waste management and coordinates the geological disposal RD&D programme. SCK CEN primarily conducts research on topics relating to nuclear safety, waste management, human and environmental protection, management of fissile and other strategic materials, and the societal implications of the quest for sustainable development.

EURIDICE was set up in 1995, originally under the name EIG PRACLAY, but was renamed in 2000. 

The HADES underground research laboratory 

EURIDICE manages and operates the underground research laboratory known as HADES (High Activity Disposal Experimental Site), where experts develop and test industrial technologies for building, operating and sealing a waste repository in deep clay. Scientists conduct large-scale experiments under realistic conditions in the deep clay formation over a long period of time to assess the safety and feasibility of geological disposal in poorly indurated (i.e. hardened) clay. HADES is a research facility and will never be used as a final repository for radioactive waste.

You can find more information about the underground research laboratory here.

LABO