The head of the regulatory body urges quicker responses.

Salvaging an endangered ship - The head of the regulatory body urges quicker responses.

With increasing worry about the degrading nuclear waste storage facility in Lower Saxony, Asse, the nuclear regulatory agency is urging for quicker action on retrieval efforts. "It's time the retrieval and emergency measures be sped up," stated Christian Kühne, president of the Federal Agency for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Disposal (BASE), to the German Press Agency. Recent reports have suggested the seeping saltwater may now be taking unforeseen routes, raising concern among politicians and specialists.

Earlier in May, Niedersachsen's environment minister Christian Meyer (Greens) voiced his concern stating the ongoing disaster at Asse was writing yet another chapter. Just before that, the CEO of the operating company (BGE), Iris Graffunder, shared her thoughts in a newspaper interview, "The situation in the mine is not fully predictable, the sudden change in water inflow has us alarmed," she told the "Braunschweiger Zeitung." Kühne, the head of the regulatory organization, assured that while uncertainty remains, it is no reason for panic.

A continual dialogue exists among the relevant parties as the Asse situation must be examined, monitored, and assessed, as Kühne discussed. However, his stance is also clear: "The Asse is a nuclear legacy that should never have been designated a final repository."

Approximately 126,000 barrels of low- and medium-radioactive waste are stored in 13 chambers at the site, with water seeping in it is degrading rapidly. The facility in question comes under the responsibility of the Federal Company for Final Repositories, located in Peine. Experts from the firm recently mentioned the water volume at the primary collection point is lowering and specify it's unclear where the remaining water could be.

At the moment, this scenario doesn't hinder the planned shutdown procedure, according to the Federal Office. However, BASE urges that the termination of Asse and associated emergency precautions be strategized urgently by the operator.

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1. Amidst growing concerns about the deteriorating nuclear waste storage facility in Lower Saxony, known as Asse, Christian Kühne, president of the BASE, called for faster retrieval and emergency measures, citing potential unforeseen saltwater routes.
2. Echoing similar sentiments, Christian Meyer, Niedersachsen's environment minister and Green party member, voiced his concern about the Asse disaster adding another chapter to Germany's nuclear legacy.
3. The German Press Agency reported that Iris Graffunder, CEO of the operating company (BGE), expressed concern about the unpredictable situation at the Asse facility, where sudden changes in water inflow have raised alarms.
4. Kühne, the head of the regulatory organization, emphasized that while uncertainty persists, it should not cause panic, and highlighted the necessity of continuous dialogue among relevant parties regarding the assessment of the Asse situation.
5. The Supervisory authority, BASE, urged that the operator should strategize urgently to terminate the Asse facility and associated emergency precautions, given the rapid degradation of low- and medium-radioactive waste stored in 13 chambers at the site.

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