The waste would be packaged and stored in new purpose-built stores.

The stores could be above the ground or tens of metres underground and they could be either at a single location or spread around the UK.

The stores could last for hundreds of years, but they would not be permanent, and they would need refurbishment.

The aim of this option is to store the waste until a better option can be implemented.

This may involve waiting until we have more information about other options, or deciding on another option now, but waiting until we are confident it will work before implementing it.

Advantages

Disadvantages

This option is the least expensive in the short term. The waste would be retrievable, accessible and easy to monitor, so we could decide to manage it differently in future.

The storage facilities could be built at or near to the nuclear sites where the waste was produced. This would minimise the need to transport the waste, and spread the burden amongst a number of communities.

This option is the least expensive in the short term.

Future generations would have to manage the waste. They would have to maintain the facility, construct a new facility if the old one has to be replaced or implement a new management strategy.

The option is likely to involve large-scale financial costs in the longer term

This option may be less safe and secure, for example from terrorist attack or natural disasters, than burying wastes deep underground.