The HABOG nuclear waste interim storage plant in the Netherlands is a unique concept. It is managed by the COVRA (The Central Organization for Radioactive Waste).14 In the design of the facility special attention was paid to the long storage time of at least 100 years. It stores both nuclear spent fuel and other types of HLW. The facility was designed and built to high safety standards that include resistance to fire, earthquakes, explosions and direct aircraft crashes. This is the only storage facility that has received a licence for 100 years of operation. In addition to a focus on safety, the designers also paid attention to the artistic merits of the facility and its visual appearance, which contributes to its public acceptability. The building’s exterior will be painted every 20 years changing from the original orange to lighter and lighter shades until it becomes white to symbolize the decrease in stored activity. The aim of this approach is to reduce the activity of

the waste through decay over a 100 year period, prior to disposal. The facility will contain canisters with vitrified HLW from reprocessing, canisters with fuel elements from research reactors and drums with high-level waste. This facility is an example visionary approach to spent fuel and radioactive waste management, which could hopefully gain wider application.