Site selection. Exclusion criterion groundwater age

The Federal Company for Radioactive Waste Disposal (BGE), as the responsible organization for implementing the site selection procedure for repository sites for highlevel radioactive waste. has entrusted the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) with the work package "Exclusion Criteria". One criterion to be worked an with selected and specific requirements and questions is the "Exclusion Criterion Groundwater Age". The Site Selection Act (StandAG, §22) states with regard to this exclusion criterion that an area is not suitable as a repository site if young groundwater has been detected in the repository area. The present text classifies the mentioned exclusion criterion "groundwater age" in the current state of science and technology and gives an overview of the current possibilities and limitations of groundwater dating. In addition to the application of groundwater age dating in the exclusion criterion and in the host rocks under consideration, methods for the application in secondary and overburden areas are discussed in order to illustrate the added value of groundwater dating for the hydrogeological understanding of the system. Recommendations for the application of the groundwater age criterion in the site selection procedure are given and complementary approaches are discussed.