Comparative Ethical Issues Entailed in the Geological Disposal of Radioactive Waste and Carbon Dioxide in the Light of Climate Change

Abstract

Many governments are at various stages of planning to dispose of ­radioactive waste (RW) in geological formations. Many governments expressly expect to use geological formations to dispose of the carbon dioxide (CO2) ­produced in fossil fuel combustion. This chapter compares, in the light of climate change, the ethical issues involved in disposing of RW and CO2 in geological formations, given their potential to cause harm and given the risks involved in the deployment of these disposal technologies. It highlights the ethical issues triggered by the need for a high level of scientific certainty regarding the ability of potential disposal sites to counteract the migration of substances of concern away from disposal areas. However, the ethical issues entailed in geological disposal of RW and CO2 may need to be re-evaluated in light of the fact that disposal contributes to climate change mitigation. It is concluded, however, that as long as alternative methods for mitigating climate change are available that do not involve geological disposal of CO2 and as long as scientific uncertainty remains about the efficacy of disposal sites to contain RW and CO2, such alternative methods are ethically preferable. The chapter identifies another ethical issue, namely that the development and deployment of alternative technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions could be delayed by reliance on geological disposal of CO2.