Events
The EURIDICE communication team has organised various events and will continue to do so when milestones are achieved. In deep disposal research, many experiments take years or even decades to finish, which is why it is extra important to celebrate the achievements of the team and the Belgian Programme on Radioactive Waste Management.
Past events
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After the second phase of the HADES construction, when the second shaft and the connecting gallery were finished, EURIDICE hosted a celebratory event to inaugurate the extension of the undeground laboratory. This was held in June 2002 in the newly constructed demonstration hall, where an exhibition on geological disposal is located.
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In May 2011, 30 years of research in HADES was celebrated by stakeholders and involved parties at the Radisson Blu in Antwerp. International speakers from NAGRA, POSIVA and ANDRA, amongst others, contributed to this event. The international collaborations between the waste management organisations and research institutes that work on deep disposal, were clearly emphasized during this event.
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In March 2015, the PRACLAY VIP event was held. During this event, NIRAS-ONDRAF and the SCK CEN, partners of EURIDICE, presented the PRACLAY heating experiment to the ministers responsible for Employment, Economy and Consumer Affairs, Foreign Trade and Energy, Environment and Sustainable and to national and regional stakeholders and prominent figures.
The goal of the event was to emphasize that scientific research into geological disposal in poorly inducrated clay has now reached an advanced stage of technical maturity. Thanks to the efforts and investments made over the past decades, our country is now ready for a policy decision. The PRACLAY test will demonstrate the feasibility of this solution. It was also emphasized that the PRACLAY project is certainly not an end point. The scientific programme will continue to progress gradually. Any decision on possible disposal will be preceded by extensive, step-by-step research. This also applies to decisions in the more distant future, such as the choice of a disposal site.
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In 2022, two years later due to the COVID pandemic, the forthieth birthday of the HADES underground research lab was celebrated in various ways. In honor of 40 years of HADES, a social media campaign was launched. The podcasts and movie clips that were produced to boost this campaign are still available, click on the text to listen and watch. Moreover, two events were organised in 2022.
A VIP event was hosted by EURIDICE at Tabloo. Here, the focus was on the policy decisions and decision-making process related to geological disposal.
Moreover, a special exchange meeting, dedicated to the research in HADES, was organised. The presentations given during this exchange meeting are available on the Exchange Meeting web page, click here to access them. Morever, a special issue was published on Geological Disposal of Radioactive Waste in Deep Clay Formations: 40 Years of RD&D in the Belgian URL HADES.
Lastly, a mobile exposition was produced, depicting the achievements of the research performed in HADES.
On the occasion of 40 years of the HADES underground research lab, a special issue book was written for the Geological Society.
Over the past four decades, research in the HADES underground research laboratory has demonstrated that the geological disposal of radioactive waste in clay can provide a safe and feasible disposal solution. This Special Publication presents the main contributions of the HADES laboratory to Belgian and international research into geological disposal.
