Belgian Minister Accuses Luxembourg of "Disinformation Campaign" over Nuclear Waste Plans

The Belgian authorities have hit back after Luxembourg’s Ministry of the Environment urged residents to voice their objections to the former’s plans to dispose of nuclear waste near the two countries’ shared border on Wednesday.

Belgian Minister of the Environment Marie Christine Marghem accused her Luxembourg counterpart Carole Dieschbourg of having launched a public “disinformation campaign” without having first discussed the Grand Duchy's grievances with Belgium's authorities. 

In a statement released yesterday, Luxembourg's Ministry of the Environment noted several significant inconsistencies in Belgium's report on nuclear waste disposal plans for sites near the Luxembourg border. The Luxembourg authorities argued that the Belgian approach in this matter was contrary to an EU directive and a UN convention on the assessment of the effects of certain environment plans and programmes. 

In this context, Minister Dieschbourg invited the Luxembourg public to voice their concerns on the website of ONDRAF, the Belgian National Agency for Radioactive Waste and enriched Fissile Material.

Belgian Minister Marie Christine Marghem responded by clarifying that a specific location was yet to been defined for the nuclear waste disposal and assured that all legislation will be respected.