ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book presents the universal issues of high-level radioactive waste management from the perspective of the German legal system. It discusses the entire “life-cycle” of radioactive waste, i.e. from the moment that radioactive material is classified as radioactive waste, through the period of interim storage, up to its final disposal. The central research objective of this book was to analyse how private and public entities bear both responsibility and liability within the process of nuclear waste management. On one hand it is a clear constitutional task of the state to protect the life, health of its citizens as well as to protect the environment. The current German regulatory framework is a result of decades of hefty public and legal debate. Although those regulations might not be perfect, it is a bold attempt to address these issues by the generations that used nuclear power.
