Hydraulic Fracturing—A Potential Risk for the Safety of Clay-Sealed Underground Repositories for Hazardous Wastes

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Abstract
Clay backfill as an artificial seal is a common component in plans for underground waste repositories. Clay is expected to delay access of groundwater to the repository and to serve as a chemical buffer. However, there is evidence from geotechnical applications and from geological observations that clays are susceptible to fracturing due to local excessive fluid pressures (hydraulic fracturing). A simple experiment, simulating the fluid pressures in an artificially emplaced protective clay layer after the sealing and abandonment of an underground waste repository, supports this evidence. Hydraulic fractures would destroy expected favorable properties of the backfill and may represent a risk for the safety of a hazardous waste repository.

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