Australian Nuclear Waste Returns Home Recycled and Ready For Storage

This radioactively-contaminated container once used to transport nuclear fuel rods at the Greifswald former nuclear power plant at the Zwischenlager Nord temporary nuclear waste storage facility in Lubmin, Germany. . Every nation struggles with ways to safely dispose of nuclear waste, which can remain toxic for thousands of years. Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Two tonnes of Australian radioactive waste, which was sent to the United Kingdom (UK) for recycling in 1996, has returned home after being extracted from uranium and contained in a safe storage vessel.

Police, security authorities, and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO)—a federal agency that maintains nuclear safety—successfully retrieved recycled nuclear waste from Sydney on March 13.