Radon Reality Checks, Deep-Geological Doubts, and the Case for Keeping Waste On-Site

In the 22nd installment of The Atomic Exchange Podcast, co-hosts Dr. Goran Calic and Michael Tadrous open with a surprising PSA: radon gas, not reactors, is the deadliest radiation risk most people face—linked to roughly 21 000 lung-cancer deaths a year in North America—yet few homeowners even test for it. From cheap basement monitors to Canada’s uranium-rich soils, they lay out what listeners can do today. The conversation then shifts underground—literally—to deep-geological repositories. Finland’s Onkalo vault may soon become the world’s first “forever” dump, but Goran argues its tidy economics hinge on having just two nearby plants, nothing like the sprawl of ninety U.S. reactors. Michael counters that America’s stalled Yucca Mountain project shows one national site is politically impossible, while hauling fuel across state lines or Indigenous lands would likely push costs from today’s US $0.1–2 per MWh (on-site dry casks) to four-plus cents. Together they ask: if decades of safe, cheap on-site storage already exist, are DGRs solving a real safety gap or simply buying expensive peace of mind? Tune in for a brisk, number-driven debate that challenges nuclear orthodoxy and reminds us sometimes the safest place for waste is right where it sits.