President Vladimir Putin signed a new nuclear waste bill into law Wednesday, paving the way for the import of up to 20,000 tons of spent fuel to Russia despite protest from environmentalists.
At the same time, Putin created a new commission charged with studying the long-term environmental impact of Russia storing other nation's nuclear waste.
The committee will be headed by the country's Nobel-prize winning physicist Zhores Alferov, the Kremlin said in a statement.
Looking for ways to boost the state's coffers, officials predict that the project could earn Russia some 21 billion dollars (24.4 billion euros) over the next 10 years.
The law amends existing legislation to allow Russia to import and store on a "temporary" basis nuclear waste and by-products from abroad.
Academics from Russia's Academy of Science had urged Putin to veto the measure, arguing that waste storage is a danger to the population -- MOSCOW (AFP)
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