The National Assembly’s failure to pass a special law on constructing permanent storage facilities for radioactive waste has placed the future of South Korea’s nuclear power sector in jeopardy, with far-reaching implications for the country’s long-term energy security and economic growth.

The proposed bill, named the High-Level Radioactive Waste Management Special Act, aimed to establish a legal framework for the construction and operation of a permanent disposal facility and interim storage facilities for spent fuel from the country’s 26 nuclear power plants.