Customer Reviews

Tritium on Ice: The Dangerous New Alliance of Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear Power

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This is a compelling, timely and informative work by a knowledgable insider. Kenneth Bergeron explains in this clear, concise narrative the inner workings of our nuclear establishment and why civilian and military uses had been historically kept separate. A policy that is even more important today. He documents the complex and disturbing process that culminated in a 1998 decision to abandon this vital policy and the underlying factors that subordinated the public interest. This is a "must read" work that will move readers to add their voices to those seeking to reverse a dangerous decision before it is too late.

Someone wishing to make a hydrogen bomb needs to obtain some tritium. At the present time, tritium in suitable quantities can only be obtained in the U.S. through the highly guarded nuclear weapons program. In this extraordinarily well written book, Bergeron calls attention to a little-known 1998 decision by then energy secretary Bill Richardson which, when implemented, would shift tritium production to the commercial side of the nuclear industry. One purpose of the great wall that used to separate nuclear power from nuclear weapons was minimizing the chance that third-world countries like Libya could obtain the ingredients to make A-bombs and even the more powerful h-bombs. Bergeron, a nuclear insider, leads his readers through the dark corners and hallways of the nuclear power and nuclear weapons industries. He shows how the great wall would be breached by implementation of this decision. The story is captivating. Bergeron tells it very well. The problem is real. And Bergeron points out that there's still time to do something about it. With the end of the Cold War, the US doesn't need more tritium any time soon.