The authors, all specialists on various aspects of this challenging topic, begin with a discussion of safety issues surrounding nuclear weapons. They point out the superb safety record of the US nuclear weapons program since 1945 but caution that we are still working our way through safety challenges that were made more difficult by design decisions taken to meet military requirements set during the height of the Cold War. They then discuss nuclear reactor safety, including what to do with high-level radioactive waste, how to face the challenge of internationalizing the process of ensuring reactor safety around the world, and more. In their discussion of economic and regulatory issues, they focus on the importance of establishing and maintaining an independent authority protected from regulatory capture by either the government or the industry being regulated. The book concludes with an exploration of media and public policy issues, discussing how insights gained from the preceding chapters might be used to inform and raise public and governmental discussions regarding the nuclear enterprise in the energy and weapons arenas.

The risk posed by the nuclear enterprise of weapons and civilian power plants is unique in its enormity. Successful leadership in national security policy will require a continuous, diligent, and multinational assessment of newly emerging risks and consequences.