Sustainability Now! Sunday, August 16th, 2026: Plutonium Pit Production–The Risks and Costs of US Plans to Build New Nuclear Weapons, with Dr. Dylan K. Spaulding of the Union of Concerned Scientists

Plutonium Pit Production–The Risks and Costs of US Plans to Build New Nuclear Weapons with Dr. Dylan K. Spaulding of the Union of Concerned Scientists On Sustainability Now!  Sunday, August 16th, 2026, 5-6 PM on KSQD The United States is planning a $1.7 trillion overhaul of its entire nuclear arsenal, designing new warheads and investing in new bombers, missiles, and submarines to carry them, all in the name of “modernization.”  It’s not that the current generations of platforms and warheads won’t work; it’s more that Admirals, Generals and Presidents don’t trust devices that were deployed when they were children. There is also a lot of money and prestige in having the latest generation of gadgets and lording that over the competing services.  Oh, and new weapons are “manlier” than the old ones. Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for this rerun of a conversation with Dr. Dylan K. Spaulding a senior scientist in the Global Security Program of the Union of Concerned Scientists. His work focuses on technical issues related to nuclear stockpile stewardship and policies that can reduce the threat posed by nuclear weapons.  He recently authored a UCS report entitled “Plutonium Pit Production–The Risks and Costs of US Plans to Build New Nuclear Weapons.”  Its focus is on the stuff that makes warheads go “boom” but along the way, Spaulding covers a lot of other ground and the report is a good primer on nuclear weapons. That’s on Sustainability Now! Sunday, August 16th, 2026, from 5-6 PM right here on community radio for the Monterey Bay Region, KSQD 90.7 FM, KSQT 87.9 FM, K207FE (FX) 89.5 and KSQD.org, streaming on the internet.