Ambient office  = 89 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 150 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 154 nanosieverts per hour

Iceberg lettuce from Central Market = 67 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 56 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 52 nanosieverts per hour

       Saudi Arabia is accepting bids for the construction of multiple nuclear power reactors. Westinghouse, a U.S. company, is very interested in building those reactors but there are problems because some of the technologies involved have dual use. This means that they can be used for commercial nuclear power reactors and also can be used in the development of nuclear weapons. The U.S. has rules about who they can sell such technologies to and Saudi Arabia does not satisfy the criterion for such sales. U.S. official are working hard to figure out a way to get around these restrictions.
       Saudi Arabia has said that if Iran were to obtain nuclear weapons, then Saudi Arabia would need to develop nuclear weapons as well as a counter. There are reports that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have an understanding that if Iran obtains nuclear weapons, Pakistan would ship nuclear weapons to Saudi Arabia immediately.
       Israel is also very worried about Iran having nuclear weapons and has warned the world that it may take unilateral military action to attack Iranian nuclear facilities. While Israel and Saudi Arabia both see Iran as an enemy and Saudi Arabia has recently been working with Israel against Iranian interests, Israel is still very concerned that Saudi Arabia might develop their own nuclear arsenal.
       Israel understands that it will not be able to convince the U.S. to forego billions of dollars’ worth of Saudi Arabia nuclear construction. It has presented the U.S. with a list of their concerns about the Saudi Arabia nuclear projects as well as a set of “red-lines” that could trigger Israeli military actions against Saudi Arabia.
        Israel has asked that U.S. negotiations over nuclear power plants with Saudi Arabia be as transparent as possible to prevent surprises that might upset Israel. Israel also wants a list of all the nuclear technology that the U.S. is considering selling to Saudi Arabia. They want to be included in the planning of where the Saudi nuclear power plants should be located. Israel demands that any U.S. deal with Saudi Arabia does not include the right to enrich uranium inside Saudi Arabia. Israel also demands that the U.S. be the only country to sell nuclear fuel to Saudi Arabia if U.S. companies get the contract for the Saudi nuclear reactors. And, finally, Israel demands that the U.S. remove all spent nuclear fuel from Saudi Arabia as quickly as possible in order to prevent Saudi Arabia from reprocessing the fuel to obtain plutonium for nuclear weapons.
       The U.S. Energy Secretary met with the Israeli energy minister a couple of weeks ago to discuss Israel concerns and demands. The U.S. Energy Secretary told the Israeli energy minister that the concerns of Israel would be carefully considered as the U.S. moves forward in negotiations with Saudi Arabia. The U.S. Energy Secretary will be traveling to Israel in October and will discuss the Israeli concerns then.
       Israel’s concerns about a Saudi nuclear program are certainly justified. And they have sufficient influence with the U.S. that their concerns and redlines will be taken seriously. Unfortunately, there are other suppliers of nuclear technology that are negotiating to build Saudi reactors and if the U.S. bids are too expensive or restrictive, Saudi Arabia may well purchase its reactors from other countries that will not attach such restrictions as the Israelis demand.

Ambient office  = 128 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 138 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 140 nanosieverts per hour

Red seedless grapes from Central Market = 102 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 70 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 63 nanosieverts per hour

Part 3 of 3 parts (Please read Parts 1 and 2 first)
       The danger of such events in the BRI countries are quite high. The Dean of the Institute of International Affairs at Nanjing University said that “Security is the most important challenge facing the Belt and Road.” The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has already contributed to tensions between Pakistan and India, both of which have nuclear weapons. Pakistan is prone to earthquakes, tsunamis and terrorism. There are two reactors under construction by China in Pakistan just outside of Karachi. They are less than twenty miles away from a very populated area. If there was a major accident at the plant, evacuation of the nearby population would simply be impossible. Terrorists have killed forty-four BRI construction workers in Pakistan since 2014. It is difficult to see how building another six reactors in Pakistan will ease the distrust and tension in the region.
       Many supporters of nuclear power and many environmentalists who had been opposed to it are now saying that we cannot mitigate climate change without a major investment in nuclear power. In reality, only one stage of the fourteen stages of the nuclear fuel cycle are actually “carbon-free.”
        Nuclear reactors consume huge amounts of water for cooling. Many of the countries in the BRI have chronic shortages of water. For example, Pakistan is slated to run out of water by 2025. While desalination would help solve this problem, not all of the BRI countries are located on the coast of an ocean. And, desalination is currently expensive and difficult.
       There is still no good solution for final disposal of spent nuclear fuel despite the fact that nuclear power has been a reality for over sixty years. What will happen to all the spent nuclear fuel from the planned nuclear reactors?
        Major accidents such as the Fukushima event in Japan in 2011 can cause major environmental damage and spread radiation all over the world. In addition to the damage to environment and public health, one more major disaster such as Fukushima could spell doom for the entire global industry as the politicians and investors turn away.
       Around the year 2000, there was a lot of talk about a global “nuclear renaissance.” Now it looks more like we have descended into a nuclear quagmire. There are many NPP projects across the developed world that have been either delayed or cancelled. China is leading a nuclear resurgence that has little concern for political, humanitarian or safety issues.
       This does not mean that there are no positive elements to the BRI but there are still very serious unresolved security problems to confront. The BRI does include many renewable energy projects which are promising for the host countries and will certainly help with climate change mitigation. It would be better for everyone across the globe if China and the BRI focused on renewable energy and left nuclear power behind on the ash heap of history where it rightly belongs.
       Developing countries can learn from the mistakes of developed nations and opt for new cleaner and cheaper technologies than those employed by the developed world.

Ambient office  = 84 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 108 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 114 nanosieverts per hour

Red bell pepper from Central Market = 57 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 135 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 128 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient office  = 100 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 165 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 158 nanosieverts per hour

Crimini mushroom from Central Market = 115 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 115 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 107 nanosieverts per hour