Product Description
Assesses the magnitude of the effects of trade liberalization on welfare and the environment in small open economies, and to which degree these effects are influenced by environmental policy. The study aims to be widely applicable to open market-based economies and countries undertaking major liberalization programs. DLC: Free trade--Environmental aspects--New Zealand. ... Read more

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Economics and the Global Environment investigates if and how environmental resources, such as global climate, genetic diversity, and transboundary pollution can be managed in an international system of sovereign states without a Global Environment Protection Agency. It also considers traditional international economics--theory and policy--and explores how they can be expanded to accommodate environmental values. Until recently, trade theory and trade policy neglected pollution and environmental degradation. This situation has changed dramatically, and the controversial and corrosive issues of trade and the environment are given careful analysis. ... Read more

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The chemical pollution that irrevocably damages today's environment is, although many would like us to believe otherwise, the legacy of conscious choices made long ago. During the years before and just after World War II, discoveries like leaded gasoline and DDT came to market, creating new hazards even as the expansion and mechanization of industry exacerbated old ones. Dangers still felt today--smog, pesticides, lead, chromium, chlorinated solvents, asbestos, even global warming--were already recognized by chemists, engineers, doctors, and business managers of that era. A few courageous individuals spoke out without compromise, but still more ignored scientific truth in pursuit of money and prestige.

The Polluters reveals at last the crucial decisions that allowed environmental issues to be trumped by political agendas. It spotlights the leaders of the chemical industry and describes how they applied their economic and political power to prevent the creation of an effective system of environmental regulation. Research was slanted, unwelcome discoveries were suppressed, and friendly experts were placed in positions of influence, as science was subverted to serve the interests of business. The story of The Polluters is one that needs to be told, an unflinching depiction of the onslaught of chemical pollution and the chemical industry's unwillingness to face up to its devastating effects. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A Complicated Topic, Breezily Told
The Polluters is a great tour through the development of industry and the environmental regulation that eventually accompanied it.Although the book is meticulously researched with references to many reports, newspaper articles, and hearings, it never gets bogged down in the details.It is a quick read at under 200 pages as the authors jump around different time periods, industries, and pollutants.Highlights include something of a history of DuPont, the story of Donora, PA, and the fight over whether arsenic was safe to use on apples or other food.But the real takeaway the authors demonstrate is the repeated story of industry's response to the threat of regulation, often reflexively opposing it and calling for more research.The comparisons to the fight over greenhouse gas emissions and climate change is apparent and briefly explored by the authors.

There are successes however, including environmental legislation of the 1970s that created the EPA and established regimes for clean air and clean water, the Montreal Protocol of the 1980s which banned CFCs, and efforts in Los Angeles and St. Louis to limit smog.

The book's characters are a mixed bag of industry figures and scientists who often put their heads in the sand and those who saw what pollution was doing to our ecosystem and public health.With the exception of Rachel Carson, I do not think I had heard of any of these interesting figures before.

A Stirring Account of Industry Special Interests
The Polluters in an engrossing tale of the men (n.b., all the women seem to have been on the side of good in this story) who battled the regulators and won the right to poison the environment from the early 1900s through to the 1970s. Rather than treating the chemical industry giants as monolithic entities Ross & Amter dig deeper to uncover the men behind the corporate facades who were largely responsible for the callous actions of these companies. This is a book that tells a timeless tale of special interests and the power they wield in the hallowed halls of government. The mantra of "more research was needed to understand the problem" can easily be found in current arguments about global warming and the more recently debated existence of underwater oil plumes in the gulf. The Polluters is a riveting narrative and at the end you are left wanting more, knowing the main characters in this tale are real and the story of our chemically altered environment is one that is continually unfolding.

An Eye Opening History
Benjamin Ross and Steven Amter have written a fascinating and eye-opening history of the companies, institutions, and policies that have created our chemically altered environment over the last century.

If Earth Day or the Love Canal tragedy were the events that brought the environmental crisis into your consciousness, then you owe it to yourself to read The Polluters. Even more so, if it was Global Warming or the BP oil spill.

Killer smog in LA and mass zinc poisoning in Denora, Pennsylvania are two dramatic events, just after WWII, covered by Ross and Amter. But there is also the story of DDT and leaded gasoline.The coverups by companies and the obfuscations of industry-influenced scientific groups are constants in the story.

Government has rarely been an effective regulator. The chemical industry in pursuing its own pecuniary interests has promoted and exploited an ideology of market fundamentalism, which has helped to negate and undermine efforts at regulation.


The Polluters is free of academic jargon and is written in a lively style.

... Read more

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Extensively rewritten, reorganized, and updated to match the curriculum standard as defined by the Center for the Advancement of Process Technology (CAPT), this Second Edition offers an easy-to-follow investigation into the entire spectrum of safety, health, and environmental concerns related to the process industry.Coherent coverage is designed to take learners on a straightforward journey towards understanding the plethora of important regulatory issues governing today's chemical processing arena.Readers will acquire valuable process technology insight as they become acutely familiar with accident prevention, risk assessment and management, policy and procedures preparation, plant operations safety, and more. ... Read more

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hot off the press
Book still had the fresh smell of ink.Received in excellent condition and in about a week. ... Read more

Product Description
We expect Birkenstocks. We find wing-tips.

Professional organizations that advocate on behalf of environmental issues have become a permanent part of the American political landscape. From the Sierra Club to the Rainforest Action Network, these groups represent more than eleven million members and claim more than $3.5 billion in assets. Sometimes lambasted for non-stop fund-raising, top-heavy bureaucracies, or agendas out of touch with local concerns, they remain staunch advocates for Mother Nature in the marble halls of Washington. But what happens to a grassroots movement when it goes mainstream?

In this insightful book, Christopher Bosso considers how organizations that once contested the Establishment have become an establishment of their own. Environment, Inc. is the only book to examine the evolution of a national advocacy community over the span of a century. Bosso describes the transformation of an inchoate 1960s movement into fixtures of contemporary politics to show how this transformation was necessary for the success of environmental policy. Presenting some thirty organizations that lie at the core of the national environmental advocacy community-today's environmental establishment-he examines these groups both individually and collectively to clarify their origins, organizational evolution, and methods of operation. He looks at annual reports and tax forms to assess their financial health and organizational maintenance, and he describes how people whose heart is in the great outdoors have been forced to become more businesslike in order to survive in a political context that places a premium on presence.

Bosso seeks to learn why organizations born in social movements become larger, more professional, and more bureaucratic over time. He tells how warhorses like the Sierra Club and National Audubon Society have survived in the face of an influx of competitors, and why so relatively few new national organizations have appeared in recent years. In examining the success of some and the demise of others, he sheds light on how organizations adapt to the shifting winds of politics and economics.

As Bosso observes, the very normalcy of today's environmental community speaks volumes about the contours of American democracy. He shows that these groups, for all their flaws, remain the most consistent promoters of environmental values in a political system based on organized advocacy. His cogent analysis offers new insights into the nature of interest group politics in the United States.

This book is part of the Studies in Government and Public Policy series. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Timely and well written
I purchased this book for use in a university course, but any one interested in the recent changes in environmental organizations would also benefit. The tone is, by design, a bit scholarly, but Bosso is an expert in this field and what he writes is accurate and unbiased. There is nothing out there right now that compares to it in terms of timeliness. ... Read more

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Although much has been written on the subject of environmental impact, little attention has been given to the psychology behind decisions that affect the environment. "Environment, Ethics, and Behavior" demonstrates how understanding the psychological determinants of environmental behavior may be the key to saving the earth for future generations. In this unique collection of essays, many of the leading social, cognitive, and decision psychologists offer revealing insights from their own research on environmental behavior. Their scholarly perspectives shed light on the interaction between psychological theory and contemporary environmental and ethical issues and stimulate discussion on future research topics. ... Read more

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Env Ethics and behaiour
I love to look at others differently in terms of their ethical standards. Environmental impacts is something that people do not normally think about and it is wonderful to read this book. ... Read more

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Examines environmental conflicts between mining companies and indigenous communities and offers a comparative study of the factors leading to those conflicts. Ali presents four cases from the United States and Canada that exemplify different historical relationships with government and industry and provide an instance of high and low levels of Native resistance in each country. Through these cases, Ali analyzes why and under what circumstances tribes agree to negotiated mining agreements on their lands, and why some negotiations are successful and others not.

“It is refreshing to find a strong work grounded in social science theory that is also engaging for casual readers.” —Montana, the Magazine of Western History

“An important contribution to our understanding of the factors influencing decision making among these groups in both nations.” —Ken Pepion, Harvard University Native American Studies Program ... Read more

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A fascinating analysis of the world's scavengers as performing an important economic role in the production and consumption of food. ... Read more

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Updated and Expanded Edition

Winner of the Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order 1992, Named New Options Best Political Book


Economist Herman Daly and theologian John Cobb, Jr., demonstrate how conventional economics and a growth-oriented industrial economy have led us to the brink of environmental disaster, and show the possibility of a different future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Another fine book by Herman E. Daly.
This is a seminal work in the field of Ecological Economics, a real primer.

Neatly organized in parallel chapters dealing, one point-of-view at a time, with some of the main consequences from the fallacy of misplaced concreteness.

I just have restrictions to his views at the chapter on Population, where he advocates for abortion and euthanasia. See, on the former I'd rather advocate sending unwanted children for adoption. As for the latter, ortothanasia (no desperate measures) is ethically right, but euthanasia is quite selfish stuff, not to be advocated for by people bent on reconstructing community. That is why I didn't grade it as 5-star.

Except for that, just another fine book by one of the finest thinkers in our time.

Let's hear it for the common good!
I have been a fan of Professor Daly's for some time. This book has some excellent analysis and some truly great commentary. The writing is a bit dry; if you're new to Professor Daly's work, you might want to try one of his other books first, like "Beyond Growth.""For the Common Good" does have some wonderfully thought-provoking lines.Just to give you a taste:"Economics cannot do without simplifying assumptions, but the trick is to use the right assumptions at the right time."Or, with regards to relying on technological fixes for environmental problems: "It is one thing to say that knowledge will grow (no one rejects that), but it is something else to presuppose that the content of new knowledge will abolish old limits faster than it discovers new ones."Another on the same subject:"If it ain't broke, don't fix it; if you must tinker, save all the pieces; and if you don't know where you're going, slow down."On population control:"Nature's way is not always best, but in this instance it seems more responsible than our current practice of allowing new human beings to be unintended by-products of the sexual fumblings of teenagers whose natural urges have been stimulated by drugs, alcohol, TV, and ill-constructed welfare incentives." Daly's Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare deserves to be far better known than it is.The analysis of misplaced concreteness, especially as it relates to the nature of debt, is very good.
The authors sometimes come across as a little naive in this book.For example, they propose making the government the employer of last resort.I think they do not realize just how hard it is to make such programs work; they inevitably decline into a morass of dependency and corruption.The Washington DC municipal government has taken precisely this approach in the past few decades, with predictable results.
I think the authors would also do well to do some research on the failures of utopian communities; since I was raised a Mormon, I know a lot about some of these.The chapter on religion strikes me as a bit silly. They want to bring God into the building of a more humane society; this is not necessarily bad, but I tend to think that science will take us farther than God will.In my opinion, Christianity's idea that the Second Coming of Christ is not far off is a very serious barrier to giving humanity's long-term future the attention it deserves.Talking about ethics, the authors say "But to believe that God does exist makes the ethical life more authentic."Well, that's only true if God really does exist, which I doubt.
Overall, the book has some excellent points to make.If you're interested in economics and public policy, don't miss it.

Ethical, Humanitarian, Communitarian, Sustainable
Edit of 21 Dec 07 to add links

Dr. Herman E. Daly may well be a future Nobel Prize winner ...he is especially well-regarded in Norway and Sweden, where he has received prizes one step short of the Nobel.He is the author, co-author, or primary contributing editor of many books that fully integrate the disciplines of economics and ecology.I bought the three most recent for the purpose of selecting one to give out at my annual Global Information Forum.I ended up choosing this book to give away to hundreds, in part because it is available in paperback and is not a more expensive "trade" publication; and in part because it is strong in laying out specific ecological policy areas in the context of a strong theological or ethical perspective.

Of the three books I reviewed, (the newest Ecological Economics: Principles And Applications, the oldest, updated, Valuing the Earth: Economics, Ecology, Ethics) the first, the text-book, is assuredly the most up-to-date and the most detailed.If you are buying only one book for yourself, that is the one that I recommend, because these are important issues and a detailed understanding is required with the level of detail that this book provided.It should, ideally, be read with "Valuing the Earth" first (see my separate review of that book, from the 1970's updated with 1990's material and new contributions), then this book ("For the Common Good"), and finally the text book as a capstone.But if you buy only one, buy the text book.

This is a second-edition work, updated from the 1984 first edition.I like it very much in part because it comes across as less academic and more common-sense in nature.Part One does a lovely job of tearing apart the fallacy of misplaced concreteness with respect to economics, the market, measuring economic success, the reduction of the human to a "good" that can be traded without regard to humanity and ethics and community, and land.Part Two gently introduces the reader to the many distinguished thought-leaders and practitioners who have gradually matured the discipline of economics to embrace humanity, community, and sustainability as non-negotiable realities that cannot be ignored.

Part Three, a major factor in my choosing this book over the others for broad pro-bono distribution, addresses the specifics of policies one element at a time: free trade versus community; population; land use; agriculture; industry; labor; income policies and taxes; from world domination to national security as an objective.Finally, Part Four, without being corny or preachy, describes the religious or ethical vision (I still think the Golden Rule works as a one-sentence definition of common interest).

An afterword on debt in relation to money and wealth is particularly timely as the American public foolishly allows the White House carpetbaggers to run up a $7 trillion deficit that our great-grandchilden will never be able to pay off if we continue is these evil and irresponsible directions, all in sharp opposition to the sensible and ethical constructs in this book.

Of the three books, none of which really duplicate one another in any negative way, albeit with overlaps, this is the second that I recommend for purchase, after the textbook.

See also, with reviews, published since then:
The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism: How the Financial System Underminded Social Ideals, Damaged Trust in the Markets, Robbed Investors of Trillions - and What to Do About It
Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution
Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage
Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things

Great ideas, will they work?
The opening criticisms of how economics is taught in today's university structure along with the inappropriate credence given this largely theoretical topic's conclusions are well-presented and well-received.Similarly, the general theme of the recommendations is presented very nicely.Basically, we must focus on more local goods, more self-sufficiency in communities.The authors take the time and care to address such technicalities as what exactly they mean by communities.In general their care is a strength of the book, though perhaps more of the details could have been put in appendices or footnotes rather than disturbing the flow of the text.My main complaint is that no EXAMPLES are given--real-life attempts, either successful or failed, at some of their recommendations.Without examples, all their suggestions seem unsubstantiated.A lengthy but decent read, with a nice underlying philosophy.

Humane and incisive
Because of the large number of issues and sometimes conflicting solutions proposed, this is a difficult book to classify. Key, however, is theauthors' profound refusal to subordinate the common good of the communityto the god of the free market. This does not mean the elimination ofmarkets where they have proven effective and non-destructive. It does meankeeping their operation within strict limits, so that people can regain asense of community and a sustainable environment. Much of the book is takenup with showing the limits of market theory and practice, and in that senseshould be studied by all with an interest in America's secular religion.Proposed solutions are decidedly non-ideological and largely eclectic. Boththe left and the right should find points of agreement. All in all, this isan invaluable guide to many of the planet's most pressing problems andshould be required reading for college undergraduates. ... Read more

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A good environmental record is an enduringly useful asset
Business that incorporate and practice environmentally appropriate decisions and policies are, as a general rule, more profitable than business that ignore the impact they have upon the environment. That is the well-supported thesis of climate change expert and author Chris Goodall in his most recent work, "The Green Guide for Business: The Ultimate Environment Handbook for Businesses of All Sizes". This 208-page compendium of information will enable business owners and managers to calculate the 'carbon footprint' of their enterprise, adopt and adapt environmentally sound improvements to the company in terms of buildings, transportation systems, and more. Of special note is the informed and informative chapter dedicated to 'reducing, reusing, and recycling'. A good environmental record is an enduringly useful asset in everything from lowering operational costs to insuring customer loyalty -- both of which are essential for any business enterprise having to compete in today's highly competitive local, national, and international marketplaces!
... Read more

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In this new study of energy use and global climate change, Richard Wolfsonoutlines basic scienceconcepts as well as specific, contemporary applications in energyproduction and theirenvironmental consequences.Energy, Environment, and Climate isstructured on thepremisethat climate change is the dominant energy-related environmental issue of thetwenty-first century.Traditional concerns likepollution and conservation of energy resources are covered with clear,scientific explanations.Uniqueto this text, a full five chapters—about one-third of the content—are devoted toclimateand an understanding ofthe energy/climate link.Included are over 250 photographs andillustrations. . ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fantastic
I purchased this product because I have a DVD lecture series by the auther, Richard Wolfson, from the Teaching Company. The auther is a fantastic lecturer and can get his point across via the written word. I love it. ... Read more

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For over half a century, the biologist Barry Commoner has been one of the most prominent and charismatic defenders of the American environment, appearing on the cover of Time magazine in 1970 as the standard-bearer of "the emerging science of survival." In Barry Commoner and the Science of Survival, Michael Egan examines Commoner's social and scientific activism and charts an important shift in American environmental values since World War II.

Throughout his career, Commoner believed that scientists had a social responsibility, and that one of their most important obligations was to provide citizens with accessible scientific information so they could be included in public debates that concerned them. Egan shows how Commoner moved naturally from calling attention to the hazards of nuclear fallout to raising public awareness of the environmental dangers posed by the petrochemical industry. He argues that Commoner's belief in the importance of dissent, the dissemination of scientific information, and the need for citizen empowerment were critical planks in the remaking of American environmentalism.

Commoner's activist career can be defined as an attempt to weave together a larger vision of social justice. Since the 1960s, he has called attention to parallels between the environmental, civil rights, labor, and peace movements, and connected environmental decline with poverty, injustice, exploitation, and war, arguing that the root cause of environmental problems was the American economic system and its manifestations. He was instrumental in pointing out that there was a direct association between socioeconomic standing and exposure to environmental pollutants and that economics, not social responsibility, was guiding technological decision making. Egan argues that careful study of Commoner's career could help reinvigorate the contemporary environmental movement at a point when the environmental stakes have never been so high.

Urban and Industrial Environments series ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Gospel of Survival
Michael Egan has produced a well balanced history of the various parts of the conservation/environmemntalism movement. A main feature for me was the confrontation between Barry Commoner and Paul Ehrlick over population growth vs industrial greed in Chapter 4. 75 pages of notes and bibliography make a wonderful supplement for the serious student. This together with The Long Emergency by J. H. Kunstler make a good introduction to the many reasons why the survival of mankind is in jeopardy. Really! Read them both (from Amazon). ... Read more

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Scotland's natural environment is its most treasured asset and the subject of its most vociferous debates. Charles Warren tackles land reform, the future of farming, public access, conservation of moorland and birds of prey, the place of forestry, and the control of alien species and red deer, taking up the integration of conservation with social and economic objectives.

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Do you think that the Ozone Hole is a grunge rock club? Or that the Food Web is an online restaurant guide? Or that the Green Revolution happened in Greenland?

Then you need The Cartoon Guide to the Environment to put you on the road to environmental literacy.

The Cartoon Guide to the Environment covers the main topics of environmental science: chemical cycles, life communities, food webs, agriculture, human population growth, sources of energy and raw materials, waste disposal and recycling, cities, pollution, deforestation, ozone depletion, and global warming -- and puts them in the context of ecology, with discussions of population dynamics, thermodynamics, and the behavior of complex systems. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Review
Great Book! Easy to read and understand! I used this in my AP environmental science class and it helped me understand things much better and faster than the actual textbook.

I did not even receive my book
I did not receive my book, and its been over three weeks now. I will never order anything off of Amazon.com again.

Larry has written another winner
Very soon now I will have Larry Gonick's entire collection. While some people may look down on cartoons I find they are very useful in helping to form and cement learning. Larry has a fantastic sense of humor as well as a solid understanding in how to communicate science and the social impact of its application.

Good book
THIS BOOK DEALS WITH FACTS, NOT FICTION. One of the people wrote in the review:" disappointed that it doesn't deal with any issues today that are killing the earth. it should focus more on the effects of global warming, destruction of our rain forests, killing off of our animals and plants, and the new technologies we have..."

I am glad it does not deal especially with global warming. As many scientists that support it are against it. The more I read about global warming the more I believe that it is a political agenda rather than a fact. Any books stating Global warming is a fact is same as stating with a fact that we were created by God. Nobody knows where we came from. Was it evolution or was it God? Do not get me wrong, I do believe in preserving and saving and trying not to polute and in doing our part. But no one can tell me that Global warming is a fact. Even Gore does not believe it or he would not be driving large SUVs and flying on private jet planes that polute more than any SUV will during a year. Just one flight across the country will cause as much polution as 100s of SUVs will in a year. I AM GLAD THIS BOOK GIVES FACTS NOT FICTION.

Environmental Science and Cartoons
Great book as a break from the normal Environmental science textbooks.A funny and informative look at many of the key ideas and concepts related to environmental science.Many of the cartoons are also useful for teaching biological science.Don't be fooled, some of the cartoons demonstrate fairly advanced ideas, but in a humerous and entertaining fashion. ... Read more

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A pioneering attempt to see what diference econdomic evaluation of environmental effects woul have made to six actual, ongoing development projects, if done at the time of appraisal. It combines theoretical rigor with applied economic skills, presented with robust common sense.A practical and readable guide. ... Read more