- Table View
- List View
An Environmental History of the World: Humankind's Changing Role in the Community of Life
by J. Donal Hughes J. Donald HughesThis second edition of An Environmental History of the World continues to present a concise history, from ancient to modern times, of the interactions between human societies and the natural environment, including the other forms of life that inhabit our planet. Throughout their evolutionary history, humans have affected the natural environment, sometimes with a promise of sustainable balance, but also in a destructive manner. This book investigates the ways in which environmental changes, often the result of human actions, have caused historical trends in human societies. This process has happened in every historical period and in every part of the inhabited earth. The book is organized into ten chapters. The main chapters follow a chronological path through the history of mankind, in relationship to ecosystems around the world. The first explains what environmental history is, and argues for its importance in understanding the present state of the world's ecological problems. Chapters two through eight form the core of the historical analysis, each concentrating on a major period of human history (pre-civilized, early civilizations, classical, medieval, early modern, early and later twentieth century, and contemporary) that has been characterized by large-scale changes in the relationship between human societies and the biosphere, and each gives several case studies that illustrate significant patterns occurring at that time. The chapters covering contemporary times discuss the physical impacts of the huge growth in population and technology, and the human responses to these problems. Our moral obligations to nature and how we can achieve a sustainable balance between technology and the environment are also considered. This revised second edition takes account of new research and the course of history containing new sections on global warming, the response of New Orleans to the hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and the experience of the Dutch people in protecting their low-lying lands against the encroachments of rivers, lakes, and the North Sea. New material is also offered on the Pacific Islands, including the famous case of Easter Island. This is an original work that reaches further than other environmental histories. Rather than looking at humans and the environment as separate entities, this book places humans within the community of life. The relationship between environmental thought and actions, and their evolution, is discussed throughout. Little environmental or historical knowledge is assumed from the reader in this introduction to environmental history. We cannot reach a useful understanding of modern environmental problems without the aid of perspective provided by environmental history, with its illustrations of the ways in which past decisions helped or hindered the interaction between nature and culture. This book will be influential and timely to all interested in or researching the world in which we live.
Environmental Horticulture: Science and Management of Green Landscapes
by Ross Cameron James HitchmoughEnvironmental horticulture - also referred to as landscape horticulture and amenity horticulture - is the umbrella term for the horticulture that we encounter in our daily lives. This includes parks, botanic gardens, sports facilities, landscape gardens, roundabouts, cemeteries, and shopping centres - any public space which has grass, planting and trees. A complete and comprehensive guide to an area most of us take for granted, Environmental Horticulture: - Comments and critiques contemporary thinking on the subject - Explores the role, value and application of horticulture in different landscapes - Reviews the importance and impact of horticulture on the wider environment - Covers practical management advice for categories of environmental horticulture such as turf grass, bedding plants, trees, grasslands and green roofs A vital resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students, this book is also a valuable addition to academic departments with an interest in green space management and wider environmental issues.
Environmental Horticulture: Science and Management of Green Landscapes
by James Hitchmough Ross CameronEnvironmental horticulture - also referred to as landscape horticulture and amenity horticulture - is the umbrella term for the horticulture that we encounter in our daily lives. This includes parks, botanic gardens, sports facilities, landscape gardens, roundabouts, cemeteries, shopping centres - any public space which has grass, planting and trees. This book reflects contemporary thinking and is supported by scientific evidence to show the role, value and application of horticulture in the landscape. The discipline of environmental horticulture, its importance and impact on the wider environment is explored in the first part, whilst the second part covers practical horticultural management of different categories of environmental horticulture.
The Environmental Humanities: A Critical Introduction (The\mit Press Ser. #1)
by Robert S. Emmett David E. NyeA concise overview of this multidisciplinary field, presenting key concepts, central issues, and current research, along with concrete examples and case studies.The emergence of the environmental humanities as an academic discipline early in the twenty-first century reflects the growing conviction that environmental problems cannot be solved by science and technology alone. This book offers a concise overview of this new multidisciplinary field, presenting concepts, issues, current research, concrete examples, and case studies. Robert Emmett and David Nye show how humanists, by offering constructive knowledge as well as negative critique, can improve our understanding of such environmental problems as global warming, species extinction, and over-consumption of the earth's resources. They trace the genealogy of environmental humanities from European, Australian, and American initiatives, also showing its cross-pollination by postcolonial and feminist theories. Emmett and Nye consider a concept of place not synonymous with localism, the risks of ecotourism, and the cultivation of wild areas. They discuss the decoupling of energy use and progress, and point to OECD countries for examples of sustainable development. They explain the potential for science to do both good and harm, examine dark visions of planetary collapse, and describe more positive possibilities—alternative practices, including localization and degrowth. Finally, they examine the theoretical impact of new materialism, feminism, postcolonial criticism, animal studies, and queer ecology on the environmental humanities.
Environmental Humanities of Extraction in Africa: Poetics and Politics of Exploitation (Routledge Environmental Humanities)
by James Ogude Tafadzwa MushongaThis book brings together perspectives on resource exploitation to expose the continued environmental and socio-political concerns in post-colonial Africa. The continent is host to a myriad of environmental issues, largely resulting from its rich diversity of natural resources that have been historically subjected to exploitation. Colonial patterns of resource use and capital accumulation continue unabated, making environmental and related socio-political problems a dominant feature of African economies. The book pursues the manifestation of these problems through four themes: environmental justice, violent capitalocenes, indigenous knowledge, and climate change. The editors locate the book within the broad fields of political ecology and environmental geopolitics to highlight the intricate geographies of resource exploitation across Africa. It uniquely focuses on the socio-political and geopolitical dynamics associated with the exploitation of Africa’s natural resources and its people. The case studies from different parts of Africa tell a compelling story of resource exploitation, related issues of environmental degradation in a continent particularly vulnerable to climate change, and the continued plundering of its natural resources. The book will be of great interest to scholars and students from the interdisciplinary fields of the environmental humanities and environmental studies more broadly, as well as those studying political ecology, environmental policy, and natural resources with a specific focus on Africa.
Environmental Hydrology
by Andy D. Ward Stanley W. Trimble Suzette R. Burckhard John G. LyonThe late Professor Reds Wolman in his Foreword to the award-winning second edition said, "This is not your ordinary textbook. Environmental Hydrology is indeed a textbook, but five elements often found separately combine here in one text to make it different. It is eclectic, practical, in places a handbook, a guide to fieldwork, engagingly personal
Environmental Illness: Myth & Reality
by Herman StaudenmayerEnvironmental illness: certain health professionals and clinical ecologists claim it impacts and inhibits 15 percent of the population. Its afflicted are led to believe environmental illness (EI) originates with food, chemicals, and other stimuli in their surroundings -as advocates call for drastic measures to remedy the situation. What if relief proves elusive-and the patient is sent on a course of ongoing, costly and ineffective ""treatment""?Several hundred individuals who believed they were suffering from EI have been evaluated or treated by Herman Staudenmayer since the 1970s. Staudenmayer believed the symptoms harming his patients actually had psychophysiological origins-based more in fear of a hostile world than any suspected toxins contained in the environment.Staudenmayer's years of research, clinical work-and successful care-are now summarized in Environmental Illness: Myth & Reality. Dismissing much of the information that has attempted to defend EI and its culture of victimization, Staudenmayer details the alternative diagnoses and treatments that have helped patients recognize their true conditions-and finally overcome them, often after years of prolonged suffering.
Environmental Impact Analysis: Process and Methods
by James T. MaughanThere are thousands of environmental analyses prepared each year to meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and similar programs. Written by an expert with 35 years of experience in environmental consulting, research, and education, Environmental Impact Analysis: Process and Methods makes the preparation of EIAs not on
Environmental Impact Assessments and Mitigation
by Musaida Mercy Manyuchi Charles Mbohwa Edison Muzenda Nita SukdeoEnvironmental Impact Assessments and Mitigation examines various assessments for developmental projects in the housing, mining, energy, and waste management areas. As the world continues to shift toward concerns over climate change and environmental protection issues, developmental projects must have environmental impact assessments (EIA) conducted as well as environmental management plans (EMP). This book describes how all phases of a project, from planning, to operation, to post operation, must consider potential environmental impacts and their mitigation. Features: Presents numerous sustainable development considerations for key industries Discusses how environmental impact assessments are prepared for each stage of a project Describes different environmental management plans for established projects Offers mitigation plans for various potential environmental impacts Includes practical examples from the construction, manufacturing, transport, and mining industries Useful for practicing professional engineers as well as upper-level students, this book covers all aspects of environmental impact assessments from start to finish.
Environmental Impact of Agricultural Production Activities
by Larry W. CanterThe book summarizes actual and/or relative environmental impacts resulting from existing and emerging agricultural production technologies, as practised in the USA. Case studies of environmental impacts of agricultural practices are discussed in one chapter, while separate chapters consider water and soil, air quality, noise and waste impacts. Air pollutants from cultivation operations, burning, agricultural vehicles, harvesting and grain handling, pesticide applications, wind erosion etc. are all considered. Noise produced by agricultural activities and exposure patterns for agricultural workers are examined. An annotated bibliography is included for the environmental impacts discussed in the text. Emerging agricultural production technologies such as nitrogen fixation, genetic engineering, plant growth regulation, erosion control, water management and waste utilization etc. are also compared for efficiency and environmental impacts.
Environmental Impact of Genetically Modified Crops
by Angharad M. R. Gatehouse Natalie FerryThe genetic modification of crops continues to be the subject of intense debate, and opinions are often strongly polarised. Environmental Impact of Genetically Modified Crops addresses the major concerns of scientists, policy makers, environmental lobby groups and the general public regarding this controversial issue, from an editorially neutral standpoint. While the main focus is on environmental impact, food safety issues, for both humans and animals are also considered. The book concludes with a discussion on the future of agricultural biotechnology in the context of sustainability, natural resource management and future global population and food supply.
Environmental Impact of Polymers (Wiley-iste Ser.)
by Thierry Hamaide Rémi Deterre Jean-François FellerThis text addresses the common negative perception of polymer materials on the environment with a thorough analysis of what really occurs when industry and academia collaborate to find environmental solutions. The book examines the environmental and social effects of polymer materials and explains methods of quantifying environmental performance. With an emphasis on the importance of education, the authors stress the importance of awareness and activity in negating polymers' environmental impact.
The Environmental Impact Statement After Two Generations: Managing Environmental Power (Natural and Built Environment Series)
by Michael R. GreenbergThis book is about a subject that Michael Greenberg has worked on and lived with for almost forty years. He was brought up in the south Bronx at a time when his neighborhood suffered from terrible air and noise pollution, and domestic waste went untreated into the Hudson River. For him, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was a blessing. It included an ethical position about the environment, and the law required some level of accountability in the form of an environmental impact statement, or EIS. After forty years of thinking about and working with NEPA and the EIS process, Greenberg decided to conduct his own evaluation from the perspective of a person trained in science who focuses on environmental and environmental health policies. This book of carefully chosen real case studies goes beyond the familiar checklists of what to do, and shows students and practitioners alike what really happens during the creation and implementation of an EIS.
Environmental Impact Statements
by Jacob I. BregmanThis book has been extensively revised and updated to cover all the requirements for a wide variety of EISs on the federal, state and local levels, including a new chapter devoted to Environmental Justice.An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) must be completed for any major action that requires a federal permit and may have an adverse effect on the environment. Each federal agency has its own requirements regarding what must appear in the statement. Furthermore, many state and local agencies have their own versions of EISs that must be done for any proposed construction. This book provides a thorough explanation of EISs so that the personnel responsible for preparing these documents will be able to understand the fundamentals of a wide range of environmental factors - ecological and socioeconomic - that comprise an Environmental Impact Statement. This may be the only place that an understandable explanation of the EIS process is located together with a detailed description of how to do an EIS.This is the only book to spell out the EIS process in a straightforward, easy -to-understand style. Written at a level that allows the reader to grasp the fundamentals of EISs, it avoids technical jargon and addresses the topic in layperson's terms. Environmental Impact Statements is an indispensable book for architectural and engineering firms, industrial firms and regulatory agencies on all levels.
Environmental Impacts from the Development of Unconventional Oil and Gas Reserves
by John F. Stolz Daniel J. Bain W. Michael GriffinThe development of unconventional oil and gas shales using hydraulic fracturing and directional drilling is currently a focal point of energy and climate change discussions. While this technology has provided access to substantial reserves of oil and gas, the need for large quantities of water, emissions, and infrastructure raises concerns over the environmental impacts. Written by an international consortium of experts, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the extraction from unconventional reservoirs, providing clear explanations of the technology and processes involved. Each chapter is devoted to different aspects including global reserves, the status of their development and regulatory framework, water management and contamination, air quality, earthquakes, radioactivity, isotope geochemistry, microbiology, and climate change. Case studies present baseline studies, water monitoring efforts and habitat destruction. This book is accessible to a wide audience, from academics to industry professionals and policy makers interested in environmental pollution and petroleum exploration.
Environmental Impacts of Metallic Elements
by Muhammad Aqeel Ashraf Maliha Sarfraz Rizwana Naureen Mohamedreza GharibrezaThis book presents a combined analysis of the geochemical, physio-chemical, biological and analytical techniques to provide a better understanding of the biogeochemical cycling of heavy metals in ex-mining areas. The findings presented in this book provide a basis for evaluation of the environmental impacts of mining activities, especially tin mining. The chapters provide a general picture of the land use, geography, concentration and chemical speciation of heavy metals in mining areas. The impacts of bioavailable metal species are supported by a detailed case study on Bestari Jaya. The book concludes with remediation methods along with classical and modern approaches, their limitations and economic feasibility.
Environmental Impacts of Mining: Monitoring, Restoration, and Control, Second Edition
by Mritunjoy SenguptaThis second edition examines the problems facing the mining industry, and offers practical case studies, as well as new solutions for environmental restoration and remediation. New topics include bioremediation technology, mountaintop surface coal mining, reclamation procedures, environmental impacts of gold mining, mining in different countries worldwide, and the resulting environmental problems. The book is considered a "must have" book for environmental engineers and professionals in the mining industry, geologists, hydrologists, hazardous waste professionals, and academics.
Environmental Impacts of Mining Monitoring, Restoration, and Control
by Mritunjoy SenguptaEnvironmental Impacts of Mining is a comprehensive reference addressing some of the most significant environmental problems associated with mining. These issues include destruction of landscapes, destruction of agricultural and forest lands, sedimentation and erosion, soil contamination, surface and groundwater pollution, air pollution, and waste management. The book presents an agenda for minimizing environmental damage and offers solutions for the restoration and remediation of degraded areas. This book is a ""must have"" for environmental consultants, regulators, planners, workers in the mining industry, geologists, hydrologists, hazardous waste professionals, and instructors in the environmental sciences.
Environmental Impacts of Mountaineering: A Conceptual Framework (SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science)
by Michal ApolloThis book investigates the consequences of mountaineering (hiking, trekking, climbing) on the natural environment. These consequences are divided into three groups: 1) transformations caused by the mountaineer’s, or other people’s, stay in a mountaineering region; 2) transformations caused by the mountaineer’s travel (movement) through a mountaineering region, with the consideration of the ground type (rock, rock and grass, grass, residual soil, snow, ice), and 3) transformations caused by the use of mountaineering equipment. Each of the three groups are examined individually for their direct interference with the environment, i.e. caused by the main activities of climbing, trekking and hiking (both for elite and mass mountaineering) and their indirect interference caused by auxiliary activity (mainly in the case of mass mountaineering). Auxiliary activity includes guide services, transport of equipment, use of base camp facilities and the delivery of artificial support equipment, and supports the main activity. The consequences of mountaineering on the natural environment are characterized in terms of individual components of the environment (land relief, soil, vegetation, fauna, and landscape) and location/zone of mountaineering activity (hiking, trekking or climbing zone). Because of the connections and interdependence between particular components of the environment (biotic and abiotic), only preservation of each of them can bring the desired effect – a reduction in the negative impact of mountaineering. This book presents comprehensive research outcomes and serves as a platform for more detailed, future studies.
Environmental Impacts of Traditional and Innovative Forest-based Bioproducts
by Andreja Kutnar Subramanian Senthilkannan MuthuThis book provides a comprehensive description of traditional and innovative forest-based bioproducts, from pulp and paper, wood-based composites and wood fuels to chemicals and fiber-based composites. The descriptions of different types of forest-based bioproducts are supplemented by the environmental impacts involved in their processing, use, and end-of-life phase. Further, the possibility of reusing, recycling and upgrading bioproducts at the end of their projected life cycle is discussed. As the intensity of demand for forest biomass is currently changing, forest-based industries need to respond with innovative products, business models, marketing and management. As such, the book concludes with a chapter on the bioproducts business and these products' role in bioeconomies.
Environmental Informatics: Challenges and Solutions
by P. K. Paul Amitava Choudhury Arindam Biswas Binod Kumar SinghThis interdisciplinary book incorporates various aspects of environment, ecology, and natural disaster management including cognitive informatics and computing. It fosters research innovation and discovery on basic science and information technology for addressing various environmental problems, while providing the right solutions in environment, ecology, and disaster management. This book is a unique resource for researchers and practitioners of energy informatics in various scientific, technological, engineering, and social fields to disseminate original research on the application of digital technology and information management theory and practice to facilitate the global transition toward sustainable and resilient energy systems. Cognitive informatics is also the need of the hour and deals with cutting-edge and multidisciplinary research area that tackles the fundamental problems shared by modern informatics, computation, software engineering, AI, cybernetics, cognitive science, neuropsychology, medical science, systems science, philosophy, linguistics, economics, management science, and life sciences, which this book also presents.
Environmental Information for Naval Warfare
by Committee on Environmental Information for Naval UseAccurate and timely environmental information can provide a tactical advantage to U. S. naval forces during warfare. This report analyzes the current environmental information system used by the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps and recommends ways to address uncertainty and leverage network-centric operating principles to enhance the value of environmental information.
Environmental Injustices, Political Struggles: Race, Class and the Environment
by David E. CamachoIn the United States, few issues are more socially divisive than the location of hazardous waste facilities and other environmentally harmful enterprises. Do the negative impacts of such polluters fall disproportionately on African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Asian Americans? Environmental Injustices, Political Struggles discusses how political, economic, social, and cultural factors contribute to local government officials' consistent location of hazardous and toxic waste facilities in low-income neighborhoods and how, as a result, low-income groups suffer disproportionately from the regressive impacts of environmental policy. David E. Camacho's collection of essays examines the value-laden choices behind the public policy that determines placement of commercial environmental hazards, points to the underrepresentation of people of color in the policymaking process, and discusses the lack of public advocates representing low-income neighborhoods and communities. This book combines empirical evidence and case studies--from the failure to provide basic services to the "colonias" in El Paso County, Texas, to the race for water in Nevada--and covers in great detail the environmental dangers posed to minority communities, including the largely unexamined communities of Native Americans. The contributors call for cooperation between national environmental interest groups and local grassroots activism, more effective incentives and disincentives for polluters, and the adoption by policymakers of an alternative, rather than privileged, perspective that is more sensitive to the causes and consequences of environmental inequities. Environmental Injustices, Political Struggles is a unique collection for those interested in the environment, public policy, and civil rights as well as for students and scholars of political science, race and ethnicity, and urban and regional planning.Contributors. C. Richard Bath, Kate A. Berry, John G. Bretting, David E. Camacho, Jeanne Nienaber Clarke, Andrea K. Gerlak, Peter I. Longo, Diane-Michele Prindeville, Linda Robyn, Stephen Sandweiss, Janet M. Tanski, Mary M. Timney, Roberto E. Villarreal, Harvey L. White
Environmental Investigation and Remediation: 1,4-Dioxane and other Solvent Stabilizers, Second Edition
by Thomas K.G. Mohr William H. DiGuiseppi James W. Hatton Janet Katherine AndersonFilled with updated information, equations, tables, figures, and citations, Environmental Investigation and Remediation: 1,4-Dioxane and Other Solvent Stabilizers, Second Edition provides the full range of information on 1,4-dioxane. It offers passive and active remediation strategies and treatment technologies for 1,4-dioxane in groundwater and provides the technical resources to help readers choose the best methods for their particular situation. This new edition includes all new information on remediation costs and reflects the latest research in the field. It includes new practical case studies to illustrate the concepts presented, including 1,4-dioxane occurrence in Long Island and the Cape Fear watershed in North Carolina. Features: Fully updated throughout to reflect the most recent research on 1,4-dioxane Describes the nature and extent of 1,4-dioxane releases, their regulation, and their remediation in a variety of geologic settings Examines 1,4-dioxane analytical chemistry, its many industrial uses, and 1,4-dioxane occurrence as a byproduct in production of many products Provides ample site data for recent and relevant remediation case studies, and a review of the widely varying regulatory landscape for 1,4-dioxane cleanup levels and drinking water limits Discusses the importance of accounting for contaminant archeology in investigating contaminated sites, and leveraging solvent stabilizers in forensic investigations While written primarily for practicing professionals, such as environmental consultants and attorneys, water utility engineers, and laboratory managers, the book will also appeal to researchers and academics as well. This new edition serves as a highly useful reference on the occurrence, sampling and analysis, and remedial investigation and design for 1,4-dioxane and related contaminants.
Environmental Ion Exchange: Principles and Design, Second Edition
by Anthony M. WachinskiThis book will contain the most important ion exchange-related design and application issues. Using tables, graphs, and conversion tables, it will explain the fundamentals, providing the knowledge to use ion exchange to reuse wastewaters, recover valuable chemicals, and recycle industrial waters. For anyone who is designing unconventional ion exchange systems, or who needs a fundamental knowledge of ion exchange, this is the perfect working reference. This new edition will be updated throughout, add a new chapter (Selective Ion Exchange Resins), and include all new information on the removal of boron, arsenic, nitrates, ammonia, radioactivity, silica, and heavy metals from water.