Synopsis
In his monumental bestsellers, The Closing Circle and Science and Survival, Barry Commoner was one of the first scientists to alert us to the hideous environmental costs of our technological development. Now, twenty years later, Commoner reviews the vast efforts made in the public and private spheres to address and control the damage done and shows us why, despite billions of dollars spent to save the environment, we now find ourselves in an even deeper crisis. It is a book of hard facts and figures whose conclusion--that environmental pollution can be prevented only through fundamental redesign of the way we produce goods--demands basic changes all across America, from the highest offices in Washington, D.C., to your own kitchen garbage can.
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About the Author
Barry Commoner (1917–2012) directed the Center for Biology of Natural Systems at Queens College and lives in Brooklyn. His previous books include Science and Survival, The Closing Circle, The Poverty of Power, and The Politics of Energy.
From Publishers Weekly
Commoner's environmentalism is guided by a simple precept: "Preventing a disease is far more efficient than treating it." He argues that our misdirected, costly and ineffectual effort at environmental cleanup proves that "controlling" pollutants doesn't work--the pollutants must be eliminated from the production process itself, at the point of origin. To this end, he recommends, for starters, solar energy, ethanol fuel for cars, electric-powered autos, a massive recycling campaign, replacement of many petrochemical products by wood, cotton, paper and other ecologically sound materials. Commoner ( The Closing Circle ) recognizes that a massive redesign of our industrial, energy, transport and agricultural systems is a formidable task. It is also, he insists, the only way to reverse the suicidal assault on the planet waged by capitalist and socialist nations alike. Visionary yet specific, his urgent essay is a blueprint of our possible future and a beacon for the environmental struggles of the '90s.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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