- Email: [email protected]
World resources, 1990–1991
Book reviews
are strong and positive. They show children working hard in bad situations, brave and cheerful as children everywhere are, even when times are dreadful. This book can be used for second-year and university courses, and would make a good gift to an intelligent, enquiring adult who can get past the cover illustration, It is hoped that Timberlake and Thomas
are given attention when money is allocated by government ministries, but this is a faint hope in these stringent and condemnatory times.
R~newabi~ energy sources COOL ENERGY: THE RENEWABLE SOLUTION TO GLOBAL WARMING by Michael Brewer Union of Concerned Scientists, Cambridge, MA, 1990, 89 pp, $4.95 In keeping with the title, the author first discusses the environmental problems inherent in our current reliance on fossil fuels. The principal causes of global warming are outlined, followed by a brief discussion of possible strategies to slow the process, including energy efficiency, use of nuclear power, and renewable energy sources. The bulk of this short text is devoted to a discussion of four renewable energy sources: solar, wind, biomass, and hydroelectric power. For each source, the author provides an easy-to-understand description of the technical aspects, as well as a systematic analysis of its potential for exploitation, and the stumbling blocks impeding its more rapid development. Under separate headings, the technologies, economics, environmental impacts, and near-term prospects of each source are elaborated. A concluding chapter draws together the threads of the basic treatise that renewable energy sources have great potential, but suffer from market barriers, in&ding the current adverse economic climate, and lack of federal support. Several policy recommendations focusing on improving government support of renewable energy sources are presented in the conclusion. These recommendations include: a revenueneutral package of federal renewable GLOBAL
ENVIRONMENTAL
energy tax credits; taxes on fossil-fuel ~ons~lm~tion to fund research and development of renewable sources; modification of electric utility regulations to factor in social and environmental costs of energy technologies; government purchase of renewable energy technologies for its own facilities; and expansion of government efforts to encourage exports. The author takes an optimistic view of the role renewable energy sources could play in reducing the negative impacts of fossil-fuel use. While the negatives of renewable energy sources are outlined, the pervasive impression is one of a positive renewable future.
In this, the author expounds the highest potential of these sources, rather than the likely level of their adoption. The text is well written, and liberally sprinkled with statistics. It packs a great deal of information into a small space. The discussion is supplemented with well designed tables and figures, though these could benefit from further discussion, and better placement of the reference in the text. Overall, this book would be an excellent first reader or text on renewable energy. It touches on most of the basic technological, economic, and environmental aspects of the four sources discussed, and interweaves the policy issues inherent in the development of each. The globaf warming issue, played up in the title, is not equally supported by the book’s content. Unfortunately, this could lead to disappointment fur those seeking global warming material, and oversight by those interested in the basics of renewable energy sources.
Susan Macey Department of Geography and ~je~#~ng S~fb~esf Texas State ~~j~ers~fy San Marcos, TX, USA
Encyclopaedia for world
WORLD RESOURCES, 1990-91 A Report by The World Resources Institute, in collaboration with The United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations development Programme (Editor in Chief, Dr Allen L. Hammond)
This remarkable, encyclopaedic volume, of close to 400 000 words and numbers, is the work of several hundred experts in the broad fietd of the world environment, covering many disciplines. It is itself a world resource
CHANGE
December
1991
in the field of human knowledge, and will be an ~ndispensabie asset to anyone working on global problems. This volume has a special focus on climate change, and on Latin America, but it still covers the whole world very effectively. It carries a powerful message of alarm about the magnitude and especially the rapidity of the changes that the human race is imposing on its planet, but it is also carries a message of hope, and gives many examples of human activity directed towards the resolution of the environmental problems. The book opens with a succinct introductory chapter on the world environment a&look, followed by two 417
Book reviewslCalendar
anomalies. Who would have thought that when it comes to per capita contributions to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, little Laos would be at the top with 22.4 tonnes, followed by the United Arab Emirates (9.6), Gate d’Ivoire (9.1), and Brazil (9.1), while the extravagant USA only registers 5.0. However, the overall picture the tables give of the world is highly instructive, and suggests a wealth of arithmetic and statistical activity. It seems almost presumptuous to suggest additions to such an exhaustive and weighty volume. Nevertheless, in the next edition it might be instructive to have a section on the history of environmental legislation and treaties. Many of these are mentioned in the various chapters, but it would be useful to get a full historical perspective. A section on the rise of environmental opinion and education around the world would also be of great interest. Finally, for the general reader, there is much to be said for a little dictionary of acronyms. One could almost define a discipline as a group of people who use the same acronyms and know what they all
chapters on the ‘special focus’. Then comes the main section, with chapters on ‘Population and health’; ‘Human settlements’, with special reference to the ‘informal sector’ of self-help; ‘Food and agriculture’, with the special focus on Sub-Saharan Africa; ‘Forests and rangelands’, ‘Wildlife and habitat’, with an emphasis on the impact of greenhouse warming on biodiversity; ‘Energy’; ‘Freshwater’; ‘Oceans and coasts’; ‘Atmosphere’, stressing automobile usage; ‘Climate change’; and ‘Antarctica’. Then comes a very informative chapter on the world weather watch and global modelling of climate. Finally, there is a chapter on the weaknesses of current national income accounting, especially the inadequacy of the GNP, and the need for a new look at naturalresource accounting. The last section of the book is an extensive set of data tables from a great variety of sources on virtually all the subjects covered in the chapters. Suitable doubts are expressed as to the accuracy of some of the data, but they cover an astonishing variety of sources and topics. There are a few curious
Calendar
-
This calendar is based on information provided by the respective organizers and from secondary sources. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE welcomes information on all meetings suitable for listing in this section. Copy deadlines are three months ahead of cover dates. 7-10 January 1992, Swansea, UK Annual Conference of the Institute of British Geographers: Global Environmental Change - Europe into the Next Century. Details from Alison Hind, Administrator, Institute of British Geographers, 1 Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR, UK. Tel: (071) 584 6371. 17-19 January 1992, Devon, UK Course on Deep Ecology and EcoPhilosophy, run by Arne Naess. Details from Brenda Blewitt, Programme Administrator, The Dartington Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK. 28-31 January, Valletta, Malta The First Mediterranean Oil and Gas Exhibition and Conference. Furt!:er details from Spearhead Exhibitions Ltd, Rowe House, 55-59 Fife Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KTl ITA, UK. Tel: (081) 549 5831; Fax: (081) 541 5657.
418
February 1992, London, UK Nuclear Decom 92. Further details from Hazel Anderson, Conference Department, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 1 Birdcage Walk, London SWlH 9JJ, UK. 46 February 1992, Manchester, UK Conference on Minerals, Metals and the Environment. Details from Conference Office, Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, 44 Portland Place, London WlN 4BR, UK. Tel: (071) 580 3802. Fax: (071) 436 5388. 6-7 February 1992, London, UK Third Annual Conference on Contaminated Land: Policy, Regulation and Technology. Details from Amanda Wright, IBC Technical Services Ltd, Gilmoora House, 57-61 Mortimer Street, London WIN 7TD, UK. Tel: (071) 637 4383. Fax: (071) 631 3214.
GLOBAL
stand for. When the general reader runs across ARCO, BAPMoN, CRAMRA, EOS, GEMS, GESAMP, IASSA, ICSU, MHTGR, PRISM, PVUSA, PCB, ROSCA, TBT, UNAID, UNEP, WASH, WCMC, WEC, a dictionary might come in handy. I will give the authors of this volume high marks on explaining the meaning of acronyms the first time they are used, but a forgetful reader could still use a dictionary. Altogether, this is a remarkable volume. For a work written by so many people, in so many fields, the style is exceptionally uniform and clear, and accessible to the layperson. For the specialist in what is becoming a very large and critically important field of study, the volume is indispensable. We should all be grateful to the authors, the editors, and to the MacArthur Foundation who helped finance it.
Kenneth E. Boulding institute of Behavioral Science University of Colorado Boulder, CO, USA
6-11 February 1992, Chicago, IL, USA AAAS 92 - 158th National Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Details from American Association for the Advancement of Science, H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005, USA.
25-26 February 1992, London, UK Conference on Groundwater Pollution. Details from Amanda Wright, IBC Technical Services Ltd, Gilmoora House, 57-61 Mortimer Street, London WlN 7TD, UK. Tel: (071) 637 4383. Fax: (071) 631 3214.
4-6 March 1992, Amsterdam, The Netherlands First International Conference on Carbon Dioxide Removal. Details from ICCDR, c/o KlvI, PO Box 30424, 2500 GK The Hague, The Netherlands. Tel: 391 9890. Fax: 391 9840.
6-8 March 1992, Devon, UK Course on Greening the Consumer, run by Francis Kinsman. Details from Brenda Blewitt, Programme Administrator, The Dartington Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK.
ENVIRONMENTAL
CHANGE
December
1991
are strong and positive. They show children working hard in bad situations, brave and cheerful as children everywhere are, even when times are dreadful. This book can be used for second-year and university courses, and would make a good gift to an intelligent, enquiring adult who can get past the cover illustration, It is hoped that Timberlake and Thomas
are given attention when money is allocated by government ministries, but this is a faint hope in these stringent and condemnatory times.
R~newabi~ energy sources COOL ENERGY: THE RENEWABLE SOLUTION TO GLOBAL WARMING by Michael Brewer Union of Concerned Scientists, Cambridge, MA, 1990, 89 pp, $4.95 In keeping with the title, the author first discusses the environmental problems inherent in our current reliance on fossil fuels. The principal causes of global warming are outlined, followed by a brief discussion of possible strategies to slow the process, including energy efficiency, use of nuclear power, and renewable energy sources. The bulk of this short text is devoted to a discussion of four renewable energy sources: solar, wind, biomass, and hydroelectric power. For each source, the author provides an easy-to-understand description of the technical aspects, as well as a systematic analysis of its potential for exploitation, and the stumbling blocks impeding its more rapid development. Under separate headings, the technologies, economics, environmental impacts, and near-term prospects of each source are elaborated. A concluding chapter draws together the threads of the basic treatise that renewable energy sources have great potential, but suffer from market barriers, in&ding the current adverse economic climate, and lack of federal support. Several policy recommendations focusing on improving government support of renewable energy sources are presented in the conclusion. These recommendations include: a revenueneutral package of federal renewable GLOBAL
ENVIRONMENTAL
energy tax credits; taxes on fossil-fuel ~ons~lm~tion to fund research and development of renewable sources; modification of electric utility regulations to factor in social and environmental costs of energy technologies; government purchase of renewable energy technologies for its own facilities; and expansion of government efforts to encourage exports. The author takes an optimistic view of the role renewable energy sources could play in reducing the negative impacts of fossil-fuel use. While the negatives of renewable energy sources are outlined, the pervasive impression is one of a positive renewable future.
In this, the author expounds the highest potential of these sources, rather than the likely level of their adoption. The text is well written, and liberally sprinkled with statistics. It packs a great deal of information into a small space. The discussion is supplemented with well designed tables and figures, though these could benefit from further discussion, and better placement of the reference in the text. Overall, this book would be an excellent first reader or text on renewable energy. It touches on most of the basic technological, economic, and environmental aspects of the four sources discussed, and interweaves the policy issues inherent in the development of each. The globaf warming issue, played up in the title, is not equally supported by the book’s content. Unfortunately, this could lead to disappointment fur those seeking global warming material, and oversight by those interested in the basics of renewable energy sources.
Susan Macey Department of Geography and ~je~#~ng S~fb~esf Texas State ~~j~ers~fy San Marcos, TX, USA
Encyclopaedia for world
WORLD RESOURCES, 1990-91 A Report by The World Resources Institute, in collaboration with The United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations development Programme (Editor in Chief, Dr Allen L. Hammond)
This remarkable, encyclopaedic volume, of close to 400 000 words and numbers, is the work of several hundred experts in the broad fietd of the world environment, covering many disciplines. It is itself a world resource
CHANGE
December
1991
in the field of human knowledge, and will be an ~ndispensabie asset to anyone working on global problems. This volume has a special focus on climate change, and on Latin America, but it still covers the whole world very effectively. It carries a powerful message of alarm about the magnitude and especially the rapidity of the changes that the human race is imposing on its planet, but it is also carries a message of hope, and gives many examples of human activity directed towards the resolution of the environmental problems. The book opens with a succinct introductory chapter on the world environment a&look, followed by two 417
Book reviewslCalendar
anomalies. Who would have thought that when it comes to per capita contributions to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, little Laos would be at the top with 22.4 tonnes, followed by the United Arab Emirates (9.6), Gate d’Ivoire (9.1), and Brazil (9.1), while the extravagant USA only registers 5.0. However, the overall picture the tables give of the world is highly instructive, and suggests a wealth of arithmetic and statistical activity. It seems almost presumptuous to suggest additions to such an exhaustive and weighty volume. Nevertheless, in the next edition it might be instructive to have a section on the history of environmental legislation and treaties. Many of these are mentioned in the various chapters, but it would be useful to get a full historical perspective. A section on the rise of environmental opinion and education around the world would also be of great interest. Finally, for the general reader, there is much to be said for a little dictionary of acronyms. One could almost define a discipline as a group of people who use the same acronyms and know what they all
chapters on the ‘special focus’. Then comes the main section, with chapters on ‘Population and health’; ‘Human settlements’, with special reference to the ‘informal sector’ of self-help; ‘Food and agriculture’, with the special focus on Sub-Saharan Africa; ‘Forests and rangelands’, ‘Wildlife and habitat’, with an emphasis on the impact of greenhouse warming on biodiversity; ‘Energy’; ‘Freshwater’; ‘Oceans and coasts’; ‘Atmosphere’, stressing automobile usage; ‘Climate change’; and ‘Antarctica’. Then comes a very informative chapter on the world weather watch and global modelling of climate. Finally, there is a chapter on the weaknesses of current national income accounting, especially the inadequacy of the GNP, and the need for a new look at naturalresource accounting. The last section of the book is an extensive set of data tables from a great variety of sources on virtually all the subjects covered in the chapters. Suitable doubts are expressed as to the accuracy of some of the data, but they cover an astonishing variety of sources and topics. There are a few curious
Calendar
-
This calendar is based on information provided by the respective organizers and from secondary sources. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE welcomes information on all meetings suitable for listing in this section. Copy deadlines are three months ahead of cover dates. 7-10 January 1992, Swansea, UK Annual Conference of the Institute of British Geographers: Global Environmental Change - Europe into the Next Century. Details from Alison Hind, Administrator, Institute of British Geographers, 1 Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR, UK. Tel: (071) 584 6371. 17-19 January 1992, Devon, UK Course on Deep Ecology and EcoPhilosophy, run by Arne Naess. Details from Brenda Blewitt, Programme Administrator, The Dartington Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK. 28-31 January, Valletta, Malta The First Mediterranean Oil and Gas Exhibition and Conference. Furt!:er details from Spearhead Exhibitions Ltd, Rowe House, 55-59 Fife Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KTl ITA, UK. Tel: (081) 549 5831; Fax: (081) 541 5657.
418
February 1992, London, UK Nuclear Decom 92. Further details from Hazel Anderson, Conference Department, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 1 Birdcage Walk, London SWlH 9JJ, UK. 46 February 1992, Manchester, UK Conference on Minerals, Metals and the Environment. Details from Conference Office, Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, 44 Portland Place, London WlN 4BR, UK. Tel: (071) 580 3802. Fax: (071) 436 5388. 6-7 February 1992, London, UK Third Annual Conference on Contaminated Land: Policy, Regulation and Technology. Details from Amanda Wright, IBC Technical Services Ltd, Gilmoora House, 57-61 Mortimer Street, London WIN 7TD, UK. Tel: (071) 637 4383. Fax: (071) 631 3214.
GLOBAL
stand for. When the general reader runs across ARCO, BAPMoN, CRAMRA, EOS, GEMS, GESAMP, IASSA, ICSU, MHTGR, PRISM, PVUSA, PCB, ROSCA, TBT, UNAID, UNEP, WASH, WCMC, WEC, a dictionary might come in handy. I will give the authors of this volume high marks on explaining the meaning of acronyms the first time they are used, but a forgetful reader could still use a dictionary. Altogether, this is a remarkable volume. For a work written by so many people, in so many fields, the style is exceptionally uniform and clear, and accessible to the layperson. For the specialist in what is becoming a very large and critically important field of study, the volume is indispensable. We should all be grateful to the authors, the editors, and to the MacArthur Foundation who helped finance it.
Kenneth E. Boulding institute of Behavioral Science University of Colorado Boulder, CO, USA
6-11 February 1992, Chicago, IL, USA AAAS 92 - 158th National Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Details from American Association for the Advancement of Science, H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005, USA.
25-26 February 1992, London, UK Conference on Groundwater Pollution. Details from Amanda Wright, IBC Technical Services Ltd, Gilmoora House, 57-61 Mortimer Street, London WlN 7TD, UK. Tel: (071) 637 4383. Fax: (071) 631 3214.
4-6 March 1992, Amsterdam, The Netherlands First International Conference on Carbon Dioxide Removal. Details from ICCDR, c/o KlvI, PO Box 30424, 2500 GK The Hague, The Netherlands. Tel: 391 9890. Fax: 391 9840.
6-8 March 1992, Devon, UK Course on Greening the Consumer, run by Francis Kinsman. Details from Brenda Blewitt, Programme Administrator, The Dartington Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK.
ENVIRONMENTAL
CHANGE
December
1991