Environmental Science: Economic Social and Political Dimensions

Environmental Science: Economic Social and Political Dimensions
ISBN-10
8170353165
ISBN-13
9788170353164
Series
Environmental Science
Category
Environmental management
Pages
459
Language
English
Published
2003
Publisher
Daya Books
Author
Har Darshan Kumar

Description

Day after day after day, everyday, human lifestyles damage the environment and despoil life which manifest themselves, in due course of time, as polluted air and water, global warming, drought, floods, or famine. All over the world, increasingly powerful technologies are making it possible for people to extract more and more from ecosystems to feed not only themselves but also numerous industries that generate various kinds of toxins and wastes. The book, which has a glossary, discusses some of the environmental and demographic messes of today from a multidimensional perspective of economics, sociology, science and technology and, wherever feasible, suggests suitable strategies for addressing the issues. It should prove informative to scientists, ecologists, biologists, economists, sociologists, engineers, politicians, policy makers, as well as consumers and providers of energy. Contents Chapter 1: General Introduction, Definition and history, Geography as a bridge between environment and society, Holocene and anthropocene, The earth system (Gaia), Complexity of ecological systems, Top environmental issues; Unknown environmental problems, Environmental discontinuities and synergisms, Environmental anti-science, The economy environment relations, Economic reforms and air pollution, Environment and income inequalities, Environmental maladaptation and political centralization, The ETC century, Global energy prospects, The socio-economic environment, The concept of consilience; Chapter 2: Population Problems, Introduction, The earth s carrying capacity, Population policy: consensus and challenges, Population, Resources and globalization, Population, Human development and sustainability, Affluence and environment, Urban population trends, World urbanization prospects, Poverty, Urbanization and poverty, Hunger, Social and economic dimensions of environmental change, Environmental technology, Role of social policy in development, Problems of population and food, Linkage between global environment change and food systems; Chapter 3: Energy Use and Economic Development, Introduction, Mainstream economics, The biophysical systems, Perspective of environment and society, Economic growth, Integrating economics and ecology, The global environmental crisis, Ecological economics, Nature valuation, Energy supply development, Energy demand management, Sectoral strategies, Energy market and the environmet, Renewable energy, Nuclear power and sustainable development, Energy-environment integration, Environmental value systems, Technology and the environment, Best available techniques for large combustion plants, Noval gas technologies, Alternatives to petrol and diesel, Diesel substitute; Chapter 4: Economics, Trade and Globalization, Introduction, Invisible government, The new economy, Impacts of WTO rules, World trade and consumer rights, Trade in plant genetic resources, Environment and business, Structural adjustment, Farmers and the environment, Loans for agribusiness, Impact of world trade on health, Green environment, agriculture and globalization, A decade after the Rio Earth Summit, Global public goods and health, Globalization and Poverty, Sustainability and Global change, Promoting socially responsible business in developing countries, Ecology of overshooting human economy, Textiles and the environment; Chapter 5: Politics and Society, Introduction, Sustainable development, The risk society, The kyoto protocol and landuse and landuse change and forestry, Between sovereignty and globalization, Democratic governance, Ecological modernization, Ecosystem goods and services, Environmental values, An environmental matrix, Participatory environmental processes, Environmental performance indicators, An ecosystems approach to developing indicators; Chapter 6: Environmental Degradation, Introduction, Industrialization, Urbanization and pollution, Urbanization and globalization, Balancing globalization and urbanization, The environmental and spatial transformation of world cities, Urban slums, Landuse conflicts, Chronic disturbance, Fires in the earth system, Desertification, The poverty-environmental degradation nexus, Poverty and environmental degradation, Driving factors and mechanisms of environmental degradation; Chapter 7: Human Influences and Environmental Impacts, Introduction, The impact of energy systems on atmospheric carbon dioxide, Fossil fuels, Prospects for future emissions, Generating operations, Acid emission control, Pollution control of transport systems, Hydroelectric projects, Geothermal energy systems, Nuclear energy systems, Human-environment interactions, Hill s dilemma, People and nature, The fragile planet, Interactions among atmosphere, ocean, land and humans, Past land cover change due to human activities; Chapter 8: General and Hazardous Wastes and their Substances, Introduction, Toxic substances, Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), Organochlorines, Phenolic compounds and their degradation, Sewage treatment, The principles of solid waste management, MSW disposal, Hazardous waste cleanup, Management of hazardous waste, Waste management in third world countries, Treatment of sludge, Harmful effects of land application of sludge, Treatment of wastewater, Composting, Bioremediation, Household waste management, Wastes as resource, From biowaste to biogas.

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