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Pesticides and the environment
Recommended reading 

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Environment - general

State of the World 2002 Christopher Flavin, Hilary French and Gary Gardner; W.W. Norton;  Hardback - 256 pages (27 March, 2002) ISBN: 039305053X 

The world now spends 17 times more on pesticides than in the 1950’s, yet the effectiveness of these chemicals has plummeted, while the share of the harvest lost to pests has hardly changed. And although the North uses the majority of these pesticides, it is in the South that they have the worst results, as older more toxic varieties are used with less regulation and less safety equipment.  Includes chapters on developments to reduce the worst pesticides, climate change,  toxic chemicals, organic farming, population, sustainable tourism, resource conflicts and global governance, with a special focus on the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development, Aug 2002.

Go M.A.D! The Ecologist. Paperback - 180 pages (31 October, 2001) Think Publishing; ISBN: 0954136306 

This little book was created on the premise that most people want to do something to help save the environment, but are not quite sure how. Contains 365 ‘pain-free and amusing’ practical tips on how to make simple changes to our daily lives, which will benefit our environment, ecology and community. 

Reducing Reliance on Pesticides in Great Lakes Basin Agriculture Hoppin, Polly, Richard Liroff & Michelle Miller; World Wildlife Fund; 113 pages (1997) 

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in the US has provided an up-beat assessment of efforts to reduce reliance on and risk from chemical pesticides in the Great Lakes basin.
Click here for full review

The Way Forward—Beyond Agenda 21, Felix Dodds (Ed.); Earthscan; Paperback - 304 pages (27 May, 1997);
ISBN: 1853834378

An important contribution to the body of knowledge developed since the UN Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Produced by the UNED-UK, which is UN Development Programme’s focal point in the UK, it provides yardsticks and benchmarks for progress and failure since Rio.       Click here for full review

Arctic Pollution Issues: A State of the Arctic Environment Report, AMAP: 118 pages (1997) Arctic Pollution 2002 AMAP: (2002) http://www.grida.no/amap

Established in 1991 under the international Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy, AMAP has the responsibility to monitor & assess the effects of selected man-made pollutants, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs)- a major threat to the Arctic environment. AMAP has now completed two assessments of the state of the arctic environment with respect to pollution issues. The first of these was published in 1997, and the second in 2002. Click here for full review of original report
Environment - agriculture and pesticides

The Future Role of Pesticides in US Agriculture National Research Council Committee, Hardcover: 296 pages (July 2000) National Academy Press; ISBN: 0309065267

Explores the role of chemical pesticides in the decade ahead & recommends research & development, programme  &  policy initiatives for agriculture authorities & stakeholders in the public and private sectors. Produced by the National Academy of Sciences this offers overviews of key factors in chemical pesticide use including alternatives such as microbials, natural product fungicides & other biopesticides. Also focuses on problems in pesticide use, especially health concerns about agricultural workers; the ability of pests to develop resistance; & issues of public perception about pesticides. Click here for full review

 

Farming, Food & Politics: The Merchant’s Tale, Diane Montague; 392 pages (Jan 2001), IAWS Group ISBN:1901396304

This original view of farming and food production approaches the subject from the point of view of trade, focusing on the small businesses that began as grain merchants, chemists and seedsmen and developed in some cases to large agrochemical corporations. Pesticides are only a small part of the story, but the Crop Protection chapter contains an interesting historical account of the forces and personalities that shaped the strategies of different corporate players in the industry. 

The Great Food Gamble, John Humphrys, Paperback - 321 pages (3 Jan, 2002) Hodder and Stoughton ISBN: 0340770465                        

Well-known journalist & broadcaster John Humphreys was also a dairy farmer for some years. He argues that ‘agriculture is, in effect, the nations primary health service.’ The revolution in agriculture in the 1950s following the war  gave us bigger harvests. 'It also gave us environmental destruction, pesticide residues, antibiotic resistance & the horrors of mad cow disease.’  To answer the question "is ‘cheap’ food really cheap?" he includes a section on the chequered history of pesticides & their usage. Click here for full review
Reclaiming the Environmental Debate: The Politics of Health in a Toxic Culture, Richard Hofrichter,  Paperback - 368 pages (14 June, 2000), The MIT Press; ISBN: 0262581825 

Hazardous substances pose an increasing threat to public health. But what makes our society a ‘toxic culture’ are the social arrangements that encourage & excuse the deterioration of human health & the environment, including the production of hazardous wastes, economic blight, chronic stress, substandard housing, exploitative working conditions, & dangerous technologies. Essays in this book range from critiques of traditional thinking and practices, to strategies for shifting public consciousness to create health communities.                           Click here for full review 
Natural Crop Protection in the Tropics. Letting information come to life, Gabriele Stoll, AGRECOL/CTA, 376 pages (2000) 

‘The bible’ for those working with alternatives to synthetic pesticides - cites over 600 references from scientific & practitioner literature, including web-based articles. The layout and organization is clear, easy to follow & well illustrated with line drawings, tables & photos. You can either search for a particular pest problem and its control options, or look up a botanical species or other control method. Click here for full review 

no picture available Sourcebook of Technologies for Protecting the Ozone Layer: Alternatives to Methyl Bromide, Velma Smith (Ed.) 316 pages (2001), Energy and OzonAction Unit 

A sourcebook for all users of methyl bromide (MB). This clearly set out & easy to use book will assist you in phasing-out your use of the fumigant - providing information about the major technical options, particularly technologies that are in commercial use, & giving details of many useful contacts and resources worldwide.   Click here for full review 

Fate of Pesticides in the Atmosphere: Implications for Environmental Risk Assessment,  Ed. H. F.G. van Dijk, W.A.J. van Pul and P. de Voogt; Kluwer Academic Publishers;  Hardcover - 280 pages (September 1999) ISBN 0-7923-5994-1. 

This volume contains 12 technical essays on the transport, fate and modelling of pesticides in the atmosphere & represents the proceedings of the international workshop. It tables the 89 active ingredients found in rain in Europe - the rain in Spain containing lindane, whilst Italian rain often contains 2,4-D. Distances between sampling sites & the nearest possible source area can range from 10-1000 km, showing the urgent need to phase out the Persistent Organic Pollutants & illustrating the difficulties on a farm scale of preventing contamination of water courses.       Click here for full review

Unwelcome Harvest: Agriculture and Pollution Gordon Conway, Jules Pretty, Paperback - 672 pages (22 August, 1991), Earthscan; ISBN: 1853830364

Examines the facts and assesses the relative danger of agricultural pollution problems, focusing on the UK, US and developing countries.

Our Stolen Future : Are We Threatening Our Own Fertility, Intelligence, and Survival?-A Scientific Detective Story, Theo Colborn, John Peterson Myers, Dianne Dumanoski, Hardcover (March 1996), E P Dutton; ISBN: 0525939822

Thirty years after Rachel Carson's Silent Spring this book traces the cause of increases in birth defects & reproductive failure & the pervasive presence in the environment of chemicals that mimic hormones and trick the reproductive systems of animals, birds and fish. 

Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, Lord Shackleton (Introduction), Julian Huxley (Preface), Paperback - 336 pages [New Ed.] (28 September, 2000), Penguin Books; ISBN: 0300066864

Exposes the effects of the indiscriminate use of chemical pesticides. This was the original alarm call over pesticide use and has recently been re-published.

Economic, Environmental, and Health Tradeoffs in Agricultural Pesticides and the Sustainability of Andean Potato Production  Charles C. Crissman (Editor); Hardcover - 408 pages (Nov 1997); Kluwer Academic Publishers;  ISBN: 0792380568

Looks at the conceptual and methodological foundations of economic, environmental, and health tradeoffs in agricultural pesticide use and policy. Gives an in-depth analysis of the sustainability of Andean potato production. 
Additional EU Policy Instruments for Plant Protection Products, AJ Oskam, RAN Vijftigschild and C Graveland; Wageningen Pers; 297pages (1998) ISBN: 9074134556 

The Fifth Environmental Action Programme forms the background of a series of reports studying pesticide problems in the European Union. This publication is the central policy report with its main focus on future plant protection (pesticide) policy in the EU. 

Principles of Environmental Toxicology, Ian Shaw and John Chadwick; Taylor & Francis; Paperback - 216 pages (8 April, 1998) ISBN: 0748403566

Environmental toxicology is the study of the action of chemicals upon ecosystems. This text book provides a good general introduction to all the major areas of environmental toxicology, including the fate of chemicals in the environment, environment toxicity testing, legislation, risk assessment, environmental monitoring & the future impact of industrial development on the environment.  

Techniques for Reducing Pesticide Use - Economic and Environmental Benefits, Pimentel, D (Ed.); John Wiley and Sons Ltd; Hardcover - 456 pages (20 Feb, 1997) ISBN: 0471968382 

An up-date to Professor David Pimentel's volume The Pesticide Question: Environment, Economics and Ethics, produced in 1993 this follows a similar theme (see 'Pesticides News 22' p.22).

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