Stewart / Patrick / Douglass Surface Water Quality

Have the Laws Been Successful?
Course Book
ISBN: 978-1-4008-6277-1
Verlag: De Gruyter
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 218 Seiten

Reihe: Princeton Legacy Library

Addressing ecologists, legislators, lawyers, and industrialists alike, Ruth Patrick asks what has been accomplished with the millions of dollars spent on upgrading our surface waters. Has the water improved in spite of the fact that the crayfish, snails, and algae are not those that one would expect to find in natural rivers and estuaries? To evaluate the success of environmental laws over the past two decades, the author examines the aquatic life of river systems in the Delaware Valley, Texas, and Georgia--the only areas in the United States where she found enough biological data to determine trends over time. Although tracing the impact of environmental laws is difficult, Patrick found that for these three water systems the results were generally positive. However, if society as a whole wants effective environmental legislation, organizations must take on a more systematic and orderly approach to data gathering. Patrick argues that in monitoring the waters, one must study protozoa, algae, and worms as well as fish, oysters, and shrimp; one must track amounts of metal as well as low concentrations of oxygen. In proposing options for the future, the author predicts that the cost of such monitoring will be higher than present expenditures, but the cost of lax control will be even greater.

Originally published in 1992.

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Autoren/Hrsg.

Stewart, Paul M.

Patrick, Ruth

Douglass, Faith

Palavage, Drew M.

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften

Inhaltsverzeichnis

List of Illustrations

List of Tables

List of Abbreviations and Acronyms

Preface

Ch. 1 What is Happening To Our Surface Waters? 1

Ch. 2 Impacts of Human Society on the Riverine System - Past and Present 5

Ch. 3 The Impacts of Population Growth and Movement 20

Ch. 4 Changes in Societal Activities and Demands 28

Ch. 5 Federal and State Laws, Regulations and Management 62

Ch. 6 Effects on Pollution of Laws and Regulations Versus Voluntary Efforts 96

Ch. 7 How Have Our Surface Waters Changed? 115

Ch. 8 Options for the Future 152

Bibliography 158

Subject Index 187