Promotional Information

A chronological history of the great debates over the environment throughout American history

Table of Contents

List of Entries Guide to Related Topics Preface Introduction Entries Epilogue Bibliography Index

About the Author

Brian Black is associate professor in the departments of history and environmental studies at Penn State University, Altoona. He is the author of Nature and the Environment in Nineteenth-Century American Life and Nature and the Environment in Twentieth-Century American Life. Donna L. Lybecker is assistant professor of political science at Idaho State University. She received her MA from Tulane University and her PhD from Colorado State University where she focused on Environmental Politics and Latin America. Her research interests include decentralization of environmental policy, water policy in the West and along the US-Mexico border, and cross border environmental politics.

Reviews

America's history has been shaped not only by political events but also by its environment. Beginning with the establishment of the English Colonies in the late 16th century, this two-volume set edited by Lybecker (political science, Idaho State Univ.) and Black (history & environmental science, Penn State Univ., Altoona; Nature and the Environment in Nineteenth-Century American Life) presents a chronological view of selected events that demonstrate how the American people have used and adapted the environment to suit their needs and the environment has influenced the American people. Headers for each of the 160-plus articles list the time period being discussed, opposing people or groups during the event, other interested parties, and the general environmental issues under discussion. Subjects covered include political and ecological developments, environmental conservation, agriculture, scalable development, and pollution. Lewis and Clark, American expansion, energy development, and Love Canal articles count among the events covered. The easy-to-read entries vary between one and seven pages in length and conclude with a brief list of sources and titles for further reading.
*Library Journal*

Black and Lybecker take a more measured and calmly descriptive appraoch than some previous books on environmental history. This resource will be useful to high-school and college students and teachers along with the general public and is well worth consideration by most libraries.
*Booklist*

This is a very useful set of volumes to have available to any college environmental studies program. . . . These volumes are recommended for libraries that have science and contemporary policy collections, especially those accessed by faculty and students in environmental studies programs.
*ARBA*