ISBN 971 1 907132 16 2 192pp £28/$35.00 2010 Paperback
This book focuses on the use, abuse and restoration of rivers that have been heavily polluted by petrochemicals. As examples, the author chooses four North American rivers - the Buffalo River, Cuyahoga River, Rouge River and the Chicago River - which were so polluted that at times they actually did catch fire: burning rivers. The book outlines the unique environmental histories of the four rivers. It has been 40 years since the Buffalo, Cuyahoga and Rouge Rivers caught fire, and over 100 years for the Chicago River. The book investigates what has been accomplished, environmentally and ecologically, since those fires; what challenges remain; what lessons have been learned; how the fires catalyzed river cleanup; what institutional arrangements have been developed to clean and protect the rivers. More widely, what hope does the restoration of these rivers provide for others throughout the world, and what can be learned to help inspire and teach the next generation of environmentalists, conservationists and sustainability entrepreneurs?
ISBN 978 81 7898 592 3 707pp £125/$199 2009 Hardback
Lake Superior serves as a fine example of success in recovering from environmental adversity, and this collection of peer reviewed papers offers a polythetic view of current conditions in Lake Superior and suggestions about where and how improvements should continue. The papers range from reviews of what we know now, to those that identify the little we know about challenging environmental issues for the future. Among those are continuing concerns about contaminants, invasive species and the portents of global change. There is some encouragement to be found in the resilience of this large lake ecosystem.
ISBN 978 81 7898 591 6 640pp £107/$170 2008 Paperback
From its ‘near-death’ status in the 1960s, Lake Erie has made a significant recovery. The 20 peer reviewed contributions to this book provide a current and integrated assessment of the health of the Lake Erie ecosystem, and offer in-depth information and data to policy makers, managers, researchers and students interested in the conservation and protection of Lake Erie.
ISBN 81 7898 458 X 639pp £120/$192 2005 Hardback
This book reviews the status of the Lake Michigan ecosystem components and provides a basis for evaluating the health of the lake and for promoting integrated management of this natural resource. Peer reviewed contributions cover: physical and chemical regimes; food web; water birds; wetlands; and management and initiatives
ISBN 81 7898 299 4 664pp £120/$192 2003 Hardback
The contributions in this volume provide a comprehensive review of the biotic and abiotic environment of Lake Ontario, including the physical and chemical setting, the complexity of the food web, the fishery and the impact of invasives. This volume represents a benchmark against whichj future ecological changes in Lake Ontario can be measured. A clear signal from this collection of peer reviewed contributions is the importance of long term ecological studies to understand the impact of anthropogenic events and to assess the consequences of management decisions. This book reflects the breadth of scientific enquiry into Lake Ontario’s condition, which can be taken as a barometer of ecological change globally.
ISBN 81 7898 232 2 362pp £75/$120 2003 Paperback
Sediments, and the organisms associated with them, are one of the most informative indicators of environmental contamination and potential ecological impacts. This book aims to advance our understanding of sediment contamination by presenting 22 peer reviewed papers divided into four themes: overview of bioassessment and management of sediments; monitoring sediment contamination: spatial and temporal trends; bioavailability, toxicity, risk assessment and treatment; and sediment-water interactions and eutrophication.