Drinking water : principles and practices /

Moel, Verbeck, and Van Dijk (all, TU Delft, the Netherlands) offer this introductory book on the science, technology, and management of drinking water. In much of the book, the authors discuss drinking water in the context of water issues in the Netherlands. A significant portion focuses on the water industry there, although there is also a good section describing issues in many other parts of the world. Even the parts on the Netherlands' water industry would be useful for anyone, as they make interesting case histories. Management issues are treated in more detail than in most similar engineering works. For example, there is a chapter just on the finances of water treatment. The graphic quality is very high; every page contains full-color illustrations. The book is described as being appropriate for students in a bachelor's degree program in civil engineering. Technical coverage is good, but the book really excels on the nontechnical issues. As such, it would be suitable for nonengineering students as well as for engineers, both at the undergraduate level. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers; lower-division undergraduates; two-year technical program students. D. A. Vaccari Stevens Institute of Technology