War on waste : can America win its battle with garbage? /

Blumberg and Gottlieb have provided a comprehensive analysis of the solid waste problem and the major alternatives available for solution of the crisis. Readers will find the discussion of the growth of the waste stream very helpful in understanding the nature and extent of the solid waste problem. The use of incinerators to turn garbage into energy is analyzed in terms of the hazards and risks, using environmental, economic, and political perspectives. A case study of the LANCER project in Los Angeles, in which both authors were extensively involved, is described and analyzed. The authors carefully lay out alternatives for action that includes recycling, reuse, and source reduction. The book is well written, reflecting the authors' expertise and experience in environmental concerns. Other books such as Newsday's Rush to Burn (1989) describe the problem and possible solutions but, in general, do not discuss and analyze them from a political perspective. The book is well documented and has an extensive index. It should be on the reading list of everyone concerned with the growing US solid waste problem. Undergraduate readers and up. D. A. Johnson Spring Arbor College

Do we want to take our throwaway society from landfilling to ``moonfilling'' via the ``consumerism blitz'' and the ``end-of-the-pipe'' approach, or do we want to provide political and economic support to reasoned waste alternatives--reduction, reuse, recycling? This book is a contemporary history and sociology of solid waste from the turn of the century to the present day and was adapted from an award-winning report by UCLA graduate students. It provides a more substantive analysis of waste management than the recent excellent critique of mass incineration, Rush To Burn: Solving America's Garbage Crisis ( LJ 7/89). To stimulate public debate on this important topic, libraries need both.--Diane M. Brown, Univ. of California Lib., Berkeley (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.