Human Impact on the Earth [Paperback]

At a level accessible to the general reader, this balanced and non-polemical book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to today.At a level accessible to general readers, this book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to the present day. It offers a comprehensive inventory, ranging from long-standing alterations to new ones that have emerged in recent years.At a level accessible to general readers, this book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to the present day. It offers a comprehensive inventory, ranging from long-standing alterations to new ones that have emerged in recent years.At a level accessible to the educated lay reader, this book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to the present day. It offers a comprehensive and authoritative inventory of human impact in its varied forms on the oceans, atmosphere, and climate--ranging from long-standing alterations to new and surprising ones that have emerged in recent years, from environmental disasters to success stories of environmental management, and false alarms. This balanced, nonpolemical survey will interest all those concerned about the environment and the likely fate of the planet.Preface; 1. The Earth transformed by human action; 2. Changes in population and society; 3. The land; 4. Biota; 5. Water; 6. Chemical flows; 7. Oceans, atmosphere, climate; 8. Three centuries that shook the Earth; References; Index. ...effectively presents the interrelated nature of environmental systems, serving as an accessible introduction to the complex topic of societal impact on the environment. Choice