Engineers and scientists have made great progress in advancing the understanding of the principles underlying environmental quality and public health. However, all too often, society and the scientific community do not realize the connections between environmental occurrences. In their haste to remedy a situation, they overlook lessons that could be learned to prevent future disasters. Paying attention to the past instructs us about the future. Paradigms Lost combines the historical case perspective with credible and sound scientific explanations of key environmental disasters and problems. The author sorts through natural disasters and human mistakes from Love Canal, New York to Bhopal, India to provide larger lessons that can be applied by scientists, engineers and public safety officials. The analysis of these events includes viable alternatives for future generations. * Includes alternative approaches to environmental issues from preventative measures to contingency plans* Richly annotated with sidebars, discussion boxes and generous examples from Exxon Valdez and Love Canal to Agent Orange and Bhopal* A usable tool for all professionals from lawyers to chemical engineers
Author(s): Daniel Vallero
Edition: annotated edition
Year: 2005
Language: English
Pages: 600
Table of Contents......Page 8
Preface and Introduction......Page 14
Structure and Emphasis......Page 15
Quality Control......Page 22
Notes and Commentary......Page 31
Part I: New Science and New Paradigms......Page 34
CHAPTER 1: Lessons Learned: A Case Approach to Environmental Problems......Page 46
MTBE and Cross-Media Transfer......Page 51
The Incremental Effect......Page 52
Failure and Blame......Page 54
A Lesson from the Medical Community......Page 64
Professional Accountability......Page 66
Villain and Victim Status......Page 67
Other Lessons: Risk and Reliability......Page 70
Environmental Ethics and a New Environmental Ethic......Page 71
Sensitivity......Page 75
Notes and Commentary......Page 83
CHAPTER 2: Pollution Revisited......Page 88
DDT versus Eco-Colonialism: Trading Risks......Page 95
Reliability......Page 98
Characterizing Pollutants......Page 102
Partitioning to Solids—Sorption......Page 108
Partitioning to the Liquid Phase—Dissolution......Page 113
Partitioning to the Gas Phase—Volatilization......Page 118
Solubility as a Physical and Chemical Phenomenon......Page 120
Partitioning to Organic Tissue......Page 122
Emissions, Effluents, Releases, Leaks, and Spills......Page 124
Notes and Commentary......Page 125
Part II: Key Environmental Events by Media......Page 128
Fluids in the Environment: A Brief Introduction......Page 129
Three Major Media......Page 140
London Air Pollution and the Industrial Revolution......Page 142
Contaminants of Concern: Sulfur and Nitrogen Compounds......Page 144
Notorious Air Pollution Cases of the Twentieth Century......Page 151
The Meuse Valley Acid Fog......Page 152
Contaminants of Concern: Particulate Matter......Page 156
Donora, Pennsylvania......Page 171
Contaminant of Concern: Hydrogen Sulfide......Page 173
London, England......Page 175
The Bhopal Tragedy......Page 177
Preparing for Intentional Toxic Clouds......Page 183
Airshed in the Developing World: Mexico City......Page 185
Lessons Learned......Page 186
Contaminant of Concern: Photochemical Oxidant Smog......Page 187
Notes and Commentary......Page 190
The Death of Lake Erie: The Price of Progress?......Page 196
Eutrophication......Page 197
Lesson Learned: The Need for Regional Environmental Planning......Page 201
Spills: Immediate Problem with Long-Term Consequences......Page 207
Solubility......Page 209
Torrey Canyon Tanker Spill......Page 212
Santa Barbara Oil Spill......Page 216
Exxon Valdez Spill: Disaster Experienced and Disaster Avoided......Page 218
Prestige Oil Spill......Page 221
Pfiesteria piscicida: Nature Out of Sync......Page 224
Lesson Being Learned......Page 226
Notes and Commentary......Page 227
CHAPTER 5: Landmark Cases......Page 230
Love Canal, New York......Page 231
Hazardous Waste Cleanup......Page 233
A Fire That Sparked Controversy: Chester, Pennsylvania......Page 237
Dioxin Contamination of Times Beach......Page 246
A Terrifying Discovery: Valley of the Drums......Page 248
Stringfellow Acid Pits......Page 249
Failure to Grasp the Land Ethic......Page 252
Disasters: Real and Perceived......Page 259
“Cancer Alley” and Vinyl Chloride......Page 265
Bioaccumulation and Its Influence on Risk......Page 267
The Kepone Tragedy......Page 268
Biological Response......Page 270
Organic versus Inorganic Toxicants......Page 273
Pesticides and Sterility......Page 274
Jersey City Chromium......Page 277
Radioisotopes......Page 279
Radiation Poisoning in Goiania, Brazil......Page 280
Factors of Safety......Page 281
Small Numbers and Rare Events......Page 283
Exposure Estimation......Page 288
Risk-Based Cleanup Standards......Page 296
The Drake Chemical Company Superfund Site: A Risk-Based Case......Page 298
Risk Assessment: The First Step......Page 301
Notes and Commentary......Page 302
CHAPTER 6: By Way of Introduction......Page 308
Asian Shore Crab......Page 319
Zebra Mussel Invasion of the Great Lakes......Page 323
Lesson Learned: Need for Meaningful Ecological Risk Assessments......Page 325
Notes and Commentary......Page 328
CHAPTER 7: Environmental Swords of Damocles......Page 330
The Tragedy of the Commons......Page 331
Global Climate Change......Page 332
The Greenhouse Effect......Page 333
The Inuit and Persistent Organic Pollutants......Page 335
Extrinsic Factors......Page 338
Persistence......Page 347
Lake Apopka: A Natural Experiment......Page 349
Nuclear Fission......Page 353
Meltdown at Chernobyl......Page 354
Terrorism......Page 358
Ecosystem Habitat Destruction......Page 359
Lessons Learned......Page 360
The Butterfly Effect......Page 365
Notes and Commentary......Page 367
Part III: Other Paradigms......Page 370
CHAPTER 8: Dropping Acid and Heavy Metal Reactions......Page 372
Case of the Negative pH: Iron Mountain, California......Page 373
Acid Mine Drainage......Page 379
Acid Precipitation......Page 381
Lead: The Ubiquitous Element......Page 384
Coeur d’Alene Valley and the Bunker Hill Lead Smelter......Page 385
Mercury: Lessons from Minamata......Page 386
Arsenic Tragedy in Bangledesh......Page 389
Asbestos in Australia......Page 393
Notes and Commentary......Page 397
CHAPTER 9: Spaceship Earth......Page 400
Changes in the Global Climate......Page 401
Carbon Dioxide......Page 408
Nitrous Oxide......Page 410
Land Use and Forestry......Page 411
Threats to the Stratospheric Ozone Layer......Page 412
Coral Reef Destruction......Page 413
Syllogisms for Coral Reef Destruction......Page 416
Notes and Commentary......Page 418
Solid Waste: Is It Taking over the Planet?......Page 422
Alar and Apples......Page 425
Parent versus Progeny......Page 426
Agent Orange: Important If True......Page 437
The Snail Darter: A Threat to the Endangered Species Act?......Page 440
Seveso Plant Disaster......Page 443
Poverty and Pollution......Page 446
Notes and Commentary......Page 448
CHAPTER 11: Just Environmental Decisions, Please......Page 452
Environmental Justice......Page 453
How Can Engineers Best Manage Risks in a Changing Environment?......Page 458
Optimization in Environmental Risk Management......Page 460
Precautionary Principle and Factors of Safety in Risk Management......Page 477
Market versus Nonmarket Valuation: Uncle Joe the Junk Man......Page 479
The Warren County, North Carolina, PCB Landfill......Page 485
The Orange County, North Carolina, Landfill......Page 492
If It Does Occur, It Is Not Bad......Page 496
If It Does Occur and It Is Bad, It Is Not Racially Motivated......Page 497
Is Environmentalism a Middle-Class Value?......Page 498
Habitat for Humanity......Page 500
Carver Terrace, Texas......Page 502
Lessons Applied: The Environmental Justice Movement......Page 504
Environmental Justice and the Catalytic Converter......Page 506
Notes and Commentary......Page 508
Part IV: What Is Next?......Page 514
CHAPTER 12: Bottom Lines and Top of the Head Guesses......Page 516
The Systematic Approach......Page 520
New Thinking......Page 524
Notes and Commentary......Page 531
APPENDIX 1: Equilibrium......Page 536
APPENDIX 2: Government Reorganizations Creating the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and......Page 544
APPENDIX 3: Reliability in Environmental Decision Making......Page 550
APPENDIX 4: Principles of Environmental Persistence......Page 554
APPENDIX 5: Cancer Slope Factors......Page 560
APPENDIX 6: Equations for Calculating Lifetime Average Daily Dose (LADD) for Various Routes
of Exposure......Page 568
APPENDIX 7: Characterizing Environmental Risk......Page 572
APPENDIX 8: Risk-Based Contaminant Cleanup Example......Page 576
APPENDIX 9: Shannon-Weiner Index Example......Page 580
APPENDIX 10: Useful Conversions in Atmospheric Chemistry......Page 584
Index......Page 586
