In the annual State-of-the-Union address a President has a chance to lay out new proposals, and on January 31, 2006, President Bush provided a surprise. For the first time, he clearly indicated that energy supplies, particularly petroleum, are of concern: “America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology … and we are on the threshold of incredible advances.” Perhaps most memorably, he heralded a striking goal: “… to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025.”

Every year I eagerly read the Annual Report of the Connecticut Council on Environmental Quality and use its information in the courses I teach at Rensselaer at Hartford and in the seminars in which I participate. Because of the data it provides, the Annual Report is a very valuable resource and perhaps deserves much more widespread attention than it presently commands. Unfortunately, in recent years many of its findings have been disappointing. This disappointment is not of the Council's making at all, but is a function of the system that is being evaluated. Perhaps the key issue is that, despite all the command and control programs of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CDEP), Connecticut's environment is just not improving. In fact, some of the critical indicators such as “miles driven per person” and “taking the bus” are indicating worrisome trends; miles driven per person per day are up and mass transit utilization is declining. Based on the facts presented, a question arises as to whether the era of command and control regulation of the “usual culprits” is ending, and whether one of collaboration, reeducation, and refocusing should begin.Author's note: This is an embellished version of recent written testimony presented to the Connecticut Council on Environmental Quality. Many points are of universal importance, and its dissemination may have merit, especially if a dialog is fostered.

The annual Brownfields conference, organized by the EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) and ICMA (International City/County Management Association), is the most comprehensive forum in the world to address issues of remediation and redevelopment of brownfields properties and allied questions.

Books & resources.

Protected areas have been an integral part of contemporary nature protection for about a century and a half. One of the most interesting protected area networks was designed in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Here, we present a case study of the history of a particular state nature reserve (or zapovednik) in Kyrgyzstan, using key informant interviews and reviews of current and historical documents. We examine the management of this area from the time of its creation under Soviet rule, through the collapse of the USSR, to the present day. We also make policy recommendations for the future, given the profound changes in the post-Soviet economy and political structure. We conclude that the collapse of the USSR has inflicted numerous changes on the environmental protection sector in Kyrgyzstan, but that the Issyk-Kul Nature Reserve continues to be run according to the Soviet paradigm, with a few minor adjustments. Funding structures and mechanisms for the support of conservation and other environmental issues are of paramount importance in the changing economic climate and democratization throughout the former USSR. Our work can be used as a template for studying protected areas in the region and lays the groundwork for more comparative research that could be carried out in and around Kyrgyzstan's other protected areas and those in other republics of the former USSR.

Sustainable development has become a central objective of policy worldwide. Although the term is widely used, there is little agreement on what it means in practice and how progress toward it can be measured. The European Commission, as part of its Programme on Competitive and Sustainable Growth, commissioned the SUMMA (SUstainable Mobility, policy Measures and Assessment) project. Among SUMMA's objectives were to define and operationalize the concept of sustainable transport and mobility in terms of its environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and to define outcome indicators from the transport system that can help policy makers monitor progress toward its achievement. To achieve these objectives, we used the systems approach, which identifies the interrelationships among the elements of a complex system and helps in the design of policies to steer the system toward sustainability. This article describes the first phase of the systems approach: the set of outcome indicators that we developed and how we defined the transport system in terms of three markets—a movement market, a transport market, and a traffic market—in which choices are made that result in traffic streams. The traffic streams determine the values of the outcome indicators, which can then be used to identify good policies. The approach is illustrated with examples from the SUMMA project.

Public opinion, expressed through written comments, developed very differently throughout the planning phases of two road projects in southern Sweden. Each project's Prefeasibility Study, Feasibility Study, and Environmental Impact Report (EIR) were studied to analyze the changes between five evaluation phases: background and inventory of base data, replenishment with additional information, consequence analysis, conflict analysis, and priorities. For one of the road projects, rich and early descriptions of impact estimates, along with appraisals of the effects on the landscape, paved the way for more effective dialogue. Better disclosure of its reports' established facts and evaluations might explain the more solid acceptance for that road project. The other project did not clearly show the reasoning behind its priorities, which may explain the many public and agency comments on the EIR; consequently, people constructed and submitted their own viewpoints regarding impact. This article discusses how transparent documentation and presentation of priorities ultimately can contribute to the success of similar projects.

The “six-pack” of hormone growth promoters used in feedlot cattle deserves closer investigation from researchers and policy makers. The potential effects of exposure to such compounds are of particular interest in the field of endocrine disruption, which focuses on the effects these compounds can have during sensitive developmental periods, rather than using a carcinogenesis model. Steroid hormones participate in a delicate balance during fetal development. Interference with that balance can lead to disruptions that manifest as health problems at birth and later in life. Although we need more studies of the effects of feedlot compounds on human and wildlife development, some industry and government literature leads consumers to conclude that all the data are in. Governmental reviews of the literature from the European Union (where hormone use is banned) and Australia (where hormones are used) reveal different attitudes and conclusions about the same body of research, and these differences may relate to a different understanding of the value of the endocrine-disruption model. It is important to approach examinations of the effects of trenbolone and other growth promoters without bias and to acknowledge that cattle growth promoter research in the context of endocrine disruption has just begun. The scientific jury is still out regarding whether introducing these compounds into the human food supply and ecosystems—research suggests that hormonally active feedlot effluent may harm wildlife—can be deleterious.

Most of us were brought up to clean our plates at the dinner table. We find the lesson hard to unlearn. We apply this to books as well—if we haven't time to read the whole thing, we don't pick it up at all. In this note, I offer a list of heavy, very thorough books as a buffet—suggesting that you read only the parts that interest you. Then, I list a few shorter ones offering easier reading but still filled with ideas and insights. Many of these will be valuable for people wanting to lead discussions and workshops on applied ethics.

Empty Pastures: Confined Animals and the Transformation of the Rural Landscape. Terence J. Centner. 2004. University of Illinois Press, Champaign. 189 pp. $35 cloth.

Terence J. Centner, a Professor in the Agriculture and Environmental Science Department of the University of Georgia, has created a work of profound importance. The book is short and the title is, frankly, unassuming and perhaps a bit misleading, at least until the reader reaches the last chapters of the book. The title implies that the book is simply a history of how the American agricultural system has evolved to become what it is today. The book is much more than a simple history of the transformations that have occurred in rural America since the 1960s. Instead, it provides chapters filled with detailed explanations of numerous agricultural, environmental, and property rights issues to educate the reader. Once the stage is set, the final chapter offers a nine-point plan to transform today's rural economy into something magnificent.

Defending Wild Washington: A Citizen's Action Guide. E. Whitesell, ed. 2004. The Mountaineers Books, Seattle. 384 pp. $19.95 paperback.

Good advice on saving wild Washington: Buy this book! Not only is it an invaluable guide to the practical politics of protecting wilderness areas in Washington State, but it also provides a comprehensive overview of the state's geography, environmental history, complex and diverse ecology, and rich history of environmental activism. Of most importance, Defending Wild Washington provides sound and useful advice on what can and should be done now to protect Washington's remaining wilderness areas. This work is the impressive product of a team of students at The Evergreen State College, led by Environmental Studies faculty member Edward Whitesell and visiting professor Benjamin Shaine, who did extensive research on virtually every key aspect of Washington State's ecology. Defending Wild Washington is especially powerful and instructive in telling the individual stories of the long-term, passionate work of environmental activists, past and present, in protecting and reviving Washington's wild places.

Environmental Biotechnology: Concepts and Applications. Hans-Joachim Jördening and Josef Winter, eds. 2005. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. 488 pp. $160 cloth.

Environmental Biotechnology: Concepts and Applications, edited by Hans-Joachim Jördening and Josef Winter, is the most recent of six Wiley environmental and wastewater microbiology titles published since 1999. The Environmental Biotechnology title is strategic, differing from other entries with titles including such key phrases as Wastewater Microbiology and Environmental Microbiology. These latter phrases are clearer because they evoke accurately the content of the books, whereas the title of the book under review here suggests that cutting-edge technologies—most notably genetic engineering—are included, yet genetic engineering is virtually unrepresented in the book. In the context of five previous Wiley titles and many related titles by other publishers, the main issue facing this reviewer is not whether the book is good (it is), but whether it represents a worthy addition to alternative books in print, especially in view of its hefty price (cloth price: $160 for 488 pages).

Nanotechnology: Environmental Implications and Solutions. Louis Theodore and Robert G. Kunz. 2005. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. 278 pp. $99 cloth.

The publisher states that this book is “written by two highly accomplished environmental professionals” and that it “brings scientists, engineers, and policymakers up to speed on the current state of knowledge in this vitally important area.”

Environmental Law Handbook, 18th Edition. Thomas F. P. Sullivan, ed. 2005. Government Institutes, Rowman & Littlefield, Inc., Blue Ridge Summit, PA. 908 pp. $99 hardcover.

If a reference book makes it to its 18th Edition and has been serving its audience for over 32 years, recognition of its value needs to be accorded the editor and contributors from the outset. If it weren't for their talent and sensitivity to the needs of their audience, this milestone would not have been achieved.

Illustrated Dictionary and Resource Directory of Environmental & Occupational Health, 2nd Edition. Herman Koren. 2005. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. 702 pp. $139.95 hardcover.

According to the Foreword, the 1st Edition contained 7,500 entries, whereas this 2nd Edition contains 16,000; clearly, a substantial upgrading has been accomplished in response to a professional need. As the Introduction eloquently describes the field, “Environmental and occupational health is not a single topic, but rather a colorful, complex, and diversified range of interrelated subjects including all the basic sciences, engineering, computer science, government, disease, injury identification, prevention, and control.” It goes on to list a plethora of other subtopics that are covered. Considering the facts presented thus far, this volume should be an exhaustive compilation of information critical to the effectiveness of the environmental, health, and safety professional. The inclusion or exclusion of a particular term is not an objective of this review; of particular importance are the readability, accessibility, completeness, and user friendliness, which are critical factors in creating a usable, reliable reference volume.

Tiger Bone & Rhino Horn: The Destruction of Wildlife for Traditional Chinese Medicine. R. Ellis. 2005. Shearwater Books of Island Press, Washington, DC. 294 pp. $17.99 cloth.

Richard Ellis, a research associate at the American Museum of Natural History and celebrated author and artist, presents an intriguing and (quite unfortunately) timely and relevant look at a major cause of the loss of many species worldwide: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The volume is meant for lay readers with interests in natural history and conservation, and the prose is, thankfully, devoid of technical jargon. Yet the information is up-to-date and comprehensive enough to offer something new for those of us who have looked at various aspects of Asian wildlife markets professionally.

Contributors.