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Books in Environmental sciences

The Environmental Sciences titles present critical research and insights into the complex interactions within natural ecosystems, climate systems, and human impacts on the environment. Covering areas such as biodiversity, sustainability, climate change, and resource management, these titles support scientific discovery and practical solutions for addressing today’s most pressing environmental challenges. This collection is essential for researchers, policymakers, and students dedicated to advancing environmental understanding and stewardship

    • Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities

      • 1st Edition
      • Robert Noyes
      • English
      One of the largest, most complicated and expensive environmental problems in the United States is the cleanup of nuclear wastes. The US Department of Energy (DOE) has approximately 4,000 contaminated sites covering tens of thousands of acres and replete with contaminated hazardous or radioactive waste, soil, or structures. In addition to high-level waste, it has more than 250,000 cubic meters of transuranic waste and millions of cubic meters of low-level radio-active waste. In addition, DOE is responsible for thousands of facilities awaiting decontamination, decommissioning, and dismantling. DOE and its predecessors have been involved in the management of radioactive wastes since 1943, when such wastes were first generated in significant quantities as by-products of nuclear weapons production. Waste connected with DOE's nuclear weapons complex has been accumulating as a result of various operations spanning over five decades.The cost estimates for nuclear waste cleanup in the United States have been rapidly rising. It has recently been estimated to be in a range from $200 to $350 billion. Costs could vary considerably based on future philosophies as to whether to isolate certain sites (the ""iron fence"" philosophy), or clean them up to a pristine condition (the ""greenfields"" philosophy). Funding will also be based on Congressional action that may reduce environmental cleanup, based on budget considerations.
    • Waste Minimization and Cost Reduction for the Process Industries

      • 1st Edition
      • Paul N. Cheremisinoff
      • English
      The purpose of this book is to provide a base of information and analysis to assist in implementation of the policy of reducing and/or minimizing hazardous waste generation in manufacturing and more specifically in the process industries. What is the significance of reducing the generation of all process wastes? This book examines the technical nature of waste reduction and the extent to which waste reduction can likely be implemented. Also explored is the extent to which technology itself, as well as information and resources, is a barrier to waste reduction. In what ways are waste reduction decisions dependent on specific circumstances? Can the amount of feasible waste reduction be estimated? Auditing of manufacturing and unit operations and processes are particularly significant and useful in the chemical process industries (food, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, fertilizer, petrochemicals, etc.) since it is estimated that these industries account for more than half of the hazardous wastes generated. This book presents a compilation of complete information on potential sources of waste loss or generation through technical inspection. Also presented are calculation methods for determining air-waste-solid wastes material balances, informational requirements and waste reduction analysis.The reader should find the book useful in the areas of auditing and waste minimization. It is replete with useful information as well as specific case histories, which should make it a practical tool for the user.
    • Plant Location Selection Techniques

      • 1st Edition
      • Edwin M. McPherson
      • English
      This book ties together history, legislation and economics to create an awareness of what chances an individual will have when he selects a location for a plant. Key costs are discussed including those mandated by the environment and by legislation. The impact of cultures, both past and present, upon the opportunity for economic success are reviewed. It is a ""How To"" and a ""Beware"" presentation of plant location, both domestic and international.The book is designed to provide chief executive officers, manufacturing vice presidents, chief engineers and engineers a checklist of things to do in analyzing a potential plant site. It is also designed to provide state and local industrial development staffs' guidance in their efforts to obtain industry. New entrepreneurs will find this book to be useful in making presentations to financial agencies.The do's and don'ts of plant location are dealt with from both the current and historical prospective. The impact of legislation upon manufacturing costs and thereby industry location is covered by both current and past examples.Examples of failed locations from both industry and site planners perspectives are provided. The book shows how to choose the best location in a country through arraying the basic economic and social facts in an orderly manner. Both tangible and intangible cost analysis and factor weighting are covered. Included are the impact of customs, legal systems, ways of doing business upon costs, management style and plant efficiency. Current legislation's potential impact upon plant location is evaluated. This review includes GATT, NAFT A, CBI and other international direct and indirect influences on markets and costs. Also the present and potential impact of OSHA, ADA, EPA and other national mandates is covered.
    • Resources and References

      Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Materials Management
      • 1st Edition
      • Donna S. Kocurek + 1 more
      • English
      This guide book provides references and resources for the complex field of hazardous waste and hazardous materials management. The book is divided into general topics such as air quality, industrial wastewater, pollution prevention, and risk assessment under hazardous waste management and chemical hazards, emergency planning, and hazard communication under hazardous materials management. Each individual section includes a list of annotated bibliographies of the most recent books by major publishers as well as established, standard references. Following the annotated titles, are additional references of books and documents by publishers, technical associations, and governmental agencies (primarily the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). In general, only references from 1986 onward are included since the technology and regulations affecting hazardous waste and materials are constantly evolving.Additional resources included in the book are video tapes for training and instruction, information services and databases, libraries, agency contacts, technical journals, and a list of publishers and ordering information. This book will be a useful reference to professionals in the environmental field who need an extensive, but concise source of technical information and contacts.The book will be a valuable addition to individual libraries and will fill a current reference void in university libraries, and technical libraries in industry and government. At present there are very few technical bibliographies in the field, and none has covered topics related to hazardous materials and hazardous waste as extensively as this book.
    • Handbook of Emergency Response to Toxic Chemical Releases

      A Guide to Compliance
      • 1st Edition
      • Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff
      • English
      This handbook has been prepared as a working reference for the safety officer, the environmental engineer, and the consultant. For the safety officer, this handbook provides detailed guidelines and instructions in preparing Right-to-Know Reporting Audits, establishing programs and training employees on hazard awareness, and developing and implementing emergency response programs in the workplace and at off-site operations.For the environmental engineer, this handbook provides extensive technical data on toxic chemical properties and detailed instructional aid on how to properly prepare toxic chemical release inventory reporting.For the environmental consultant, an extensive overview of corrective action technologies is provided.
    • Advanced Cleaning Product Formulations, Vol. 3

      • 1st Edition
      • Ernest W. Flick
      • English
      This book presents more than 630 up-to-date advanced cleaning product formulations for household, industrial and automotive applications. All formulations are completely different from those in other volumes.
    • Carbon Dioxide and Terrestrial Ecosystems

      • 1st Edition
      • George W. Koch + 1 more
      • English
      The importance of carbon dioxide extends from cellular to global levels of organization and potential ecological deterioration may be the result of increased CO2 in our atmosphere. Recently, the research emphasis shifted from studies of photosynthesis pathways and plant growth to ground-breaking studies of carbon dioxide balances in ecosystems, regions, and even the entire globe. Carbon Dioxide and Terrestrial Ecosystems addresses these new areas of research. Economically important woody ecosystems are emphasized because they have substantial influence on global carbon dioxide balances. Herbaceous ecosystems (e.g., grasslands, prairies, wetlands) and crop ecosystems are also covered. The interactions among organisms, communities, and ecosystems are modeled, and the book closes with an important synthesis of this growing nexus of research. Carbon Dioxide and Terrestrial Ecosystems is a compilation of detailed scientific studies that reveal how ecosystems generally, and particular plants specifically, respond to changed levels of carbon dioxide.
    • Climate Change Research

      Evaluation and Policy Implications
      • 1st Edition
      • Volume 65
      • S. Zwerver + 3 more
      • English
      Climate change is more and more considered to be a major global environmental risk. The above mentioned conference was the concluding part of a new programme organized in The Netherlands with a view to stimulating participation of Dutch scientists in the international research effort concerning the problem of climate change. The proceedings of the Maastricht Conference on Climate Change Research cover a wide range of subjects including:* key note papers of internationally leading scientists on relevant aspects of the climate problem* assessments of NRP-research on the climate system, the causes of potential change in the system, the possible effects and consequences of climate change, and alternative responses (including technological and/or social) that are considered within the context of sustainable development* short papers of the NRP- and related projects with final conclusions per projectThis book will be of value to anyone professionally interested in the various aspects of climate change research and policy.
    • Safety of Reactive Chemicals and Pyrotechnics

      • 1st Edition
      • Volume 5
      • Y. Wada + 2 more
      • English
      Accidents involving reactive chemicals can often be prevented, or their effects alleviated, if those handling them have a sound knowledge both of their hazardous properties and of appropriate handling methods. This book addresses this need.It opens with a definition of the key technical terms and evaluation methods for hazardous materials are outlined. Chapter 2 covers accidents involving self-reactive substances, accidents occurring during chemical reactions, and accidents involving hazardous products in the event of an earthquake. In the next three chapters, methods for evaluating fire and explosion hazards of reactive substances are covered. The test methods described include DSC test using a sealed cell, impact sensitivity tests, the ignitability test, burning tests, the pyrolytic severity test, and shock sensitivity tests. Recently, the Japanese Fire Services Law was amended, requiring hazardous materials to be evaluated and classified by appropriate tests. These test methods, described in chapter 4, are related to oxidising solids, combustible solids, spontaneous ignition substances, and water-reactive substances. The final chapter gives examples of the safety assessment of various pyrotechnics.There are few books available on this subject and none so comprehensive. Each of the methods described is practical, effective and of low cost; and many of the application results are from the author's own laboratory. The book will be invaluable to those in public and industrial safety laboratories, R & D chemical laboratories, Fire Departments, explosives manufacturers, and those responsible for the transportation of hazardous materials.
    • Future Climates of the World

      • 1st Edition
      • Ann Henderson-Sellers
      • English
      Future Climates of the World: A Modelling Perspective is Volume 16 of the highly prestigious series of climatology reference books World Survey of Climatology. The present volume offers a state-of-the-art overview of our understanding of future climates and is aimed at climatology undergraduates, interested non-climatologists with a scientific background as well as the generally interested reader. Each topic is discussed clearly so that the full implications of its affect on the earth's future climate can be fully understood. The study of climate has moved from data collection ``climatology'' to the model and experimentally based predictions of ``climatic science''. Our understanding of climatic prediction depends crucially upon improvements in, and improved understanding of, climatic models.The book compises four main themes which follow an introductory chapter i.e. the geologic perspective (I) and present-day observations (II) as they pertain to future climates; human factors affecting future climates (III) and planetary geophysiology and future climates (IV).