Banned: A History of Pesticides and the Science of Toxicology
Frederick Rowe Davis
Abstract
Rachel Carson's eloquent book Silent Spring stands as one of the most important books of the twentieth century and inspired important and long-lasting changes in environmental science and government policy. This text sets Carson's study in the context of the twentieth century, reconsiders her achievement, and analyzes its legacy in light of toxic chemical use and regulation today. The book examines the history of pesticide development alongside the evolution of the science of toxicology and tracks legislation governing exposure to chemicals across the twentieth century. It affirms the brillian ... More
Rachel Carson's eloquent book Silent Spring stands as one of the most important books of the twentieth century and inspired important and long-lasting changes in environmental science and government policy. This text sets Carson's study in the context of the twentieth century, reconsiders her achievement, and analyzes its legacy in light of toxic chemical use and regulation today. The book examines the history of pesticide development alongside the evolution of the science of toxicology and tracks legislation governing exposure to chemicals across the twentieth century. It affirms the brilliance of Carson's careful scientific interpretations drawing on data from university and government toxicologists. Although Silent Spring instigated legislation that successfully terminated DDT use, other warnings were ignored. Ironically, we replaced one poison with even more toxic ones. The book concludes that we urgently need new thinking about how we evaluate and regulate pesticides in accounting for their ecological and human toll.
Keywords:
Rachel Carson,
Silent Spring,
environmental science,
government policy,
toxic chemical use,
DDT
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2014 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780300205176 |
| Published to Yale Scholarship Online: May 2015 |
DOI:10.12987/yale/9780300205176.001.0001 |
