Best of
Environment

1982

Down the River


Edward Abbey - 1982
    "For 23 years now I've been floating rivers. Always downstream, the easy and natural way. The way Huck Finn and Jim did it, LaSalle and Marquette, the mountain men, and Major Powell."

Worms Eat My Garbage: How to Set Up and Maintain a Worm Composting System


Mary Appelhof - 1982
    Small-scale, self-contained worm bins can be kept indoors, in a basement or even under the kitchen sink in an apartment — making vermicomposting a great option for city dwellers and anyone who doesn’t want or can’t have an outdoor compost pile. The fully revised 35th anniversary edition features the original’s same friendly tone, with up-to-date information on the entire process, from building or purchasing a bin (readily available at garden supply stores), maintaining the worms, and harvesting the finished compost.

The Ecology of Freedom: The Emergence and Dissolution of Hierarchy


Murray Bookchin - 1982
    An engaging and extremely readable book of breathtaking scope, its inspired synthesis of ecology, anthropology, and political theory traces our conflicting legacies of hierarchy and freedom, from the first emergence of human culture to today's globalized capitalism, constantly pointing the way to a sane, sustainable ecological future. On a college syllabus or in an activist's backpack, this book is indispensable reading for anyone who's tired of living in a world where everything is an exploitable resource.

The Integral Urban House


Sim Van der Ryn - 1982
    In this comprehensive guide, a completely sustainable urban lifestyle is achieved by creating a mini-ecosystem where residents grow their own fruits and vegetables, raise chickens, rabbits, and fish, recycle 90 percent of their waste, and use a variety of other alternative technologies--all on a 1/8-acre city lot.

The Hidden West: Journey in the American Outback


Rob Schultheis - 1982
    A memorable account of one man's journey through terra incognita - secret places that still exist in the American West.

Water and Power: The Conflict over Los Angeles Water Supply in the Owens Valley


William L. Kahrl - 1982
    But by performing the essential historical task of separating what happened from what did not, and by distinguishing in this way the choices which have been made from those which have yet to be decided, it is my hope that this effort will help to establish that common basis for understanding which is essential for the debate over specific issues to proceed most effectively. This book, then, is scarcely the last word on the Owens Valley conflict: the final chapter, after all, has yet to be written. The story that has emerged here is at once very different and more troubling than the conventional treatments of the conflict as a simplistic political morality play. Any attempt to deal with so controversial a subject, however, is almost certain to spark controversy itself. For that reason, with the exception of a small collection of private letters, this work is constructed entirely from the published documents and other materials available to the general public, anchoring the narrative in sources the reader can consult to trace the line of my argument on any point with which he or she may disagree. In addition, the work as a whole has been reviewed for technical accuracy by officials of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, although the department is in no way responsible for the content of this study or the conclusions drawn from it.

Livable Streets


Donald Appleyard - 1982
    Including the orginal text alongside extra material with fresh insights, 'Livable Streets' still has valuable lessons we need to learn.

Common Landscape of America, 1580-1845


John R. Stilgoe - 1982
     — Yale University Press