Poison on Tap by
The most valuable and illuminating account yet of the Flint water crisis. It took more than a year for the truth to finally, painfully emerge - that Flint, Mich., residents had been drinking lead-poisoned water despite months of complaints about foul smells, discoloration and, worse, ill children. Based on the award-winning journalism of Bridge Magazine, "Poison on Tap" provides a riveting, authoritative, in-depth account of the government blunders, mendacity and arrogance that produced the water crisis in Flint: How state-appointed emergency managers put cost-cutting ahead of public safety. How state experts misinterpreted basic safeguards, while federal regulators dithered for months about warning the public. How a governor missed the many red flags. And how a series of heroes refused to accept the pat dismissals of government agencies, needling and fighting until their voices were heard. "Poison on Tap" is a compelling case study in how government at all levels can go very wrong - and yet shows the power of the human spirit to overcome. "Sometimes truth is stranger and scarier than fiction-such is the case with the Flint Water Crisis. Bridge Magazine staff painstakingly document one of the most significant cases of environmental injustice in U.S. history." -Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech professor whose work helped prove that the regulators were wrong"
The Poisoned City: Flint's Water and the American Urban Tragedy by 
What the Eyes Don't See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City by 
Toxic Debt: An Environmental Justice History of Detroit by
From the mid-nineteenth until the mid-twentieth century, environmentally unregulated industrial capitalism produced outsized environmental risks for poor and working-class Detroiters, made all the worse for African Americans by housing and job discrimination. Then as the auto industry abandoned Detroit, the banking and real estate industries turned those risks into disasters with predatory loans to African American homebuyers, and to an increasingly indebted city government. Following years of cuts in welfare assistance to poor families and a devastating subprime mortgage meltdown, the state of Michigan used municipal debt to justify suspending democracy in majority-Black cities. In Detroit and Flint, austerity policies imposed under emergency financial management deprived hundreds of thousands of people of clean water, with lethal consequences that most recently exacerbated the spread of COVID-19. Toxic Debt is not only a book about racism, capitalism, and the making of these environmental disasters. It is also a history of Detroit's environmental justice movement, which emerged from over a century of battles over public health in the city and involved radical auto workers, ecofeminists, and working-class women fighting for clean water. Linking the histories of urban political economy, the environment, and social movements, Toxic Debt lucidly narrates the story of debt, environmental disaster, and resistance in Detroit.
Handbook of Water and Wastewater Microbiology by
'Access to safe water is a fundamental human need and therefore a basic human right' Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary General. Edited by two world-renowned scientists in the field, The Handbook of Water and Wastewater Microbiology provides a definitive and comprehensive coverage of water and wastewater microbiology. With contributions from experts from around the world, this book gives a global perspective on the important issues faced in the provision of safe drinking water, the problems of dealing with aquatic pollution and the processes involved in wastewater management. Starting with an introductory chapter of basic microbiological principles, The Handbook of Water and Wastewater Microbiology develops these principles further, ensuring that this is the essential text for process engineers with little microbiological experience and specialist microbiologists alike. Comprehensive selection of reviews dealing with drinking water and aquatic pollution Provides an understanding of basic microbiology and how it is applied to engineering process solutions. Suitable for all levels of knowledge in microbiology -from those with no background to specialists who require the depth of information.
The Water Princess by
Based on supermodel Georgie Badiel's childhood, a young girl dreams of bringing clean drinking water to her African village With its wide sky and warm earth, Princess Gie Gie's kingdom is a beautiful land. But clean drinking water is scarce in her small African village. And try as she might, Gie Gie cannot bring the water closer; she cannot make it run clearer. Every morning, she rises before the sun to make the long journey to the well. Instead of a crown, she wears a heavy pot on her head to collect the water. After the voyage home, after boiling the water to drink and clean with, Gie Gie thinks of the trip that tomorrow will bring. And she dreams. She dreams of a day when her village will have cool, crystal-clear water of its own. Inspired by the childhood of African-born model Georgie Badiel, acclaimed author Susan Verde and award-winning author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds have come together to tell this moving story. As a child in Burkina Faso, Georgie and the other girls in her village had to walk for miles each day to collect water. This vibrant, engaging picture book sheds light on this struggle that continues all over the world today, instilling hope for a future when all children will have access to clean drinking water.
Microbial Growth in Drinking-Water Supplies by
Maintaining the microbial quality in distribution systems and connected installations remains a challenge for the water supply companies all over the world, despite many years of research. This book identifies the main concerns and knowledge gaps related to regrowth and stimulates cooperation in future research. Microbial Growth in Drinking Water Supplies provides an overview of the regrowth issue in different countries and the water quality problems related to regrowth. The book assesses the causes of regrowth in drinking water and the prevention of regrowth by water treatment and distribution. Editors: Dirk van der Kooij and Paul W.J.J. van der Wielen, KWR Water Research Institute, The Netherlands
Drinking Water and Water Management by
Water is an essential natural resource for life. Nowadays, water contamination is a common issue due to a variety of sources but mainly of anthropogenic origin, such as urban and industrial wastes. Methods for evaluating water availability and reliability in supplying needs for agricultural, municipal, and industrial water use, environmental flows, electric energy generation, and reservoir storage are described in this book. This book also discusses chemical threats in drinking water; removal of radioactivity from drinking water; and irrigation agriculture.
Alternatives for Managing the Nation's Complex Contaminated Groundwater Sites by
Across the United States, thousands of hazardous waste sites are contaminated with chemicals that prevent the underlying groundwater from meeting drinking water standards. These include Superfund sites and other facilities that handle and dispose of hazardous waste, active and inactive dry cleaners, and leaking underground storage tanks; many are at federal facilities such as military installations. While many sites have been closed over the past 30 years through cleanup programs run by the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. EPA, and other state and federal agencies, the remaining caseload is much more difficult to address because the nature of the contamination and subsurface conditions make it difficult to achieve drinking water standards in the affected groundwater. Alternatives for Managing the Nation's Complex Contaminated Groundwater Sites estimates that at least 126,000 sites across the U.S. still have contaminated groundwater, and their closure is expected to cost at least $110 billion to $127 billion. About 10 percent of these sites are considered "complex," meaning restoration is unlikely to be achieved in the next 50 to 100 years due to technological limitations. At sites where contaminant concentrations have plateaued at levels above cleanup goals despite active efforts, the report recommends evaluating whether the sites should transition to long-term management, where risks would be monitored and harmful exposures prevented, but at reduced costs.
The Atlas of Water by
Climate change and an exponential population explosion threaten the world supply of fresh water, edging us closer to a global water crisis, with dire implications for agriculture, the economy, the environment, and human health. Completely revised and updated since its first edition, The Atlas of Water is a compelling visual guide to the state of this life-sustaining resource. Using vivid graphics, maps, and charts, it explores the complex human interaction with water over time and across the world. This vibrant atlas addresses all the pressing issues concerning water, from human impacts like dams and construction to water shortages and excessive demand, pollution, privatization, and water management. It also outlines critical tools for managing water, providing safe access to water, and preserving the future of the world's water supply.
Clean Water by
Clean Water is a book for anyone concerned about this precious resource who wants to become better informed. In straightforward language, Kenneth Vigil provides a comprehensive introduction to the many scientific, regulatory, cultural, and geographic issues associated with water quality and water pollution control. Most other books on water quality and pollution control are highly technical and very specific, and are aimed at engineers, scientists, or attorneys. Clean Water, on the other hand, is a comprehensive discussion of the subject intended for a wider audience of science students, educators, and the general public. Vigil avoids the use of technical jargon and uses many photos and diagrams to illustrate and explain concepts. He provides sufficient detail to educate readers about many broad topics and includes additional references at the end of each chapter for exploring specific topics in more detail. Clean Water summarizes the basic fundamentals of water chemistry and microbiology and outlines, important water quality rules and regulations, all in concise, understandable prose. It describes the basic scientific principles behind water pollution control and the broader approach of addressing water pollution problems through watershed management. There are sections on drinking water and on citizen involvement in water pollution control efforts at home and in the community. This is a thoroughly revised edition of Vigil's 1996 book, Clean Water: The Citizen's Complete Guide to Water Quality and Water Pollution Control, which was praised by reviewers and has been used as a textbook at colleges and high schools throughout the U.S.
Lead Wars by
In this incisive examination of lead poisoning during the past half century, Gerald Markowitz and David Rosner focus on one of the most contentious and bitter battles in the history of public health. Lead Wars details how the nature of the epidemic has changed and highlights the dilemmas public health agencies face today in terms of prevention strategies and chronic illness linked to low levels of toxic exposure. The authors use the opinion by Maryland's Court of Appeals--which considered whether researchers at Johns Hopkins University's prestigious Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) engaged in unethical research on 108 African-American children--as a springboard to ask fundamental questions about the practice and future of public health. Lead Wars chronicles the obstacles faced by public health workers in the conservative, pro-business, anti-regulatory climate that took off in the Reagan years and that stymied efforts to eliminate lead from the environments and the bodies of American children.
