Protecting the Ozone Layer: Science and Strategy - Book Review
by Edward; University, New York, 2003; 400 pp., $65.00
Edward, professor of law and associate professor of natural resources and environment at University of Michigan and a former advisor to the White House, has produced what must be the definitive narrative on the origins and development of international agreements to protect the ozone layer. The meticulous attention to detail and accuracy reaches almost epic proportions, with 46 pages of footnotes, a comprehensive list of 150 interviews conducted by the author over almost a decade, and lists of archival materials, upon which the book draws.
There are other books that have recounted the stratospheric ozone depletion story. This, however, is the most up-to-date. More importantly, it goes beyond mere history to analyze the process by which the Montreal Protocol evolved into the most successful implementation of a global environmental protection policy.
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Respiratory System: The exchange of gases occurs initially between the air and the lungs, then the lungs and the blood cells within the lungs, and finally between the blood cells and the body’s tissue.
This, contends, transcends mere academic interest. He believes there is a pervasive myth that the Montreal Protocol was a pushover and an anomaly; the cure was easy and the concerned parties easily wooed. He counters this belief by describing a decade of deadlock and many halting starts to the legislative process from which real lessons can be learned. Parson comes up with a list of "principal lessons," including the key role of "authoritative assessment of the relevant science" (that is, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration/United Nations Environmental Programme/World Meteorological Organization "Ozone Assessments"). The application of these concepts to the Kyoto Agreement can be readily imagined.
Is likely to spark controversy, however, in holding the IPCC process accountable for affording "more authority to political oversight bodies and less to the assessment's scientific leadership."
This is a book that is both genuinely enjoyable to read and scrupulously scholarly, in equal measure.
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