Kicking the Carbon Habit: Global Warming and the Case for Renewable and Nuclear Energy (Hardcover)

by Professor William Sweet (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Polar icecaps are melting, ocean levels are rising, greenhouse gas emissions are accelerating—and, says Sweet, the villain of catastrophic climate change is coal, whose sooty carbon emissions make it the single worst energy source. That's the essence of science journalist Sweet's sweeping survey of the America's energy options. He's no fan of oil but acknowledges that its use is too entrenched in our car-driven culture for consumption to be cut anytime soon. He's pessimistic about the time line for implementing fuel-cell technology and sees no fast fix through solar power. And while he agrees that natural gas is cleaner than oil or coal, transmission and storage costs, as well as Chinese and Indian competition for supplies, limit its usefulness for America. That leaves wind generation, among the cleanest energy sources, and nuclear plants, perhaps the most feared, as his chosen methods for powering America's future. Sweet points to Denmark and Great Britain among countries turning to wind farms as a major source of electric power. And in an argument that will dismay many, he cites the Chernobyl nuclear disaster as an aberration in the generally safe record of nuclear energy. It's a grim but realistic assessment. (June)
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Review

"William Sweet's admirable new book provides both an excellent overview of the most serious issue societies face today& mdash;climate change& mdash;and a compelling argument for focusing hard on the principal threat& mdash;coal. If something is not done quickly to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we will leave a ruined world for our children and grandchildren." -- James Gustave Speth, dean of the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, and author of Red Sky at Morning: America and the Crisis of the Global Environment

"His lively, clear reporting of both the science and politics of climate change... Make the book a pleasure to read." -- Doug Macdougall, The Chronicle Review

"Sweet knows what he is talking about... Kicking the Carbon Habit is a great place to kick-start the debate and cool down the rhetoric." -- William Tucker, Wall Street Journal

"An important contribution to the debate." -- Globe and Mail

"The book is extremely well written... Highly recommended." -- Choice

"Clearly written and very well-informed." -- Future Survey

Synthesizing information from leading scientists and the most up-to-date research, science journalist William Sweet examines what the United States can do to help prevent climate devastation. He explores advances made by climate scientists over the past twenty years and addresses the various political and economic issues associated with global warming, including the practicality of reducing emissions from automobiles, the efficacy of taxing energy consumption, and the responsibility of the United States to its citizens and the international community to reduce greenhouse gases. Timely and provocative, Kicking the Carbon Habit is essential reading for anyone interested in environmental science, economics, and the future of the planet.

"Sweet's book is a readable, compelling and hard-nosed analysis of this vast and complicated subject." -- The Exeter Bulletin

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (April 19, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231137109
• ISBN-13: 978-0231137102
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #824,294 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Doubtful deals, Doctor!, April 3, 2008

By	H. Schneider "Hermit" (window seat) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Global warming is a premise, not something to prove for this book. Manmadeness is demonstrated. Strategies for a partial solution, only as far as US is concerned, are dicussed.
Main thesis is the Faustian deal character of our coal burning habits. While burning wood is even worse in terms of CO2 output, the effect can be neutralized by reforestation. Not so with coal. What took millions of years to build is consumed in a mere few hundreds of years. The depletion of resources is not even the worst aspect of this process, worse is the interference in and reinforcement of climatic trends, which are in themselves dramatic enough when left alone. Looking at world pollution development I would go so far to say that it does not even matter very much whether man influences climate. The other negative impacts of pollution are bad enough to require rethinking.
The inclusion of nuclear power in the arsenal for the future seems hardly avoidable, but, as another reviewer said, it is replacing one Faustian deal with another.
While the book is hardly original, it is definitely worth reading. I am not entirely happy with all aspects of its presentation. For instance some of the illustrations are rather odd (e.g. the photo of the mining activist?) and the graphs are not all very professional. I also think that the text components are not that well balanced. These are minor irritations though and don't require a star reduction.
I wish Mr.Sweet could make an intelligent proposal for China, which is my personal main concern. He describes the dilemmas well: no realistic alternative to large scale long term coal burning.
Puzzling among the comments: there still seem to be quite a few believers in the market's ability to cure these problems. This has been a source of wonder to me since the first study of the Club of Rome came out.
Thanks to Asterix Wikman and Obelix Bruno for directing me to this book! (Their summary of the book is recommendable!)

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent treatment of a "hot topic" , July 3, 2006

By	Ted Rosenberg (Long Island, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As Samuel Clemens said "everyone talks about the weather but no one does anything about it." The same might be said about the "hot" topic of Global Warming. This book provides a detailed and erudite, yet eminently readable, treatment of the subject everyone seems to be talking about these days. A few things set this book apart from most that seek to deal with the issue. Sweet take a scholar's approach to the topic and deals in the facts and the science of Global Warming. It seems to me that he does not have a political ax to grind; rather he logically and scientifically analyzes the problem. Coal, Sweet informs us, is far and away the major culprit in causing climate change. But Sweet doesn't merely tell us this, he explains in detail why it is so. Every position the author takes is backed up by the science and facts, which support it. The subject matter dictates that some of the chapters are more technical and thus read easier than others, but this a minor quibble. The author does an excellent job of explaining the science of Global Warming to those who are not trained scientists. Feasible solutions are discussed in detail. The approach of the author is anything but simplistic. It is apparent that this book is not written for those who are seeking sound bites or in search of politically correct talking points. For example; his suggestion that we should reconsider nuclear energy in light of current technology and the safety record of modern reactors is not likely to be popular with the masses despite the science and logic. To me his explanation of the science seems to make sense and facts are stubborn things. This is an intelligently written book for people who are not afraid to think for themselves. I believe that Kicking the Carbon Habit will appeal to a broad range of people who seek the truth surrounding Global Warming. I also think this is one of those rare books that the reader can either approach a chapter at a time, or become immersed in and read straight through. The end result will be the same; the reader will gain a solid understanding of one of the most discussed topics of our time.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even if you've seen the movie - read this book, July 9, 2006

By	D. L. Robinson - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Al Gore's movie "An Inconvenient Truth" and his book by the same name have focused a lot of much needed attention on the topic of Global Warming due to Green House Gasses. In "Kicking the Carbon Habit" eminent science journalist William Sweet provides not only an in-depth analysis of the reality of Global Warming and its causes but a practical program for the United States to take signifigant actions toward averting an impending catastrophy. Mr. Sweet is not an alarmist but I and every thinking person should be alarmed. Despite what the nay sayers and procrastinators may claim this book proves the "Science is In", the "Time is Now" and there is a way to go.

For a well documented and scholarly work "Kicking the Carbon Habit" is surprisingly readable. The "Science" is not "dumbed down" but is presented in easily understood prose lightened by anicdotes about the Scientists and the science. This book provides some optomisim that we can and will overcome the problem if we have the political will. Read it - you'll be encouraged. I was.