Mining America: The Industry and Environment, 1800-1980 [Paperback]

Duane A. Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 1994

Throughout the nineteenth century, miners were given virtually free rein to profit without having to worry about impacts to the land, water, and air. But during the twentieth century, the mining industry has evidenced serious concerns about its effects on the environment. Since the 1960s, mining and its consequences have become heated issues of public debate and legislative reform. By the mid-1970s, a number of industry hard-liners were still clinging to nineteenth-century values, but many more were accepting the legacy of mining's past and were beginning to integrate preservation and reclamation into their plans."Mining America" is a vivid account of the damage wrought by almost two centuries of mining, but its main focus is on the conflicting attitudes behind the destruction and on society's responses. Veteran author and historian Duane Smith asserts that the marriage of mining and environmental issues was bound to touch America's sensitive pocketbook nerve - but the question now is, are all groups willing to pay the price?

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The author remarks that "this is not an environmental history," but this volume certainly approximates one as it traces the attitudes of the mining industry toward the physical environment. This well-documented work relies mainly upon the perceptions of industry spokespersons and outside observers to flesh out the effects of various forms of mining in diverse geographical areas. Basically most mining operations ignored their environmental impact until social and political pressure was brought to bear on the industry. However, the complex reasons this occurred make fascinating reading. A work of competent scholarship, of value primarily to those working in or monitoring the mining industry. Gene R. Laczniak, Coll. of Business Administration, Marquette Univ., Milwaukee
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"...a well-documented survey...of the destructive impact of American mining practice upon the environment, and of the increasing public and political reaction to the devastation that mining produces. In a time when there is more heat than light generated upon the subject, it is a pleasure to note that the author has remained fair and dispassionate." -- Western Historical Quarterly

"This book presents, in rich detail, the first balanced portrait of the clash between the world of the profit-oriented, individualistic mining man and the cosmos of the environmental worshipper... It is an important book, a powerful book, a book of optimism and sanity... coming from one of our most able historians of the American West." -- Gene Gressley, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Colorado (January 15, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870813064
• ISBN-13: 978-0870813061
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,108,832 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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