Material Concerns
Pollution, Profit and Quality of Life

An accessible introduction to preventative management and environmental policy in the industrial economy, Material Concerns offers realistic prospects for improving the quality of life.

It also highlights the importance of commericial innovation and elaborates a new conception of the 'service economy': profitability is based on the provision of services rather than the throughput of material goods. Ultimately, the author argues, we must also re-examine the principles which underly our modern society. This book is essential reading for all those interested in the environmental problem. In a clear and accessible way it presents scientific principles which govern material transformations, and the economic principles which govern material transactions. Material Concerns presents a new and compelling thesis about our interaction with the environment. In doing so it reveals an exciting new arena for human development in which environmental management goes hand in hand with improving quality of life.

Preface. Chapter 1. Living in a Material World - rough guide to a lonely planet Chapter 2. Material Transitions - the birth of the industrial economy Chapter 3. Farewell to Love Canal - from industrial afterthought to environmental foresight Chapter 4. A Stitch in Time - the principles of prevention Chapter 5. Easy Virtues - saving money through pollution prevention Chapter 6. Persistent Vices - understanding resistance to change Chapter 7. Back to the Future - re-inventing the service economy Chapter 8. Negotiating Change - de-materialisation and the profit motive Chapter 9. Growth in Crisis
- untangling the logic of wealth Chapter 10. Beyond Material Concerns - regaining quality of life