Carson begins by painting a picture of a world without the sound of birds, the splendor of wildflowers, or the buzzing of bees. She warns that, with continued use of chemicals on the environment, this picture could become a reality. This is a wonderful introduction that both sets the perfect tone for the presentation of her findings and invokes in the reader a sense of urgency concerning the deterioration of the environment.

Rachel Carson's book and observations resulted in the beginnings of environmental awareness, and in particular with the "anti-chemical" movement prevalent toda

Plants not only provide food for animals but also are largely responsible for the creation of the oxygen we breathe. Unfortunately, particular species of plants are eliminated from an area designated by man for other uses. At the time of Carson's book, chemical herbicides generally lacked target specificity so that all types of vegetation in the sprayed area were destroyed. When used indiscriminately, these broad-spectrum chemical herbicides lay waste to previously green and lush areas and render the soil completely infertile. These days, this type of product is used very rarely, but one well known example is the use of chemical defoliants in the Vietnam War resulting in health problems associated with the "Agent Orange" component. A more recent example is the US Government's attempt to reduce cocaine production in South America by aerial spraying of coca plantations with herbicides - a technique which renders the land useless for several years and prevents its use for ot!

One of Carson's chapters deals with the U.S Department of Agriculture's programs of aerial spraying of crops in order to cut down on insects. The first was conducted in the late 1950's in order to eliminate the gypsy moth from the northeastern states. At about the same time, imported fire ants were a growing problem in the southern states where they had begun to migrate from Mexico. Both pests were serious, resulting in huge losses to the timber industry and the cattle ranchers respectively and massive programs of spraying to establish "pest free" zones were initiated.

ineered Bacillus thuringiensis suspension of bacterial spores which attacked only that specific pest species and prevents crop damage by causing the larval stage to stop feeding.

This "anti-chemical" opinion is currently in vogue among many environmentalists and it certainly has merits. What it lacks however is any realistic assessment of the realities of modern day living and the enormous benefits that chemicals have brought to society. There is another side to this coin. Few environmentalists credit pesticides with the saving of millions of lives from insect borne diseases. The "Dark Ages" when two thirds of the European population was wiped out due to the Plague being spread by flea-infested rats are unlikely to return - largely due to chemical controls. Insect scourges of biblical proportions like locusts are seldom a danger to modern food production and the major part of the worlds' drinking water is "chemically treated" to ensure its safety.

It is important to remember that at this time most of the DDT spraying was condoned and conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in order to eliminate pests, and that programs of total eradication were considered to be the best method of control. This was 50 years ago and hopefully we are learning from this experience.

Carson provides a thorough categorization of the main types of pesticides used in the fifties and sixties together with the observed side affects of each and she makes a compelling case for ending the indiscriminate use of these products.

The reason that farmers, commercial businesses, and the government use chemical pesticides is to eliminate a particular species of pest from a specific area. Carson's book resulted in a close scrutiny of these objectives and gave rise to alternative methods of control. In essence these have focused on targeted responses - targeted to specific insects and specific modes of action and being harmless to the environment and non-target species. The entire operation is part of a phased integrated pest management system. For example, a modern insecticide may work by luring an insect such as a cockroach into a pheromone (insect hormone) trap where the insect feeds on a bait which it carries back to its nest to feed the rest of the population with minute doses of chemicals that disrupt its molting process - causing the cockroach to die

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Approximate Word count = 2696
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)