Nature - General & Miscellaneous, Nature, Philosophy of, Ecological Management & Studies, Environmental Conservation & Protection - General & Miscellaneous, Natural Resources - General & Miscellaneous, Humanity - Relationship with Nature

Nature's Keepers

Name: Nature's Keepers
Author: Stephen Budiansky
ISBN: 9780029049150

by Stephen Budiansky

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Overview

For more than a century, nature lovers have held fast to the belief that preserving the wild means keeping people out. Today, policies that dictate everything from the regulation of ocean fisheries to the protection of endangered species are founded on an almost religious conviction that nature is constant, eternal, self-regulating - "in balance" - save only when man intrudes. But as Stephen Budiansky dramatically illustrates, these credos of modern environmentalism are flatly contradicted by modern ecological research and have led to spectacular disasters. Because paradoxes abound in nature, many of the straightforward solutions that have been proposed to save endangered species, eliminate pests, or enlarge populations of game animals have backfired again and again. Based on a mythical view of a natural world where man never treads, such policies threaten to destroy the very things they claim to preserve - biodiversity, endangered species, unique wilderness landscapes. Now, however, modern ecological research is providing the tools for effective environment management by revealing for the first time how ecosystems really work and interact. This new science of nature management, rooted in the mathematical relationships that link the fates of all plants and animals, is being applied to actual problems, such as elk overpopulation in Yellowstone, management of game bird populations and fisheries, and ecological restoration.

For more than a century, nature lovers have held fast to the belief that preserving the wild means keeping people out. One of America's leading authorities on environmental issues dramatically shows how the new science of mathematical ecology is helping us rescue our natural resources.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

U.S. News & World Report staffer Budiansky offers three major premises: humans have always interacted with and influenced the natural environment; as ecologists learn more about ecosystems, they are better able to design effective management strategies; anything humans do is natural and, therefore, of no great concern. The first two points are well documented but not overly novel. The last is patently absurd. What Budiansky ignores is that the scale on which humans interact with the environment is vastly greater today than at any other time in history because of our technological prowess and ever-increasing population. He accuses professional ecologists of promoting a political agenda rather than a scientific one, but his glaring navet calls such an extreme position into question. His claim that science students ``who can't stand the sight of a mathematical equation head for ecology'' makes one wonder if he's ever seen a basic ecology textbook. Budiansky's engaging style does not compensate for his lack of meaningful content. Illustrations. (Sept.)