Ecologic

Many organisations like to highlight their green credentials, but there is alway the question: are they as green as they want you to think. In Ecologic: The Truth and Lies of Green Economics Brian Clegg casts a critical eye on some of the issues.

Clegg considers a wide range of issues. Is it important that our food should be organic? What about Fairtrade? The book also examines the problems of disposing of our rubbish and the claims made for recycling. There's a look at how realistic it is to hope for new energy sources such as nuclear fusion and of course there is extensive discussion of global warming. In the final chapter Clegg presents some novel ideas on what could be done to promote true environmentalism.

If you're looking for in depth analysis of environmental issues then I wouldn't recommend this book. Certainly Clegg gives extensive references for the information he presents, but I didn't think that it would be a useful book for those wanting to find quantitative results. On the other hand if you want a brief but critcal look at some of the environmental claims you come across then this would be eminently suitable, and it's also an enjoyable book to read.