Includes bibliographical references (pages 420-432) and index.

1. The environment and the history of environmental concerns -- The environment and its components -- Society and environment -- The environmental movement -- Environmental issues and the environmental movement in the twentieth century -- Summary and conclusion -- 2. The physical environment -- Lithosphere -- Atmosphere -- Hydrosphere -- Summary and conclusion -- 3. The biosphere : the living environment -- Soil -- Plants and animals in the biosphere -- Ecosystems and biomes -- Summary and conclusion -- 4. Demography and world population growth -- Population ecology -- The earth's human population -- Stages of world population growth -- The demographic transition and the environment -- World population growth and trends -- Summary and conclusion -- 5. Society, resources, technology and the environment -- Resources -- Conservation, preservation and sustainability -- The role of technology -- Summary and conclusion -- 6. Human use of the land and its environmental consequences -- Threats to the land resource -- Pressure on land : resource extraction and depletion -- Pressure on land : infrastructure and waste disposal -- Summary and conclusion -- 7. Threats to wildlife and plants -- Wilderness -- Habitat destruction -- Loss of biodiversity -- Summary and conclusion -- 8. Threats to the availability and quality of water -- Water use -- Water availability -- Water quality -- Water pollution : sources, impacts and solutions -- Pollution in the oceans -- Summary and conclusion -- 9. Drought, famine and desertification -- Drought -- Famine -- Desertification -- Summary and conclusion -- 10. Air pollution and acid rain -- The constituents of the atmosphere and air pollution -- Urban air pollution -- Acid precipitation -- Summary and conclusion -- 11. Ozone depletion and global warming -- Ozone depletion -- Global warming -- Summary and conclusion -- 12. Problems, prospects and solutions -- Current perceptions of the state of the environment -- Business as usual, adaptation or prevention? -- International cooperation -- Is sustainable development the answer? Global warming, ozone depletion, drought, acid rain - their causes are viewed as extraordinarily complex; their effects are assumed catastrophic. 'Exploring Environmental Issues' provides a key to understanding our potential crisis.