The Rise of the U.S. Environmental Health Movement

May 1, 2013
The world is not a safe place. Toxic waste, air pollution, and pesticide use can be hazardous to your health. According to the World Health Organization, more than 40 percent of all asthma, nearly 20 percent of all cancers, and 5 percent of all birth defects are attributable to poor environmental quality. It's impossible to avoid exposure to at least some of the 80,000 different chemicals used in the U.S. The environmental health movement consists of many individuals and organizations cognizant of the relationship between people and the environment and environmental factors that potentially affect health. Davies extensively covers the historical roots and rise of this movement in the U.S. and tracks its current status and strategies, from forging national coalitions to lobbying for legislation and promoting grassroots activism. America's environmental health movement focuses on environmental safety through precaution and prevention, opposes the use of toxic chemicals, and advocates sustainability and environmental justice. As ecotheologian Thomas Berry once declared, You cannot have well humans on a sick planet.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)