Book talk: The Polluters

Ben Ross is the president of Action Committee for Transit, a Montgomery County advocacy group that I give a lot of credit to for getting the Purple Line light rail program back on track--this program had basically died under the Ehrlich Administration. For the 2006 election campaign, ACT made the Purple Line a prominent issue both at the local level--offices in Montgomery County--and to some extent at the state level. With the election of Martin O'Malley as Governor (yes, there are differences between political parties), a renewed emphasis on transit occurred, promoting both the Purple Line in the DC region, and the Red Line project in the Baltimore region.

Ben's "day job" is an environmental science consultant and he has just had a book published on the topic. The book's discussion of how proponents for the status quo work their magic is applicable to other settings and issues, such as local government, transit, etc.

BOOK SIGNING & INFORMAL DISCUSSION

BOOK SIGNING & INFORMAL DISCUSSION

Thursday September 16, from 5 to 7 p.m.

CORK and FORK
1522 14th Street NW, Washington DC
(between Church and Q Streets, near Logan Circle)


THE POLLUTERS:
The Making of Our Chemically Altered Environment
By Benjamin Ross and Steven Amter


The Polluters brings to light a previously untold story of personal struggle, scientific conflict, and political intrigue over the environment. Research was slanted, unwelcome discoveries were suppressed, and political strings were pulled as the expanding chemical industry set loose a flood of environmental damage that still engulfs us.

Benjamin Ross is both environmental scientist and commentator on current affairs. He has served on committees of the National Academy of Sciences and the USEPA Science Advisory Board and writes frequently for Dissent magazine. He is also known in the Washington area as a leading transit activist.

Steven Amter is an environmental scientist at the Washington consulting firm of Disposal Safety Inc. He specializes in the history of pollution.