Doro reviews Environmental Justice in South Africa

M. E. Doro, emerita, Connecticut College

Written by South African environmentalists in academia or nongovernmental organizations, this unique edited collection surveys environmental politics during the first decade of the postapartheid era. If systematically analyzes topics requiring attention and should be at the top of humanitarian priority lists. In some respects, the chapters parallel other studies about the negative consequences of apartheid, e.g., the economic or educational costs to Africans deprived of land and natural resources and the urgent need to remedy these injustices. The early chapters are essentially introductory, describing difficult problems, some of which even created resistance to reform. Others explore environmental impact of industries, such as mining, and coping with the subsequent impact of pollution and its effect on workers' health. Other chapters explore means to translate environmental rights--e.g., clean air, health services--into the reality of preventing pollution and promoting conservation. The concluding chapter attempts to deal with one of the most difficult problems of environmental justice: how to privatize municipal services while serving the neediest. Chapter bibliographies include comparative evidence from various countries as well as specific South African reports. Useful for Africanists, environmentalists, and human rights advocates. Summing up: highly recommended. Lower-division, undergraduates and above.

M. E. Doro, emerita, Connecticut College