Environment, Construction and Sustainable Development

The role of construction in sustainable development involves a dilemma. Civil engineering has been defined as harnessing the great forces of nature for the service of mankind; but exploding populations and the demand for greater material advantage uses more resources than nature can continue to supply. Volume one describes the impacts of construction on resources - land, water, habitat, landscape and human livelihoods - as well as related issues in waste and pollution. Volume two illustrates these themes with examples ranging from environmental recovery in China to expansion in America; from dams in Asia and Africa to transport links and storage of nuclear waste in Europe.