Book Reviews

McGucken then explores how state governments in the Lake Erie basin sought to respond as well as the efforts of the Canadian and Ontario governments. McGucken tracks the tension between scientists, business interests, and political leaders as both Canada and the United States, as well as local and state leaders, eventually adopted measures to control eutrophication in Lake Erie. The disputes and delays were centered on the recalcitrance of detergent manufacturers to accept data from scientific studies, then about whether to control phosphates through greater sewage treatment or eliminating them from detergents, and over levels of phosphorus and timetables for reduction or elimination. McGucken is at his best in explaining the science to the lay audience. The story is complex, and while McGucken often provides detail on various reports and agreements, he leaves some key issues unexamined and the book's organization makes following the events difficult.

The Canadians acted first and more forcefully than did the Americans, an interesting point that McGucken leaves unexplored. Canada enacted the Canada Water Bill in 1970, which mandated reduced phosphorus levels in detergents, and authorized the use of NTA (the sodium salt of nitrilotriacetic acid) as a substitute. Canada also embarked on an aggressive effort to update sewage treatment facilities to reduce further phosphate loading into Lake Erie and other bodies of water.

The pathway to reduction of phosphates in the United States was much more tangled. Likewise, McGucken's narrative is often difficult to follow, moving between dates, groups, and agencies without enough signposts to aid the reader. In general, detergent companies put up stiff resistance to regulations and unlike those in Canada, U.S. federal agencies resisted mandating reductions of phosphorus in detergents. Instead, the EPA continued to emphasize reduction through waste treatment. In addition, the federal government also delayed authorizing NTA as a substitute, arguing that its environmental effects had not been adequately researched and that it was a carcinogen. (Subsequent research in Canada and elsewhere had not substantiated U.S. research). This led to the EPA reversing course in 1971, recommending use of phosphate detergents, a position not altered until several years later. Meanwhile, local and state governments began efforts to regulate detergent use, with Michigan the first state to mandate sale of reduced phosphate detergents in 1971 and again, with lower phosphate levels, in 1977. In contrast, Ohio and Pennsylvania would not pass similar legislation until 1988. More attention to the reasons behind these events, especially the actions of the EPA and the development of trends at the local and state levels, would have deepened McGucken's analysis.

<< Back, Page 2 of 3, Next > >