Island Press Field Notes

Lester Brown of The Observer and Preside of the Earth Policy Institute explores the future of agriculture as our dependence on water hits its peak.  Peak oil has generated headlines in recent years, but the real threat to our future is peak water. There are substitutes for oil, but not for water. We can produce food without oil, but not without water.

Here's another important book to add to your summer reading list: Unquenchable by Robert Glennon. Named a "Top Ten Environmental Book of 2009" by Mother Nature Network, Robert Glennon's book captures the irony—and tragedy—of America’s water crisis in a book that is both frightening and wickedly comical.

This week’s selection is from Wade Davis’ brand-new book, River Notes. Here's what author Terry Tempest Williams has to say about Wade's new book: "The first six pages of this book will break your heart. The remaining pages will repair what has been broken."

Canada’s growing interest in exporting some of the dirtiest crude oil in the world is a threat to not only North America’s wildlife but also a rational energy policy and a stable atmosphere. NASA and climate scientist James Hansen called this project a climate game-changer because burning Alberta “tar sands” oil could raise CO2 levels in the atmosphere by 200 parts per million (ppm), pushing us dangerously away from the 350 ppm safety net that he and other scientists have recommend (we are currently at 390 ppm of CO2 and rising at about 1-2 ppm per year).