Creating the right environment

Practical environmental analysis (2nd edition) 

Miroslav Radojevic and Vladimir Bashkin 

Cambridge, UK: RSC 2006 | 457pp | ?39.95 (HB) ISBN 0854046798 

Reviewed by Michael Prater 

With so much interest these days in the way in which chemicals affect our environment, environmental analysis is now taught within a variety of university courses, from chemistry itself to civil engineering, environmental science and public health.  

This book provides an excellent textbook to accompany such courses, giving a good, broad introduction to such subjects as air, water, soil, and plant analysis.  

A good outline of the various available analytical methods is given, based on official standard methods. Questions, problems, and worked examples are provided, together with project suggestions, to test the understanding and broaden the horizons of the student at each stage.  

Good further reading lists and web addresses will enable the student to read further if required, and appendices cover environmental standards, practical safety and laboratory practice. 

This book will also be of value to students on HNC and HND courses and for technicians considering employment in environmental laboratories. 

This second edition of a book first published in 1998 has been updated with new information in such areas as monitoring techniques, the Air Quality Index, biomonitoring, remote sensing methods, and professional ethics. 

This book is highly recommended because it provides students with a thorough background to the science that lies behind environmental pollution control, coupled with practical information on the analytical methods available for detecting and monitoring pollutants.