Overview
Draws on the most infamous natural disaster in recent American history to explore larger questions about development and environmental change
Several of the authors are from the area and contribute firsthand accounts
Different from other books on Katrina in its emphasis on the development that worsened the effects of the storm
Explores political and social, in addition to environmental aspects, of natural disasters
Tells a compelling story of hubris and injustice
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Table of contents (11 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
Keywords
About this book
Based on the false promise of widespread prosperity, communities across the U.S. have embraced all brands of “economic development” at all costs. In Louisiana, that meant development interests turning wetlands into shipping lanes. By replacing a natural buffer against storm surges with a 75-mile long, obsolete canal that cost hundreds of millions of dollars, they guided the hurricane into the heart of New Orleans and adjacent communities. The authors reveal why, despite their geographic differences, California and Missouri are building—quite literally—toward similar destruction.
Too often, the U.S. “growth machine” generates wealth for a few and misery for many. Drawing lessons from the most expensive “natural” disaster in American history, Catastrophe in the Making shows why thoughtless development comes at a price we can ill afford.
Authors and Affiliations
About the authors
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Catastrophe in the Making
Book Subtitle: The Engineering of Katrina and the Disasters of Tomorrow
Authors: William R. Freudenburg, Robert Gramling, Shirley Laska, Kai T. Erikson
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-156-6
Publisher: Island Press Washington, DC
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental Science, Earth and Environmental Science (R0)
Copyright Information: William R. Freudenburg, Robert B. Gramling, Shirley B. Laska, and Kai T. Erikson 2012
eBook ISBN: 978-1-61091-156-6Published: 23 April 2012
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: X, 214
Number of Illustrations: 33 b/w illustrations
Topics: Environmental Management, Cities, Countries, Regions, Political Science, Environmental Economics, Natural Hazards
