Paul Pechan – författare

Based on an EU workshop at the end of 2005, the book discusses risk and our food supply. The introductory chapter will discuss all aspects of risk and how it applies to food, from risk classification to risk management. Following a discussion of risk, the authors will present three different case studies that will emphasize the following issues:

• What do we want as individuals, as a society• What is the political context of the risk discussion • When do we act and what are the costs of not acting/acting• International trade and legal issues• Moral dimensions of decision making • How do we deal with the disproportionate "power" of the various stakeholders• Rationality/emotive aspects of argumentation (connection between perception /live experiences, knowledge)• What are facts- and do they change with time • Psychological aspects: rapture of trust; the need for certainty; connection between danger, fear and risk

The factors affecting water quality are many: The increasing buying power and health concerns of the world population contribute to the creation of new products whose production and disposal lead to the release of chemicals harmful to the environment;  the ever-growing world population requires a steady food supply, which increases the pressure to use even more chemicals to control various crop pests; and due to climate change, head waters, rivers, and oceans are becoming increasingly warmer, acidic, and eutrophic as the result of carbod dioxide overload. 

Using specific examples, Water Quality and Resource Management will address the many challenges of providing clean water to the growing world population. It will also discuss the new technologies that are being developed, for example, to treat and reuse waste waters, and the innovative monitoring approaches that help scientists to assess water quality risks. Such risk assessments are urgently needed to help draft legislations and allow enforcement to ensure accessability to quality water for all.  

The structure of the book will be the following: Each chapter will provide information about a specific water environment and the challenges it faces. This will be followed by discussion of the pollution effects and actions taken to redress the situation. Finally, future trends will be discussed. ​