Tropical forests : regional paths of destruction and regeneration in the late twentieth century / Thomas K. Rudel.

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CHOICE Review

Rudel (Rutgers) offers brief coverage of the different international tropical forest types and reasons for their deforestation or degradation. He also discusses methods of slowing these processes. The text emphasizes an important point: "An institutional arrangement that conserves forests and provides economic benefits for local people in one place becomes a solution to dilemmas of environmental conservation in other places. Unfortunately, the circumstances that imperil forests and impoverish people vary considerably across rain forest regions so solutions for one place rarely apply to other places." Besides the introduction and information on theory/study methods, Rudel provides information on island and isthmus deforestation in Central America/the Caribbean; the breakdown of passive protection in the Amazon Basin; forest cocoa groves to scrub-growth food crops in West Africa; passive protection for rain forests in Central Africa; sustainable spots surrounded by degrading expanses in East Africa; a possible turning point for forests in South Asia; deforesting the lowlands/afforesting the highlands; and, through a regional lens, conservation policies in large and small forests. This book will be useful in courses dealing with tropical forests; it will serve as an excellent update for students working in these regions. Appendix of case histories; up-to-date bibliography; useful index. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. K. L. Williams emeritus, Northwestern State University