Think of the Highlands as the “backyard” and “backstop” of the Philadelphia–New York–Hartford metroplex. A backyard that spans over three million acres across Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut, the Highlands serves as recreational open space for the metroplex’s burgeoning human population. As backstop, Highlands’ watersheds provide a ready source of high-quality drinking water for over fifteen million people. The Highlands is the first book to examine the natural and cultural landscape of this four-state region, showing how it’s distinctive and why its conservation is vital. Each chapter is written by a different leading researcher and specialist in that field, and introduces readers to another aspect of the Highlands: its geological foundations, its aquifers and watersheds, its forest ecology, its past iron industry. In the 1800s, the Highlands were mined, cutover, and then largely abandoned. Given time, the forests regenerated, the land healed, and the waters cleared. Increasingly, however, the Highlands are under assault again—polluted runoff contaminating lakes and streams, invasive species choking out the local flora and fauna, exurban sprawl blighting the rural landscape, and climate change threatening the integrity of its ecosystems. The Highlands makes a compelling case for land use planning and resource management strategies that could help ensure a sustainable future for the region, strategies that could in turn be applied to other landscapes threatened by urbanization across the country. The Highlands are a valuable resource. And now, so is The Highlands.

Consolidates information and technical calculations for a wide variety of environmental factors Operating a business facility of any size, especially a manufacturing location, requires environmental permits from a number of governmental regulatory agencies responsible for protecting human health and the environment. Environmental Calculations: A Multimedia Approach provides an essential, one-stop reference for the necessary technical calculations to obtain a broad range of such permits. Along with clear, concise, and factual explanations, the text also includes relevant equations, examples, and case studies to support and clarify the calculations. Filled with the rich experience from the author's years of work in environmental permitting, the coverage features: An introduction to the major concepts and practice in the permitting process Key concepts in environmental chemistry such as the ideal gas law, vapor pressure, reaction stoichiometry, and heat effects Air pollution control Water/wastewater Solid/hazardous waste Noise generation, propagation, and control Radiation/radioactive decay An all-around guide for environmental permitting in many contexts, Environmental Calculations: A Multimedia Approach is a must-have for anybody concerned with environmental assessment and compliance, as well as those reviewing, issuing, and monitoring environmental permits.