Can I read Shifting Baselines in the Chesapeake Bay : An Environmental History on EtoBox?

Shifting Baselines in the Chesapeake Bay : An Environmental History by Victor S. Kennedy is a book available to read on EtoBox.

What is Shifting Baselines in the Chesapeake Bay : An Environmental History about?

This environmental history of America's largest estuary provides insight into how and why its former productivity and abundant fisheries have declined.The concept of “shifting baselines”—changes in historical reference points used in environmental assessments—illuminates a foundational challenge when evaluating the health of ecosystems and seeking to restore degraded wildlife populations. In this important book, Victor S. Kennedy examines the problem of shifting baselines for one of the most productive aquatic resources in the world: the Chesapeake Bay.Kennedy explains that since the 1800s, when the Bay area was celebrated for its aquatic bounty, harvest baselines have shifted downward precipitously. Over the centuries, fishers and hunters, supported by an extensive infrastructure of boats, gear, and processing facilities, overexploited the region's fish, crustaceans, terrapin, and waterfowl, squandering a profound resource. Beginning with the colonial period and continuing through the twentieth century, Kennedy gathers an unparalleled collection of scientific resources and eyewitness reports by colonists, fishers, managers, scientists, and newspaper reporters to create a comprehen

Author

Victor S. Kennedy

Publisher

Johns Hopkins University Press, Project Muse

Published

2018

Language

EN

ISBN

9781421426556

Subjects

Nature, Biology, Science