China's Environmental Crisis: An Enquiry into the Limits of National Development

In 1982, Vaclav Smil turned upside down traditional perceptions of China as a green paradise in 'The Bad Earth', a disturbing book. This new volume, drawn on a much broader canvas, updates and expands on the basic arguments and perceptions of 'The Bad Earth'. This book is not a systematic litany of what went wrong and how much - but rather an inquiry into the fundamental factors, needs, prospects, and limits of modern Chinese society, all seen through the critical environmental constraints and impacts.