An edition of Catastrophe in the making (2009)

Catastrophe in the making

the engineering of Katrina and the disasters of tomorrow

  • 1 Want to read
  • 1 Have read
Catastrophe in the making
William R. Freudenburg
Not in Library

My Reading Lists:

Create a new list

Check-In

×Close
Add an optional check-in date. Check-in dates are used to track yearly reading goals.
Today

  • 1 Want to read
  • 1 Have read

Buy this book

Last edited by MARC Bot
July 31, 2019 | History
An edition of Catastrophe in the making (2009)

Catastrophe in the making

the engineering of Katrina and the disasters of tomorrow

  • 1 Want to read
  • 1 Have read

When houses are flattened, towns submerged, and people stranded without electricity or even food, we attribute the suffering to “natural disasters” or “acts of God.” But what if they’re neither? What if we, as a society, are bringing these catastrophes on ourselves? That’s the provocative theory of Catastrophe in the Making, the first book to recognize Hurricane Katrina not as a “perfect storm,” but a tragedy of our own making—and one that could become commonplace. The authors, one a longtime New Orleans resident, argue that breached levees and sloppy emergency response are just the most obvious examples of government failure. The true problem is more deeply rooted and insidious, and stretches far beyond the Gulf Coast. Based on the false promise of widespread prosperity, communities across the U.S. have embraced all brands of “economic development” at all costs. In Louisiana, that meant development interests turning wetlands into shipping lanes. By replacing a natural buffer against storm surges with a 75-mile long, obsolete canal that cost hundreds of millions of dollars, they guided the hurricane into the heart of New Orleans and adjacent communities. The authors reveal why, despite their geographic differences, California and Missouri are building—quite literally—toward similar destruction. Too often, the U.S. “growth machine” generates wealth for a few and misery for many. Drawing lessons from the most expensive “natural” disaster in American history, Catastrophe in the Making shows why thoughtless development comes at a price we can ill afford.

Publish Date
Language
English
Pages
209

Buy this book

Previews available in: English

Edition Availability
Cover of: Catastrophe in the Making
Cover of: Catastrophe in the Making
Cover of: Catastrophe in the making
Catastrophe in the making: the engineering of Katrina and the disasters of tomorrow
2009, Island Press, Shearwater
in English
Cover of: Catastrophe in the making
Catastrophe in the making: the engineering of Katrina and the disasters of tomorrow
2009, Island Press/Shearwater Books
in English

Add another edition?

Book Details


Edition Notes

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Published in
Washington, DC

Classifications

Dewey Decimal Class
363.34/9220976090511
Library of Congress
HV636 2005.N4 C38 2009

The Physical Object

Pagination
209 p. :
Number of pages
209

ID Numbers

Open Library
OL23943954M
ISBN 10
1597266825
ISBN 13
9781597266826
LCCN
2009021516

Community Reviews (0)

Feedback?
No community reviews have been submitted for this work.

Lists

This work does not appear on any lists.

History

Download catalog record: RDF / JSON / OPDS | Wikipedia citation
July 31, 2019 Edited by MARC Bot associate edition with work OL3931802W
December 2, 2009 Created by ImportBot Imported from Library of Congress MARC record