THE GREEN FUSE: An Ecological Odyssey ...

THE GREEN FUSE: An Ecological Odyssey by John Harte, illustrated by Len Kamp (University of California Press: $12.95; 156 pp.). Harte, a scientist, writes with humor and concern about environmental issues. He explains how fertilizer-contaminated run-off disrupts the ecology of lakes and how acid rain affects fish and amphibians. After summarizing the damage mankind has wreaked on the planet, he concludes ominously: “The fuse is now lit. It has been smoldering since humanity learned enough technology to wrest some control over a seemingly capricious wilderness.”