With the 20th anniversary of Earth Day fresh in mind, Joshua S. Reichert recites a litany of environmental problems that he believes are the most pressing. Renewable energy, population explosion, widespread use of chemicals, disposal of toxic wastes, groundwater contamination, soil erosion, global warming, and ozone depletion are just a few of the many issues that he foresees environmental scientists and conservationists having to tackle in the years ahead.
Reichert, who earned his doctorate in anthropology at Princeton University, is director of the conservation and the environment program of the Pew Charitable Trusts. The Philadelphia-based Trusts consists of seven individual funds, which were founded between 1948 and 1979 by the surviving children of Joseph N. Pew, founder of the Sun Oil Co. The philanthropic organization supports a variety of interests, including cultural events, education, health and human services, public policy, and religion, as well as environmental studies. In keeping with...