Industrial Disasters and Environmental Policy: Stories of Villains, Heroes, and the Rest of Us

Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Table of Contents -- List of Illustrations -- List of Abbreviations -- Preface -- Chapter 1 Telling Stories: Villains and Heroes in Environmental Policy -- Understanding Organizations and Why Industrial Disasters Happen -- The Role of Government in Shaping Environmental Stories -- Villains and Heroes -- Civic Environmentalism: The Story of the Rest of Us -- Conclusion -- Chapter 2 The Night of the Gas: Union Carbide in Bhopal, India -- Background and Operations of Union Carbide in India -- Living and Dying During the Night of the Gas -- The Environmental Consequences of the Bhopal Disaster -- Disaster Foretold in Bhopal -- Legal Battles After Bhopal -- Congress Responds to Bhopal -- A New Law: The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 -- Conclusion -- Discussion Questions -- Chapter 3 Deep Trouble: The BP Oil Spill -- Blowout: The Deepwater Horizon in Flames -- An Accident Waiting to Happen: Irresponsible Company Culture -- Ineffective Regulatory Presence: Deep Trouble at the Minerals Management Service -- After the Spill: BP Pays Up -- After the Spill: Political and Policy Changes -- Conclusion -- Discussion Questions -- Chapter 4 Appalachian Coal Country: Explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine -- A Primer on US Coal -- Setting the Story: Location and Operations at the Upper Big Branch Mine -- The Explosion: A Miner's Premonition -- The Causes and Characteristics of the UBB Explosion -- An Ineffective Regulatory Presence and the MSHA -- After the Explosion: The End of a Company -- Government Investigations and Criminal Prosecutions -- Policy Changes and Short-Lived Congressional Attention -- Conclusion -- Discussion Questions -- Chapter 5 The Town That Became a Superfund Site: Asbestos in Libby, Montana -- Asbestos: Historical Uses and Health Risks