This fact-filled book is one of the first case-studies of the use and abuse of pesticides in a single Third World Country. As such, it is a valuable contribution to the analysis of a serious global problem.

The book offers concrete and graphic illustration of the hazards pesticides pose. A 1980 Friends of the Earth, Malaysia, survey revealed, for example, that out of 83 farmers questioned, 43% complained of health problems such as dizziness or nausea following use of chemical pesticides. Seventy percent of those farmers who were aware of pesticide dangers did not follow the instructions or warnings on the labels; and 67.3% admitted that when they finished spraying, they dumped the extra pesticide in dustbins or bushes, rather than using a safer means of disposal.

In addition, Friends of the Earth found that as a result of heavy pesticide spraying, the fish population in Malaysia has declined, worsening poor families' diets. What is more, the book says, resistant strains of pests have appeared, diminishing the value of the pesticide in performing its basic function.

"The present patterns of use of pesticides - largely unrestricted and indiscriminate - need to be stopped immediately," the book argues. In the short run, "the authorities should prohibit the sale of dangerous and harmful pesticides banned in other countries, regulate the marketing of those that are permitted and educate all people who come into contact with these quite lethal products on its proper use."

In the longer term, use of chemical pesticides should be phased out, the book recommends. Alternate methods of pest control should be researched and introduced including "biological control" or the use of natural predators, the planting of pest-resistant hybrid crops, and systematic destruction of crop residues, upon which the pests feed.

This short book also contains a useful table summarizing hazardous pesticides, their various trade names, the manufacturers and distributors of each, the associated environmental and health problems, and the countries which have banned or restricted the particular product.

- Rose Marie Audette