M ichael C amp . Unnatural Resources

Despite the title of his book—Unnatural Resources: Energy And Environmental Politics in Appalachia after the 1973 Oil Embargo—Michael Camp has written a history of energy policies and politics during the administration of Jimmy Carter, with a focus on a series of controversies centered in Appalachia. The first chapter traces the political fight over decontrolling oil prices in the late 1970s, the creation of the Department of Energy, and Carter’s unsuccessful attempt to sell a politics of shared sacrifice. The following three chapters trace Appalachian controversies dealing with coal, nuclear power, and hydroelectricity. Carter’s National Energy Act called for converting oil and natural gas fired furnaces to coal. His support for clean air standards, worker safety laws, and antistrip mining legislation increased the price of coal. The tensions between these policies are mentioned but not explored. Instead, chapter 2 focuses on the 110-day long United Mine Workers of America...

Administration (probate law) · Appalachia · Coal · Legislation · Political science · Politics · Waste management · Engineering · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · Law · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies