Calvin R Brunner is one of these writers who has his head so - in technical details that he loses sight of "m pactum While his JAmandous Waste nnimina, displays an 1&g knowledge of the Jodkies of incinerator efolikis is not surprising hwbr bW& and opertor or ignorant of or so discuss the myr eamental, public d economic problems icb am inevitable I plants. A discussion dianasors without this information is incomplete.

ichmical presenta- vwy thorough - in fiKt, than mmider requires. MghWaa pages and idinkid ubks and Tbrongbout the w3ed descriptions mom an given. naM dwe description binds (anis to provide 11kanie of what it 1111m on have an bionned in deud Ommentail regulation ill w buardous mhunition. espe annnes Causer I Mecom, Act. secdovi is also M and contains W of tables, I madwasatical lk my be of owulars outside the US it discusses US regulations

The chapter on the recovery of energy from waste incinerators should be of special interest to Indian readers, as the ministry of non-conventional energy sources in New Delhi is currently inviting bids from companies to supply such technology. Brunner makes an interesting admission in his book: he lists advantages of reclaiming energy from burning waste, including generating revenue, decreasing supplemental fuel requirements and reducing flue gas temperatures. He admits what many commu- nities opposing incineration long suspected - that energy recovery systems are often installed "to obtain public acceptance of an incinerator project. The public may be more favorably disposed toward a system that recovers or saves energy than one that, in its perception, only incinerates hazardous waste."

The most glaring omission in the book is the failure to include a discussion of dioxin, an extremely toxic compound that is at the centre of much of the controversy over incineration in the us and western Europe. Brunner fails to rn@ntion the increasing scientific evidence linking combustion with formation and release of dioxin and amazingly, doesn't even include dioxin in the glossary!

I suggest that readers wanting to learn about hazardous waste incineration should instead read: Recycling v5 Incineration (Environment-A Defense Fund, Washington, DC), An Environmental Review of Incineration Technologies: A Technical Report (Institute for Local Self Reliance, Washington, DC, 1986), Playing with Fire. Hazardous Waste Incineration (Green peace, Washington, Dc, 1990).