"David D. Vail’s Chemical Lands is a valuable reminder that the embrace of pesticides after World War II was complex and shaped by a variety of factors including the perceived threats of insect and plant pests, the adaption of technologies to particular circumstances, and an ongoing debate about both the risks and benefits of the chemicals."
—Journal of American History
"Chemical Lands is a fine addition to environmental historiography, and scholars studying agricultural history will find it to be a useful book."
—Kansas History
"The story Vail tells is fascinating and important. Chemical Lands makes a valuable contribution to a growing field of pesticide history, which is a a body of literature that examines the complicated relationship between chemicals, humans, and nature. Vail's history of spray pilots cuts across multiple strands of this literature, while effectively building on it."
—American Historical Review
"Chemical Lands adds an important perspective to recently published work critically reexamining the history of pesticides, toxicology, contamination, and Silent Spring. This well-written and expertly researched book joins a growing chorus of scholars across history, science technology and society, anthropology, and geography who are asking that we rethink the forces that produced, and continue to produce, our contaminated world."
—Environmental History
"Vail's regional synthesis of themes agricultural, technological, social, and environmental makes [Chemical Lands] a welcome addition to histories of the Great Plains and environmental toxicity."
—Western Historical Quarterly
"The 20th century has seen several shifts in agricultural practices, but none have had a more profound effect than the use of pesticides. The agriculture industry in the American Great Plains forms the core of its economy; as pressures to moderate insect and weed threats increased, this region was acutely impacted by the need to develop pesticides and improve methods for their efficient application over large swaths of land. In Chemical Lands, Vail traces the philosophy of pesticide use and the efforts by universities, applicators, and chemical companies to improve pesticide safety. This text focuses chiefly on the evolution of aerial pesticide application technology. Vail takes a pragmatic approach, contending that agricultural and grassland systems ultimately benefit from pesticides so long as they are employed safely. Overall, readers gain a nuanced perspective on the utility of pesticides alongside the vital importance of developing methods to ensure the health of the environment. Recommended."
—CHOICE
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