Rachel Carson: GOOD or BAD?

Silent Spring is a book written by Rachel Carson and published by Houghton Mifflin on 27 September 1962. The book is widely credited with helping launch the environmental movement.  The book documented detrimental effects of pesticides on the environment, particularly on birds. Carson accused the chemical industry of spreading disinformation, and public officials of accepting industry claims uncritically.

Carson helped to spark the movement of environmental awareness and being eco-friendly.  She focused on the effect of hydrocarbons, such as DDT, an mosquito insecticide and organic phosphates, such as parathion, a common suicide agent used in Finland.  Both chemicals are harmful to not only the environment, but also mankind.  Carson suggested that instead of using DDT, people should use mosquito nets to combats the pests.

However, in suggesting this, Carson made others believe that mosquito nets would solve huge mosquito invasions, often seen in Africa.  Malaria is prevalent, and although the mosquito nets were some help to the inhabitants of such areas,  DDT also could have been used using the selective spraying technique.  It is the overuse of the chemicals that weighs heavily on the environment.   Overall, I think Carson's book helped open people eyes, but it did not do the whole job Carson intended it to do.