We have a special relationship with the sea. It is the single most powerful driver of our economy, our lifestyle and our politics. It affects what we eat, how we use the land, how we relate to our neighbours, how we travel, even the thickness of our coats. Yet we go on treating it, with childlike faith and unreason, as if we imagine it to be infinitely resourceful and endlessly forgiving. Sea Change addresses such issues as pollution by sewage, nuclear waste and dumping at sea; extinction of fish stocks; destruction of marine environment, impacts of climate change, coastal erosion and rising sea levels; decline of our seaside resorts; the failure of the 'integrated transport policy';and smuggling. In each case Girling questions: how did the situation arise? What are the consequences? What should be done? And what will happen when we fail? His unique voice blends horror, humour and 'just fancy that'; sifting for solutions in the sands, he is utterly compelling, entertaining and inspirational.
The sea drives our economy, our lifestyle and our politics. It affects what we eat, how we travel, our use of the land and how we relate to our continental neighbours. Our love affair with our coastline inspires myth and legend, and influences our literature, our music and our art.
Yet we abuse and despoil our native waters as if we imagine they are infinitely resourceful and forgiving.Our once-grand seaside resorts now embrace some of the poorest neighbourhoods in Europe, while our management of our seaports is so inept that we bring chaos to our roads. And all the time our reckless consumption of fossil fuels pumps out greenhouse gases that accelerate climate change and guarantee a future of ever more violent storms, rising seas and destruction.
With passion and rigour, Richard Girling examines the history and consequences of the issues that confront us along our coastline. Outraged, bemused, despairing, he is also compelling and irrepressibly entertaining as he sifts for solutions along the sands.
