ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the function of the environmentalist response to industrial destruction and explains why it developed rather late. It describes the special conditions for the formation of this response in Western Europe, its eventual institutionalization, and the adjustments it has brought about in those societies. It analyzes the factors that distinguish Eastern European societies and which have so far constrained the environmentalist response there. The chief agents of early industrialization tended to ignore the deleterious effects of their activities on the environment. The waning of the traditional political conflicts probably represented an important precondition for the development of the environmental movement; it cleared the way for its emergence. In Western Europe the environmental movement started at a time of great economic and political strength, a time when Eastern European countries enjoyed high levels of affluence and security. Environmental discomfort was felt early on because many traditional problems had faded away, thus clearing the deck.
