ABSTRACT
The confusion over pesticides spilled into the 1960s. Sufficient clamour was generated by the conservation bodies, and sufficient concern voiced by public opinion and some politicians, to bring about a voluntary ban on the use of aldrin and dieldrin in 1962. The same year saw the launch in America of Rachel Carson’s shattering book, Silent Spring, which was published in Britain in 1963. The book was a frightening dossier on the use, misuse and deleterious effects of pesticides, largely drawn from American examples. It was written, of course, with great bias, but the chemical industry mounted a powerful and vitriolic counter-attack, holding the bounteous benefits of their products like a banner at the helm, and so all unfair advantages were effectively cancelled out! Nicholson (1970) sees the book as ‘probably the greatest and most effective single contribution hitherto towards informing public opinion on the true nature and significance of ecology’.
