Heartbeats in the Muck (reviewed)

Heartbeats in the Muck
A Dramatic Look at the History, Sea Life,
and Environment of New York Harbor
By John Waldman
The Lyons Press, New York, New York 1999,
$24.95, 178 pages, hardcover
ISBN 1-55821-720-7

Surely few bodies of water in the world are as used--both "ab" and "over"--as New York Harbor, so one must logically assume that its environmental and ecological prospects are bleak at best. "It ain’t necessarily so," declares John Waldman in this entertaining and interesting book. There’s life, lots of life in the harbor, and the volume and the diversity of that life are increasing dramatically.
To prove his point Mr. Waldman takes us on a tour of the harbor, a tour actual and virtual. We see the harbor from the Gloria Michelle, a research vessel documenting fish life in Newark Bay; from the decks of small boats piloted by the writer or his colleagues; through the eyes of professional fishermen, dedicated river keepers, scientists, engineers, historians, and interested citizens, all of them brought together in a compact, relaxed narrative by the author. The tour leaves us (left me, at least) feeling better about our abilities to diminish and even to repair the ravages of urban and industrial pollution. And it left me with an even greater appreciation for the tenacity of life.
If we can repair--if not reverse--the environmental degradation of a New York Harbor and if life can survive even that level of degradation, then, perhaps, with enlightened policy, active participation, and responsible stewardship there is hope--a heartbeat--in the environmental muck we have created. That seems to me to be the message Mr. Waldman conveys in Heartbeats without polemic or diatribe but in a clear, level voice and in informed discourse. RWOL

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