"'...we will never, never see Earth turned into a residential garden supplied by industrial parks throughout the Solar System. It is in the nature of man that he fouls his own nest.'" (p. 337)
The first sentence says not that space will be polluted but that space industries will not be used to make a pollution-free environment on Earth. However, the second sentence does imply that mankind will generate waste and destruction in any environment, here or elsewhere. If parts of the Moon are colonized but others are used to dump nuclear waste, will these areas encroach on each other - especially if rival groups are involved? We need palaces, not slums, off Earth. Anderson gave us the example of the Selenarchs in Harvest Of Stars. His "Sunjammer" shows how orbiting instruments could be damaged by chemical contamination of near-Earth space.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Of course we need palaces off Earth as well as on it! The Crystal Moon purchased by the Merseians and set to orbiting around Jupiter in WE CLAIM THESE STARS! comes to mind.
And I disagree with the statement quoted from ORION SHALL RISE that we shall see ONLY men fouling their nests off Earth. Moreover, I don't believe that was the fixed and settled belief of Poul Anderson.
The following bit I quoted from the revised version of "Tiger by the Tail" (on pages 16 and 17 of the Gregg Press edition of AGENT OF THE TERRAN EMPIRE) represents, I believe, Anderson's own views: "Modern industries, built from scratch [as part of the Frithian kings policy of rapid modernization], had not wasted and poisoned soil, polluted air and water, scarred land with mines and highways or buried it under hideous hectares of megalopolis. No doubt some ruination had taken place, but before it had proceeded far, that sort of business moved out to space where it belonged.
Note the last part, heavy industries being moved into NSOs (Near Scotha Orbits). So I believe it's reasonable to think Anderson would disagree with what the character you quoted from ORION SHALL RISE said.
Sean
There *is* the 'space junk/Kessler syndrome' issue.
Ie: orbiting objects can run into each other & create problems.
Wherever we are we need some 'environmental regulations' to keep people from messing things up for everyone.
Kaor, Jim!
Of course some regulation will be needed. And efforts should be made for removing space junk orbiting Earth. With Ben Bova suggesting ways that might be done in one of his Sam Gunn stories.
Ad astra! Sean
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