From the text... 'The energy crisis cannot be alleviated at the expense of ecology: vet, denying problems inherent to economic development, such as those of establishing nuclear power plants, is sheer romanticism.. instead, ecologists should provide alternative solutions to the problems. Today, the liquid fuel shortage has led to immense projects for the exploitation of several different energy sources. Since coal or energy plantations--not only nuclear power stations--create serious ecological problems, ecologists tan play an important role. In the case of coal, the problems include land destruction by surface mining, SO2 pollution, and increase of atmospheric C02. Energy plantations result in a decrease in arable land, disadvantages innate to monocultures, and replacement of natural ecosystems by agroecosystems. New methods of energy production that maintain maximal diversity of ecosystems are needed. Their ecologically sound and economically profitable management depends on knowledge of the structure and function of natural ecosystems. To this end, information gained by studying a svstem’s responses in perturbations can be used to prevent man a exploitation beyond the system’s tolerance. This paper describes a recently proposed model of energy and resources exploitation for Mediterranean—type natural ecosystems (Margaris, 1979, 1980). By following basic ecological theory no degradation will result; on the contrary, the diversity of the natural systems will probably be enlarged.'