The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner (Orbit, 1977)

From the Green Shed:

'AND NOW A POLICE FLASH,' said the radio.  'RUMOURS THAT THE SUN IS OUT AT SANTA YUEZ ARE WITHOUT FOUNDATION.'

Pollution--social, moral, political and industrial--is the key to the United States of the not too distant future.  The seas are foul, the rivers choked, the land is poisoned by excessive use of insecticides, no one moves out of doors without a 'filter mask' and the sun is permanently obscured.

John Brunner chronicles a full year of this situation, following the lives of a diverse range of characters from all levels of society.  Many are resigned, a few are seeking new ways for mankind to survive, but the one man whom millions believe has the solution cannot be found.

The Sheep Look Up is more than sf speculation, it is terrifyingly realistic.  It is, indeed, 'a fascinating and brilliant profile of the utter technological hell we are working so hard to create' (Sunday Times).

 1970s science fiction had a tendency to be dystopian.  This example is one of Brunner's best-regarded books, having been nominated for a Nebula Award as "Best Novel" in 1972.