Last Wednesday was Earth Day. So how did Earth Day get started?
How Rachel Carson’s Book, “Silent Spring” Led to Change
Senator Gaylord Nelson was a senator from Wisconsin who was interested in conservation. He was inspired by Rachel Carson’s book “Silent Spring.: He was also inspired by an oil spill on the Santa Barbara River in January, 1969, a fire on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, and the activism of the 1960s and ’70s. The fire on the Cuyahoga River was caused by industrial oil and debris in the water.
How Earth Day Came to Be
Nelson championed a nationwide “teach-in” focused on environmental issues. His tireless efforts in association with activist Dennis Hayes led to the celebration of the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970. About 20 million Americans attended rallies, events, and took part in demonstrations. This nationwide outpouring of support led to important environmental legislation to include the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency, the passage of the Clean Air Act, and Clean Water Act.
Up until the passage of the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, companies faced little or no consequences for polluting the environment. After these two laws were passed, companies faced serious consequences for acts of pollution.
How You and I Can Help
Now Earth Day is a day for us to remember and think of things to do about Global warming, recycling, plastic pollution, and many other ways to take care of our planet.
What can we do to help? We can recycle, clean up our community, advocate and support environmental laws, plant more pollinator friendly plants (did you know that over 1/3 of our food requires pollination and 75% of our flowers require pollination), and, whenever possible, buy local (food grown in other places requires massive amounts of fossil fuels to ship).
The Important Bottom Line
Let’s take care of our planet. It’s the only one we’ve got.