Quick Overview of Earth Day

 

In 1962 Rachel Carson released a New York Times Bestseller, Silent Spring,  which brought public awareness and concern for living organisms, the environment and the link between pollution and health. The book sold more than 500,000 copies in 24 countries. This helped set the stage for Earth day; which began in the Spring of 1970 when Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson created it as a way to force the national agenda into protecting our environment. Before the 1970s there were no regulations when it came to air pollution and it was accepted as a part of a prosperous country. Nelson enlisted the help of Denis Hayes, an activist, and they organized teach-ins and built a national staff of 85 to help promote the event. Groups who had individually been fighting against oil spills, pollution, and other environmental issues, all united on April 22, 1970 in their fight. 20 million Americans demonstrated in different cities around the U.S and in December of that same year, Congress allowed for the creation of a federal agency to help with environmental issues, Environmental Protection Agency or the EPA. Other laws like the National Environmental Education Act, Clean Air Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act also came from this. Two years later other laws were introduced such as the Endangered Species Act which is legislation for not only domestic but also international conservation which aims to protect endangered and threatened species and their habitats.*

In 1990 Earth Day went global and encouraged 200 million people in 141 countries to fight for environmental causes. The laws that came out of Earth Day have protected millions of men, women and children from disease and death as well as, protected hundreds of species from extinction. 

Sources: 

https://www.epa.gov/history/epa-history-earth-day

https://www.earthday.org/history/

*https://www.fws.gov/international/laws-treaties-agreements/us-conservation-laws/endangered-species-act.html#:~:text=Endangered%20Species%20Act&text=The%20Endangered%20Species%20Act%20(ESA,threatened%20species%20and%20their%20habitats.

https://www.nypl.org/blog/2020/04/22/earth-arbor-day-virtual-events-books-websites

Photo details: 

First Earth Day Union Square crowds, Environmental Action Coalition records. Manuscripts and Archives Division. - Fair Use