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1948 - 1955 (A Growing Public Consciousness)

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1948 - 1955 (A Growing Public Consciousness)

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1948: In Donora, PA, 20 people die and over 600 go to the hospital from sulfur dioxide emissions from a nearby steel and wire plant. This will lead to the first U.S. conference on air pollution in 1950, sponsored by the Public Health Service.

1949: Discovery that DDT (a chemical pesticide) is harmful for animals and humans.

1953: Heavy smog in New York City kills 170-260 people.

1955: President Eisenhower talks about air pollution in his State of the Union address, and in a Special Message to Congress he calls on the Public Health Service to study “effective methods of control.”

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The Air Pollution Control Act is passed by Congress, becoming the first piece of legislation to address air pollution. However, much of the power still lies in the hands of individual states and not in the federal government.

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1960
Worldwide levels of carbon dioxide reaches above 300 parts per million.

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Silent Spring by Rachel Carson is published. It exposes the dangers of pesticides on animals, humans, agriculture, and the environment. It also shifts debates about environmentalism from the specifically scientific realm to a public, political one, inspiring women's organizations and local groups to act (by forming grassroots organizations in their communities and lobbying politicians).

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The Clear Air Act passes and allocates $95 million for the study and cleanup of air and water pollution. Gives the federal government authority to reduce interstate air pollution, regulate emission standards for stationary pollution sources, and invest in technologies that will remove sulfur from coal and oil.

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The United Auto Workers (UAW) organizes a "United Action for Clean Water" conference in Detroit, where president Walter Reuther calls for a "great citizen crusade" to "create a total living environment worthy of free men." UAW also establishes a Department of Conservation and Resource Development to promote anti-pollution programs, including restrictions on car emissions. Reuther goes on to endorse Earth Day demonstrations in 1970, and the UAW joins the Urban Environmental Conference, which focuses on environmental justice campaigns in polluted inner-city areas.

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Paul Ehrlich's Population Bomb is published, which argues that the environment is suffering from overpopulation. It points out the connection between the growing population and limited resources, and helps the American public realize the urgency of the environmental issues at hand.

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An oil drilling platform explodes off the coast of Santa Barbara, California, dumping around 100,000 barrels worth of crude oil into the ocean, killing wildlife and washing up on beaches. Nationwide concern with the environment spikes again, and the Nixon administration is forced to respond.

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Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, hires 25-year-old Denis Hayes to direct a national “teach-in” about environmental issues. Hayes recruits a handful of young college graduates to come to Washington, D.C. and begins planning what will become the first Earth Day.

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A nationwide protest against environmental ignorance. An estimated 20 million people participate across the country - thousands of colleges high schools, and communities participate in events leading up to and on the day itself.The event is co-chaired by Congressman Pete McCloskey and coordinated by Denis Hayes, and Gaylord Nelson gives several talks to events and local groups. Earth Day marks a turning point in environmentalism, captures the peak of the growing activism during the 1960s, and pushes the country to pass more legislation in the 1970s.

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President Nixon works with Congress to form the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a new Federal agency responsible for passing environmental legislation, programs, and research.