William Penn. Dover Publications, Inc.
So what is environmentalism, and when did it begin? Environmentalism means working to take care of our Earth and to solve problems such as the pollution of water and air and the exhaustion of natural resources. Many people think environmentalism is a new idea, developed within the past 50 years or so.
However, American environmentalism began before the Europeans arrived in the Americas. They didn’t call it environmentalism, but the Native Americans practiced it. When they killed an animal, they didn’t waste any part of it. The meat of buffalo was used for food, the skin for clothing and tepees, the fat for making candles, and the bone to make tools. American Indians had a reverence for their environment. They believed that man was a part of his environment and that all things in the environment were related to one another. Curley Bear Wagner, cultural officer for the Montana Blackfeet, said, “Your environmental movement is just white people beginning to put down roots on this continent. It’s about time.”
Like all other cultural groups, Native Americans at times misused the land, overhunted game, and overpopulated certain areas. However, they paid a great deal of attention to the environment compared with other cultural groups.
The European settlers in America made some early attempts at caring for the environment. William Penn, governor of Pennsylvania in 1690, required the settlers there to preserve one acre of trees for every five acres they cleared. In 1739, Benjamin Franklin petitioned the Pennsylvania Assembly to stop industries from dumping waste. When Franklin died in 1789, he left money in his will to build a pipeline to take fresh water to the city of Philadelphia because the polluted water there was causing disease.
A few other steps toward saving the environment were taken before 1850. In 1832, Arkansas Hot Springs was established as a national reservation. The same year, author and artist George Caitlin suggested the idea of national parks to preserve both the wilderness and the land the American Indians lived on. The US Department of the Interior was created in 1849. Its purpose was to manage the United States’ national and cultural resources.
“The survival of the world depends upon our sharing what we have and working together. If we don’t, the whole world will die. First the planet, and next the people.”
“We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren, and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who can’t speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish, and trees.”
“Treat the earth well; it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.”
“When we Indians kill meat, we eat it all up. When we dig roots, we make little holes. When we build houses, we make little holes … we don’t ruin things. We shake down acorns and pine nuts. We don’t chop down the trees. We use only dead wood.”
From 1850 to 1960, environmentalism was mostly concerned with conservation and preservation. For years, conservationists worked for efficient use and development of national resources. They tried to use these resources wisely so they would continue to be available.
Many national parks were established during those years. John Muir and President Theodore Roosevelt were both instrumental in establishing parks. The Forest Reserve Act was passed in 1891. This act gave the president authority to put public land into forest preserves.
Organizations were formed to protect the environment. In 1892, John Muir and Robert Underwood Johnson founded the Sierra Club. Chapters of the National Audubon Society began in New York and Massachusetts in 1896. Most of the early environmentalists who belonged to these clubs were mainly interested in preserving wilderness to be used for recreation.
Gifford Pinchot, the first American with a degree in forest management, believed in using our resources wisely while taking steps to conserve and replace these resources for later use. He and John Muir became friends, but their friendship ended in 1897. Muir’s aim was to preserve the wilderness, rather than use any of its resources. This began the split between the conservationists, led by Pinchot, and the preservationists, led by Muir.
The focus of environmentalism began to change in the 1960s. Now people were concerned about pollution, chemicals, and oil spills. Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring ushered in the new era in 1962. Carson showed that scientific progress had put Americans in peril from pollution. She showed that people’s health was in danger because of the careless disposal of factory wastes and the use of pesticides. Scientists tried to convince the public that Carson was a hysterical woman who was overreacting.
Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir.
Library of Congress LC-US262-8672
Things grow well on the forest floor because leaves and plants die and decay there, enriching the soil. Meanwhile, landfills are filling up. You can keep garbage out of the landfills and help your plants grow better at the same time.
Compost pile.
Several catastrophes during the 1960s made people realize that the environment was indeed at risk. First came the 1968 garbage strike in New York City. Before it was settled, 100,000 tons of rotting garbage lay in doorways and along the streets, waiting to be picked up. Health authorities feared an epidemic of typhoid or another disease. Luckily the strike ended before that could happen.
In 1969, the Cuyahoga River near Cleveland, Ohio, caught fire. It was actually an oil slick and the debris floating on the river that burned. The fire only lasted half an hour, and it did just $50,000 worth of damage. But it made the public aware that pollution was a major problem.
That same year, there was an oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. Over 200,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the ocean, covering 800 square miles of the surface. Thirty-five miles of coastline were affected, and thousands of birds and other animals died. It took 11 days to stop the leak.
Disasters like these convinced the American people that they faced significant environmental problems. Congress passed four pieces of legislation to help. The Wilderness Act, passed in 1964, defined wilderness as “an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled [not disturbed] by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” In these areas, no vehicles would be allowed, no permanent structures could be built, and the wildlife and its environment would be protected.
President Richard Nixon.
Library of Congress LC-USZ62-13037
In 1968 the National Trails Act set up a system of national trails. The first of these were the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail. The act created the trails to provide outdoor recreation opportunities and to promote the preservation of outdoor areas. The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act the same year safeguarded certain rivers for present and future generations to enjoy.
Girl Scout picking trash out of the Potomac River on the first Earth Day, 1970.
Library of Congress LC-DIG-ds-00750
Some say the first Earth Day in 1970 marked the beginning of modern environmentalism. The Clean Air Act was passed in 1970. Its main purpose was to protect and improve the air quality in the United States in order to improve public health. Rallies all over the country convinced people that the environment was in danger. Also in 1970, President Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA’s mission is to protect human health and the environment.
The 1970s brought more problems involving toxic chemicals. In the winter of 1973–74, an oil shortage brought about an energy crisis. In 1979, a meltdown at a nuclear reactor on Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania released radioactive steam into the air. People were terrified, but there was very little damage to the environment. However, the incident made people aware of the possible danger from nuclear plants.
During the 1980s, President Reagan’s administration did little to further the environmental movement. He thought environmentalism was a threat to big business interests. Huge cuts were made in the budget of the EPA. More environmental groups sprang up in opposition to Reagan’s policies. Some believed overpopulation was the biggest problem, while others blamed technology for causing pollution.
In recent years, some factories have had to find new ways to dispose of hazardous waste. This remains a problem in the 21st century.
Much has been done to improve the quality of air and water, but more work lies ahead. Oil spills continue to be a problem. Natural resources are being used up, and the need for alternative forms of energy is becoming critical. Rainforests continue to disappear at an alarming rate. Many species of plants and animals are losing their habitats. Global warming due to the greenhouse effect is a growing problem, and so is acid rain. In the last chapter, you’ll find more about these problems and what is being done about them.
In the next 11 chapters, you’ll meet 11 people who made a big difference in the environmentalist movement in the United States. These men and women dedicated their lives to saving our Earth. They worked in different ways and in different times and places, but they all made important contributions.
The Earth’s climate has changed many times over the millennia. There have been ice ages and times when much of the planet was covered with subtropical forests. But now scientists say that people are changing the climate. Gases, such as carbon dioxide, are released when people burn fuels such as oil, gas, wood, and coal. These gases build up in the atmosphere and keep the heat in. This greenhouse effect has always kept the Earth at a comfortable temperature. However, now more of the gas is remaining in the atmosphere, causing it to get warmer.
This experiment will show you how the greenhouse effect works.
The temperature should be higher in the jar that was in the plastic bag. The bag acts like a greenhouse, letting in light and heat from the sun. The heat will have built up in this jar and not in the other.