Transcript History of Environmental Science

History of Environmental
Science
Ancient Civilizations
BC to 1200 AD

Air pollution was common
in large towns long before
the industrial revolution.
The pollution came from
dust, wood smoke,
tanneries, animal manure
and other things.
Ancient Civilizations
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Timbering stripped the
forests of Babylon,
Greece, Phonecia
(Lebanon) and Italy with
the rise of civilization.
The wood energy crisis
led Greeks to use passive
solar energy by orienting
their cities and houses
toward the sun.
Ancient Civilizations

Water pollution Israeli and
Hindu cities had less water
pollution due to strict
religious codes about
cleanliness. Ancient Rome
was notorious for sewagefilled streets.
Middle Ages and Renaissance

Plague devastates Europe but leads to the
beginnings of a public health system.
Industrial Revolution:
1830 - 1890
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Living conditions horrify commissions in
London and America. The common interest
in pure drinking water and sanitation is
spurred by epidemics of typhoid and
cholera.
Living Conditions During the
Industrial Revolution
Environmental Problems
During The Industrial
Revolution

Smog episodes begin killing residents of
large cities like London.
 Conservation of wilderness areas begins
with the felling of an enormous tree, called
the "Mother of the Forest" in 1851. The
outrage over the act leads to calls for a
national park system.
London, Killer Smog 1952
Onondaga Lake, 1946
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In 1946, Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation began
production of chlorine.
As a result, mercury wastes were discharged directly into
Onondaga Lake.
The Allied facility discharged an estimated 165,000
pounds of mercury to Onondaga Lake between 1946 and
1970. Mercury loading was greatly reduced after 1970, and
the plant was closed in 1977.
However, scientists estimate that 7 million cubic yards of
lake sediments remain contaminated with mercury, and
mercury remains the contaminant of primary concern,
because of its persistence in fish found in the lake.
Honeywell to spend $451 million
to remove pollutants in New York
Onondaga Lake cont.

Pollution of the lake from municipal as well
as industrial sources led to reduced use of
the lake for recreation.
 By 1940, the lake was declared unsafe for
swimming and by the 1970s, fishing was
banned on the Lake.
City of Syracuse Sewage
Treatment Plant
1960s- 1970s

A burning river ends the decade as a
dramatic symbol of an environment on the
brink. On June 22, 1969, oil and chemicals
in the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio
catch fire. Flames top five stories.
Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
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Contaminated
catfish. A brown
bullhead has tumors
from pollution in the
Cuyahoga River in
Ohio.
1970s-1980s

Toxic chemicals become more troubling.
Corporations like Allied (manufacturer of
Kepone) seem to have deliberately
endangered employees and the public for
minor increments of profit. Love Canal and
other incidents lead to new regulations in
the 1980s.
Love Canal
Niagara Falls, NY
1970s-1980s

Nuclear power safety
is increasingly suspect
after the Three Mile
Island accident in
Middletown,
Pennsylvania.
1980s-1990s

Disasters show the tenuous and fragile side
of industrial technology. Among them are
the Bhopal mass poisoning in India; the
Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster in
Ukraine; and the Challenger shuttle and
Exxon Valdez oil spills in the U.S.
1984

The explosion at the
Union Carbide plant
in the central Indian
city of Bhopal is
widely seen as the
worst industrial
disaster in world
history.
April 26, 1986
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The Chernobyl
nuclear disaster is
considered to be the
worst accident in the
history of nuclear
power.
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This picture was taken
20 years after the
accident.
Exxon Valdez
March 24, 1989

The tanker, captained by Joseph
Hazelwood, hit Prince William Sound's
Bligh Reef and spilled an estimated 11
million gallons of crude oil. This has been
recorded as one of the largest spills in U.S.
history.
Exxon Valdez
2000- Now
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Global climate change report by the UN and
the National Academy of Sciences firmly
establishes scientific basis for concern.
Eventually, even the Bush administration
admits climate change is happening but
shows disdain for international treaties to
reduce climate changing emissions.