Transcript Introduction to Environmental Science

Environmental History
AP Environmental Science
Milton High School
1828 Carl Sprengel formulates the Law of the Minimum stating that
growth is limited not by the total of resources available, but by the
scarcest resource.
Between 1832 and 1870
-people alarmed at rate of
resource depletion
-urged that part of unspoiled
wilderness on public lands be
owned by all people
- wished leave land and
resources for future
generations
1849 Establishment of the
U.S. Department of Interior
1872 Yellowstone National Park established (first U.S. national park)
1891 The Forest Reserve Act of 1891 – turning point in establishing the
responsibility of the federal government for protecting public lands from
resource depletion
1892 John Muir (nature
preservationist) founded the
Sierra Club
-
leader of preservationist
movement – large areas of
public lands protected from
human intervention
- proposed for the creation of the
National Park Service
1900
Lacey Act is the 1st federal law protecting wildlife prohibiting
trade of wildlife, fish, and plants that have been illegally taken,
possessed, transported, or sold
1901 – 1909
Golden Age of Conservation
- effective protection of forests and wildlife did not begin until
Theodore Roosevelt became President
- established first federal wildlife refuge
- Roosevelt added 35 more reserves by 1904
- Roosevelt established U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
1903
Pelican Island is the first National Wildlife Refuge
1905 U.S. Forest Service created
Roosevelt appointed Gifford Pinchot
as its first chief
- Pinchot pioneered scientific
management of forest resources on
public lands, using the principles of:
- Sustainable Yield: highest rate at
which a potentially renewable
resource can be used without
reducing its available supply
- Multiple Use: use of an ecosystem
such as a forest for a variety of
purposes such as timber harvesting,
wildlife habitat, watershed protection,
and recreation
1906 Antiquities Act allows U.S.
President to set aside areas
on federal lands as National
Monuments
1916 National Park Service Act
(Woodrow Wilson)
- Parks were to be maintained in
a manner that leaves them
unimpaired for future
generations
- Est. National Park Service
(Department of Interior) to
manage the National Parks
1930’s President Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted federal government programs to
provide jobs and restore the country’s degraded environment (bring country out of the
Great Depression)
He created the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) in 1933
2 million unemployed people to work planting trees and developing and maintaining
parks and recreation areas (also restored silted waterways and build levees and dams
for flood control
1933
Aldo Leopold is professor of Game Management at U. of Wisconsin
1935
Aldo Leopold is one of the founders of the Wilderness Society
The Wilderness Society's mission is to protect wilderness and inspire Americans to care
for our wild places.
- Through his writings and teachings he became one of the founders of the
conservation and environmental movement of the 20th Century
Enforcement of U.S. and
International laws
protecting wild species
Protection of
endangered species
1940 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) created
"working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and
their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people."
1948 World Conservation Union or International Union for Conservation of Nature
and Natural Resources (IUCN) – dedicated to natural resource conservation
1949 Sand County Almanac
published (author Aldo Leopold)
- an environmental classic that
inspired the modern environmental
movement – his land ethic
expanded the role of humans as
protectors of nature
1956 Minamata disease, a
neurological syndrome caused
by server mercury poisoning;
first discovered in Japan
Minamata disease is a form of methyl mercury poisoning caused by eating large
quantities of fish and shellfish polluted by methyl mercury in factory wastewater. It
is not a contagious disease transmitted through air or food, and it is not inherited.
Symptoms: numbness in hands and legs; tiredness; slurred speech; ringing in
the ears; narrowing of the field of vision; awkward movements
Chronic symptoms: headaches; loss of smell and taste; forgetfulness
1958 Mauna Loa Observatory
initiates monitoring of
atmospheric carbon dioxide
levels
1962 Rachel Carson published Silent Spring
- documented the pollution of air, water, and wildlife from pesticides such as
DDT
- broadened the concept of resource conservation to include preservation of the
quality of the air, water, and soil
- many mark this as the beginning of the modern environmental movement in
the United States
1965 – 1970 emerging science of ecology
- popular writings of biologists such as Paul Ehrlich, Barry Commoner, and
Garrett Hardin awakened people to the interlocking relationships among
population growth, resource use, and pollution
- public became aware that pollution and loss of habitat were endangering wellknown wildlife species such as the North American Bald Eagle, the Grizzly Bear,
and the Whooping Crane
1968 Garrett Hardin publishes The Tragedy
of the Commons
What is a common?
* atmosphere – air pollution
* open ocean – depletion of fish stocks
* Lake Lanier – water pollution
* traffic jams – overused
* public land – harvesting of timber
April 22, 1970 First Annual Earth Day
- 20 million people in more than 2,000 communities heightened awareness and
demanded improvements in environmental quality
1970 Richard Nixon established Environmental Protection Agency
- Clean Air Act – empowered the federal government to set air pollution emission
standards for automobiles and industries
1972 Ocean Dumping Act, Marine Protection and Sanctuaries Act, Coastal Zone
Management, and Marine Mammal Protection Act to help regulate and protect
marine resources
1973 Endangered Species Act – conservation of threatened and endangered
species and their habitats
1977 Clean Water Act – states required to protect watersheds from non-point
source pollution
1978 Love Canal, NY – Housing development evacuated because of toxic
wastes leaking from old dumpsite
1977 – 1981 President Jimmy Carter very responsive to environmental concerns
- created the Department of Energy - develop a long-range energy strategy to
reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil
1980 Superfund – proposed by Jimmy Carter to clean up abandoned hazardous
waste sites including the Love Canal near Niagra Falls, NY
1987 Montreal Protocol – to halve emissions of ozone depleting CFCs
1988 E.O. Wilson publishes Biodiversity detailing how human activities are
affecting the Earth’s diversity of species
1997 Kyoto, Japan – treaty to help slow carbon dioxide emissions
*Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas which contributes to global climate change
2002 Dr. Eugene Odum passes away (University of Georgia Ecology
Professor); he made the relationship between human activity and “natural
processes” as an essential part of his description of the concept ecosystem; his
textbook “Fundamentals of Ecology” was first published in 1953
2003 Bush administration wins a court victory on mountain-top removal mining –
Environmental groups said it violated Clean Water Act; this victory will allow
companies to dynamite mountains and then dump the “spoils” into valleys and
streams
Suspended sediments in
streams can kill aquatic life
2004 Wangari Maathai wins the
Nobel Peace Prize (1st African
woman to be awarded the prize); she
started the Green Revolution in Africa
– planted tens of millions of trees
across Africa to slow deforestation;
led to projects to preserve
biodiversity, educate people about
their environment, and promote the
rights of women and girls
The End