When Did It Become So Important To Go Green?

Walking around campus it is hard not to notice the university's effort to do their part in becoming more environmentally friendly.  Take the green to-go boxes or the assortment of recycling bins in every building.  We compost our food at dinner, separate our recyclables, and try not to feel guilty when we throw things out, knowing that the trash is going to the landfill. ("ARE YOU SURE?")  All over the country, similar initiatives are taking place in order to combat the negative affects of climate change.  But when did this effort begin?

Courtesy of John LeGear

The modern environmental movement was catalyzed by Rachel Carson's 1960 expository Silent Spring, which analyzed the harmful effects of DDT pesticide.  Carson's book not only described how the pesticide hurt each part of ecosystem it traveled through, but also set the stage for others to question how human actions are capable of harming the environment.  This idea was the basis for the environmental movement, as people became aware that their actions had the power to harm nature, which in turn would negatively affect everyday human activity.

Courtesy of Mechanoid Dolly

Before Carson's novel, lifestyle choices such as driving gas guzzling cars or running an industry that produced excessive air pollution were done without the consideration of what these actions would do to the environment.  However, as it came to light that humans were doing things that were a threat to the environment's safety, initiatives to change these harmful actions began, as did the modern environmental movement.

The publication of Silent Spring prompted the government to look into Carson's claims about DDT's harmful effects.  The research concluded that Carson was right, prompting governmental regulations to limit DDT use until it was outright banned in 1972.  Between the twelve years of Silent Spring's publication and the DDT ban the government claimed its role as a responsible advocate for the environment's protection through the use of policy.

Legislation such as the Clean Air Act of 1963, the Water Quality Act of 1965, and the Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act of 1965 were all implemented as an effort to reduce the harm humans themselves were doing to the environment.  The indication that an environmental revolution was underway became obvious with the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, who were tasked with the job of regulating all this environmental policy.

While these policy changes impacted Americans in that they had to abide by the standards set by the EPA, this required no more effort than, for example, driving a car that met the appropriate emissions standards.  However, in 1970, millions of Americans gathered to celebrate the creation of a healthy environment, asking everyone to do more then just the bare minimum.  This celebration became known as the first Earth Day and continued to be celebrated every year on April 20th.  Celebrations for the protection of the environment allowed everyday citizens to learn more about their responsibility to protect their communities by doing their part to reduce the pollution in the air and waterways.  This stress about the importance of individual efforts was a crucial part to allowing the environmental movement to take off.

Courtesy of NASA

From these pivotal moments in the 1970s, the movement continued to progress with policy changes to address growing environmental problems.  In the 1980s, policy adjustments were made to preserve millions of acres of wilderness and more funding was provided for the cleanup of hazardous waste.  The 1990s presented another series of policy adjustments, including the amendment of the Clean Air Act, aimed at reducing the pollutants in air with more sustainable resources and cleaner fuels.

By the time the movement reached the 21st century, climate change was an abundant theme in the discussion of going green.  We often feel that it does not matter if we ourselves are going green all the time; as long as everyone is doing their part, what is one more piece of trash going to do to the earth?  This line of thought has been a struggle for the green movement since its inception, but the evolving policy and pushes from environmental advocates have been enough to at least get us talking.   Through my blog, I will discuss the green movement and its successes and controversies in order to analyze what the big deal is about "Going Green".