Happy Earth Day

On April 22, 1970, an estimated 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthier, more sustainable environment. It remains one of the largest civic demonstrations in history. This was the birth of Earth Day. It inspired immediate action in the United States. By the end of 1970, landmark environmental legislation was passed like The Clean Air Act, The Clean Water Act and The Endangered Species Act among others. Today, it is recognized globally as one of the largest observances, with over a billion people in nearly 200 countries participating each year. The United Nations chose Earth Day 2016 as the day to sign the landmark Paris Agreement, a major international accord on climate change.

As is normal in US politics, the government has systematically tried to dismantle these laws since their passage. The fight continues more than 50 years later and is not slowing down. You might ber thinking I’m one person, what can I do? The short answer is a lot! Simple things like recycling, planting native flowers and trees, picking up trash if you see it, and conserving energy/water. Make sure your state and federal legislators know about the issues. You may or may not be shocked at how little our legislators and their staff know about issues across the country. Make them aware. They have local and federal offices you can call, they accept emails and letters with addresses readily available. If you need help with this, I have sample scripts that I’m more than happy to share. There is legislation regarding delisting and amendments to The Endangered Species Act, regulatory rollbacks at the EPA, increasing drilling and mining of our public lands, and farm pesticide liability issues pending at the federal level. This is in addition to several issues at the state levels.

We only have this one planet to live on and we must protect it at all costs for future generations.