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1st billion
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First U.S. National Park- Yellowstone
Yellowstone National Park was established by the U.S. congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant as the first national park in the world -
Sierra Club Formed
The Sierra Club as an environmental group that advocated for environmentalism. It is one of the oldest environmental groups in history, and has many members today. -
2nd billion
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Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The two bombings were set off by the United States during World War II and remain the first and only use of nuclear weapons during wartime -
Founding of the IUCN
The International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) was the first global environmental union created to encourage international examination of the effects humans have on the -
Minimata
Chisso, a Japanese chemical company, leaked methyl mercury into wastewater, leading to the development of a neurological condition known as Minimata disease. This occurrence also affected developing fetuses in the area, causing them to be born with physical mutations and disorders -
3rd billion
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Oil Spill
An oil spill occurs at Santa Barbara off of the coast of California. After this oil spill, legislation and pushes for environmental protection began to quickly be advised and passed. -
Gaia Hypothesis
This hypothesis investigates how the stability of Earth's habitability factors are maintained by the evolution of Earth's lifeforms. This hypothesis has been adopted in fields such as biochemistry and systems ecology. -
Clean Air Act
This act set up a federal law that regulates air emissions from things, such as vehicles, and industries as well -
Earth Day
Peace activist John McConell proposed at a UNESCO conference, held in San Francisco in 1969, a day to honor Earth and the concept of peace. -
Clean Water Act
This act made a basic structure regarding where pollutants are sent in the waters of the United States of America. This act was a much better version of a previously passed act in 1948. -
Endangered Species Act
It was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction. The U.S. Supreme Court believed the intent of the ESA was to stop and reverse the trend toward species extinction. -
4th billion
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Nuclear Waste Policy Act
This act specifies how and where nuclear waste can be placed, and sets up specific requirements for the geographical locations. -
Bhopal
30 tons of toxic gas were leaked out of a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, leading to an estimated 15,000 deaths and 60,000 people exposed. Because of the massive number of lives lost, the Bhopal disaster is known as the world's worst industrial disaster -
Chernobyl
A Chernobyl power plant in Ukraine, exploded and destroyed the nuclear power system causing massive amounts of radioactive matter in the atmosphere and environment.
Discription: A nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine -
5th billion
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Pollution Prevention Act
This act focused on cost-effective changes that industries and businesses could make that could reduce pollution as well as improving their business at the same time. -
6th billion
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Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto protocol was a agreement with the United Nations Framework convention talking about climate change and discussed the binding reduction targets. This convention was held in Kyoto, Japan and went into full force in February of 2005 -
Documentary Film An Inconvenient Truth
The film is about former united states vice president, Al Gore, influencing citizens about the importance of global warming through campaigning about it. Furthermore talking about how humans are destroying the plant in a way that can even affect the generations to come. -
Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill
The Largest Marine oil spill in history, Where 4.2 million barrels poured into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. This event helped raise awareness for the disasters that humans can cause, and for us to take responsibility for our own actions as humans -
7th billion
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Fukushima Accident
The Great East Japan earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 caused a tsunami and did considerable damage to the area. -
Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring" published
This book enlightened readers about how pesticides were negatively affecting the plants and animals living in or near the contaminated environments. After selling more than 2 million copies and grabbing the attention of JFK, the president at the time, Silent Spring became one of the pieces of literature that sparked the Environmental Movement. -
8th billion (estimated)
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9th billion (estimated)
