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Population hits 1 Billion
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Population hits 2 billion
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Dust Bowl
In 1930, dust took over the Great Plains which was a partially human caused disaster. The land had been over farmed and the earth was dry and barren which meant as a result, there were severe droughts. Topsoil was picked up by the strong winds and this created heavy dust storms that went for an area of 10 million acres which destroyed farms and buildings. -
Founding of IUCN
The biggest environmental network. The organization’s goal is to encourage societies around the world to be cautious and protect nature and the environment -
Minamata
Chemical factories dumped toxic chemicals into the ocean which was consumed by sea life and eventually killed thousands of people with mercury poisoning. This terrible incident raised awareness about the dangers of companies and factories disposing of waste in the ocean. -
Population Hits 3 Billion
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Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring
A book focusing on the negative impact humans have on the environment. Specifically, about the harm chemical pesticides can do. It caused a lot of controversy but eventually led to a ban on DDT. -
Gaia Hypothesis
Said that the living organisms on Earth interact with and benefit off inorganic matter surrounding them. The theory predicted the link between increased biodiversity and the increase of stable populations. -
Population Hits 4 Billion
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Whaling (save the whale)
Bringing awareness to whales in captivity and whale slaughter. Greenpeace started the first anti-whaling campaign -
The Seveso Disaster
A chemical plant exploded in Italy affecting a neighboring town. Thousands of animals died, and people and kids were hospitalized with skin lesions. -
Bhopal
A chemical gas leak disaster in India. MIC spilt out of a pesticide factory. This incident raised awareness in businesses that work with toxic chemicals to keep them in a ventilated safe storage facility. -
Love Canal Tragedy
A neighborhood in New York that was previously a dumping ground for 22 tons of chemical waste. The effects of the toxic contamination in the ground were turning trees black and killing them and causing health problems for the residents of the neighborhood. This raised awareness for appropriate and environmentally cautious disposal of waste. -
The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone
Year after year, humans have polluted the Mississippi River with pesticides, industrial waste, and toxic chemicals. The river then drains into the Gulf of Mexico and dumps nitrogen and phosphorus into the Gulf that causes algae blooms. The blooms start a hypoxic zone in the water and as they decay they take the oxygen away. -
Chernobyl
This disaster took place in Ukraine and was the worst disaster in the history of nuclear power generation. This was a poorly designed experiment and during it, the reactors lid blew off and large amounts of radioactive materials were released into the atmosphere. 49 people died during the explosion, however, many have died since then or have radiation-induced illnesses or got cancer. -
Population Hits 5 Billion
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The Exxon Valdez oil spill
A tanker transporting oil across the Atlantic ocean hit a reef and dumped 11 gallons of oil that spread across over 1300 miles of coastline. This led to the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 being passed. -
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
This is an environmental disaster entirely caused by human waste. It is brought together to the North Pacific Ocean by four different ocean currents which then sends the water clockwise. The size is impossible to estimate as it is so large and has lots of microplastics in it. -
Kyoto
The protocol is an international treaty amongst 37 industrialized countries that sets mandatory limits on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from that country. The protocol did not include the world’s fastest growing economies, so it did not do well and ended up failing. -
Population Hits 6 Billion
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The documentary film An Inconvenient Truth
A documentary made by Al Gore which explains problems of climate change and compares it to the political climate at that time. This movie shows clips of all his environmental speeches around the world and how the climate is changing. -
Tennessee Valley Authority Coal Ash Spill
Dam walls in Tennessee crumpled and dropped 5.4 cubic yards of ash into Swan Pond Embayment. The ash water contains radioactive material and contaminated more than 300 acres of land and spilled into the Emory River. -
The BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
This was the largest accidental marine oil spill in history which occurred in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil well in BP’s Deepwater Horizon exploded. This spill killed 11 people and leaked 134 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This killed or harmed thousands of marine animals. Oil flowed into the water for 87 days before it was successfully stopped in 2010, however, cleanup efforts are still going. -
Population Hits 7 Billion
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Flint Water Crisis
This was a public health crisis and environmental disaster that started in April 2014. In Flint, Michigan, they decided to switch to using the Flint River as its primary water source without testing for toxins. Around 140,000 residents were exposed to lead and other toxins. The water from the Flint River contaminated nearby lakes, rivers, and streams. Even in 2021, some residents are still seeing the effects caused by lead poisoning. -
2017 California Wildfires
Wildfires are mainly caused by global warming. In 2017, northern California had one of the most deadly and destructive wildfire seasons in history. There were more than 170 identified fires. There were also higher temperatures and major droughts that created ideal burning conditions for the fires. The fires burned about 245,000 acres of land in total, killed at least 47 firefighters and civilians and destroyed thousands of people’s homes and businesses. -
Population Hits 8 Billion
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Population Hits 9 Billion