Editor’s note:Every year since 1970, April 22 has marked Earth Day, an annual celebration that serves as a conduit for environmental advocacy. In honor of its 50th anniversary, the Greenfield Recorder is running an additional Outdoors page today instead of Wednesday’s typical Food & Farms section. Following, you’ll find articles written by local writers for a nature-themed series produced by the United States Fish & Wildlife Service titled “Stay-at-Home Science.” At the bottom of each story, there are science-based ways to celebrate Earth Day at home, ranging from identifying invasive plants in your yard to welcoming and watching travel-weary birds.
At the turn of the 20th century, steel was, by far, the greatest sector of the United States’ economy, followed by oil and mining. American production was in high gear, led by industry behemoths like John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil, Andrew Carnegie’s U.S. Steel and General Electric, which provided employment to large swaths of the population — at a cost to the environment.
In the decades following, Americans consumed vast amounts of resources through inefficient automobiles; industrial plants produced sludge and pollution without fear of repercussion; smog was praised as a sign of prosperity. Mainstream America was more or less oblivious to the impact of their actions on the environment.
The inaugural Earth Day, organized in 1970 by Sen. Gaylord Nelson, a junior senator from Wisconsin, served as a pivot point for this public perception.
“In January 1969, (Nelson) and many others witnessed the ravages of a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, Calif. Inspired by the student anti-war movement, Sen. Nelson wanted to infuse the energy of student anti-war protests with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution,” according to a description on Earth Day’s website.
He reached out to media outlets and, with help from co-chair Pete McCloskey, a conservation-minded Republican Congressman, and Denis Hayes, a young activist, Nelson created a movement that gave voice to the emerging environmental movement.
“Earth Day inspired 20 million Americans — at the time, 10 percent of the total population of the United States — to take to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate against the impacts of 150 years of industrial development which had left a growing legacy of serious human health impacts. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment and there were massive coast-to-coast rallies in cities, towns, and communities,” the website says.
That first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of numerous first-of-their-kind environmental laws including the National Environmental Education Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Clean Air Act. “Two years later, Congress passed the Clean Water Act. A year after that, Congress passed the Endangered Species Act and soon after the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act,” the website notes.
Since then, Earth Day has gone global and is now celebrated the world over in hundreds of countries. Fifty years on, the fight for the environment is more dire than ever, according to Nancy Hazard, of Greening Greenfield, a group of citizens who work with Greenfield residents, businesses and town government for the betterment of the local environment.
“We’ve made huge strides, but obviously, we’re at a point where we need to recommit and refocus on the climate danger issue,” Hazard said. Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which has taken the public spotlight recently, she noted, “We shouldn’t lose sight of the long-term issue.”
Locally, Hazard highlighted a number of notable developments that have brought the region toward a more sustainable future: solar has seen a boom through community-organized projects.
She also noted, “All the people who have signed up for Mass Save and have energized their homes” and a wave of new construction that’s energy-efficient. On a practical level, Franklin County residents have made a concerted effort to plant flora that’s good for pollinators, creating a habitat that supports endangered bees and other creatures that are vital to the Earth’s health.
While this could be construed as a small step, Hazard said it’s important because, more than plants, creating a pollinator-friendly habitat is a way to foster care about “the ecosystem in general. … The only way we can get a greater focus on the Earth is if people speak up about it.”
Because of existing stay-at-home advisories, 50th anniversary Earth Day events across the nation have been canceled. In lieu of that, Bridget MacDonald, of Montague, a communications specialist with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife’s Hadley office, suggested another way to celebrate: “Nature is also a free walk-in clinic — or walk-out clinic, as it were — providing an endless supply of proven physical and psychological health benefits that we need now more than ever.”
Andy Castillo can be reached at acastillo@recorder.com.