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8000 BCE
Agricultural Revolution
Hunting and gathering lifestyles begin to switch to stationary farming civilizations. New technology and domestic breeding begin to transform how societies can support themselves. -
Industrial Revolution
Rural areas begin to industrialize and become urban societies. Tasks that were once done by hand are now being replaced with machines that can produce much faster. -
John Muir was Born
Muir was a biocentric preservation - a person believes nature should be respected and protected. He created the Sierra Club. He was an advocate for forest conservation and mainly response for the founding of Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks. -
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Walden reflections on the immersion and simplicity of nature. It displays Thoreau's recordings of his two year, two month, two day experience in a cabin he built near Walden Pond in Massachusetts. -
Homestead Act
The Act was signed by Abraham Lincoln and provided 160 acres of public land for people to migrate to. People had reside five years on the land before being given ownership or pay $1.25 an acre after six months to own the land. The Act distributed 80 million acres of land by 1900. -
Yellowstone National Park founded
President Grant signed the bill to make Yellowstone the nation's first national park. John Colter was the first man to travel through the area. It is 1,221,773 acres of public land in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. -
American Forestry Association founded
The American Forestry Association is the oldest conservation organization. The AFA was founded by John Warder to conserve forests and since then has planted over 50 million trees. -
Yosemite plus Sequoia National Park founded
John Muir urged for the institution of the parks which was signed by Benjamin Harrison. Sequoia National Park (631 square miles) was created to protect sequoia trees from being logged and was the nation's second national park. Congress set aside 1169 square miles for Yellowstone Park - the nation's third national park. -
Sierra Club founded
The Sierra Club was founded by John Muir. It's first campaign was a protest to stop the reduction of Yosemite National Park. They worked to promote green policies. -
Lacey Act founded
The Act was the first law to protect wildlife. It prevents the trade of wildlife, fish, and plants that have been illegally acquired. -
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Golden Age of Conservation (Theodore Roosevelt)
During his time as President, Theodore Roosevelt worked to protect wildlife and public lands. Conservation was a key concern for Roosevelt. As President he created 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reserves, 4 national game preserves, 5 national parks, and 18 national monuments. -
First National Wildlife Refuge established
The National Wildlife Refuge was created to protect unit natural lands and the habitats of the various animals that rely on it. It was established by Theodore Roosevelt on Pelican Island as a federal bird reservation. -
Gifford Pinchot
Pinchot was the first United States Chief Forester. He reworked the management of the forestry system and increased the amount of public/protected land. -
Aldo Leopold
Leopold was a wildlife biologist who published a textbook called "Game Management" that supported the funding for wildlife management and research through a tax on the sporting weapons and ammunition. He worked to education others about the need to conserve wilderness areas in his work, "A Sand County Almanac." -
Audubon Society founded
The Audubon Society was created for the protection of wild birds and animals. They work to educate people about the need for conservation. -
US Forest Service founded
The US Forest Service protects 154 national forests and 40 grasslands. It was transferred to the Bureau of Forestry under Theodore Roosevelt's presidency. -
Antiquities Act
The Act was the first law to recognize archaeological sites on public lands as important resources. It required agencies to preserve archaeological findings and lands and allowed the President to dedicate National Monuments. -
US National Park Service founded
The US National Park Service was founded to manage the national parks and monuments so that the public could enjoy them without impairing them. The goal was to serve the public without hindering the wildlife and organisms in them. -
Civilian Conservation Corps founded
The CCC was created to promote conversation while also increasing employment. The CCC was run by the army and completed a variety of public works jobs like building bridges to digging canals and ditches. -
Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act
The Act required hunters to obtain a stamp in order to hunt waterfowl. It was used a way to obtain money in order to preserve wetlands for waterfowl. -
Taylor Grazing Act
The Act was created to regulate overgrazing on public lands. The goal was to stabilize and improve the livestock industry. -
Fish plus Wildlife Service founded
The Fish and Wildlife Service was created enforce wildlife laws, protect endangered species, restore habitats, and help in conversation projects. They work closely with private groups to help conserve habitats are usually found on non-federal land. -
Silent Spring published by Rachel Carson
The book describes of effects of certain pesticides on animals, specifically birds. It highlighted ecological issues that contrasted with her beliefs of conservations. -
Wilderness Act
The Act reserved 9.1 million acres of protected land. It also gave a legal definition for the term wilderness. It was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson with the goal to protect federal wilderness. -
Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
The Act was created to preserve certain rivers with outstanding values. The law protects against the hindering of rivers (e.g. dams or canals). -
Cuyahoga River in Ohio caught fire
An oil slick on the Cuyahoga River had caught fire of many years of polluting. It caused $100,000 of damages on two railroad bridges. -
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
NEPA required federal agencies to prepare environmental policies. It was used as a step to promote the enhance of the environment. -
Clean Air Act
The Act was created to regulate the amount of air pollutants that are emitted. The Act aims to help the public's health and reduce the amounts of air pollution. -
First Earth Day
The idea for Earth Day was created by Gaylord Nelson to emphasize political concerns. On this day 20 million people founded the streets to demonstrate for a sustainable, healthy lifestyle. -
Environmental Protection Agency founded
The EPA was founded to help make laws to protect human health. The bill was signed by Richard Nixon and also conducts research to help assess issues within our environment. -
OPEC and Oil Embargo
Oil was dramatically limited by Arab oil producers (OPEC). This caused the dramatic increase of oil prices. -
Endangered Species Act
The Act calls for conservation of endangered or threatened species . It also calls for conservation of these species habitats. -
FIFRA; Federal, Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Control Act
The Act regulated the distribution, sale, and use of pesticides. All pesticides must be registered with the government. Pesticides must have proof that they will not have substantial effects on the environment. -
Rowland and Molina announce that CFC's are depleting the Ozone Layer
Rowland and Molina stated that there is no way for CFC's to be absorbed or destroyed. Because of this, they linger in the environment was substantial periods of time which they believed caused the depletion of the Ozone Layer.. -
RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act)
The RCRA regulates hazardous and nonhazardous solid waste. It was created to deal with the increasing amounts of waste. It helps protect resources and communities. -
Clean Water Act
The Act regulates pollutants that are disposed of in water. It provides standards for surface water and creates pollution control programs to reduce harmful effects of pollutants. -
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
SMCRA regulates mining conditions to reduce the effects on the earth and keep the site in usable condition. It encourages the conversation of mineral resources. It provides requirements for miners to follow. -
Love Canal, NY
The plans to built a canal had failed and instead created a ditch. It became a chemical dumpsite and years later, house were built on top. A heavy rain caused an explosion which led to numerous of chemicals, burns, heavy odor, and birth defects. -
Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident
A partial meltdown of a reactor core caused the release of radioactive gases into the atmosphere. Health effects were not serious but many plants were closed and caused the industry to slow. -
Bhopal Island
45 Tons of dangerous gas escaped from an insecticide plant. It traveled over neighborhoods, killing people instantly. 15,000-20,000 people died and half a million suffered other health problems. -
Chernobyl
An explosion and fire in Ukraine released radioactive emissions into the atmosphere. Over 350,000 people were evacuated and many more suffered long term health issues. -
CERCLA (Superfund)
A law was issued that taxed on chemical and petroleum industries. The money went toward cleaning and decontaminating uncontrolled or abandoned chemical waste sights. -
Montreal Protocol
The Montreal Protocol was created to reduce the amount of ozone depleting products. The goal of the protocol was to reduce the gases in the atmosphere, therefore protecting the ozone layer. -
Exxon Valdez Disaster
The Exxon Valdez hit a reef and began leaking oil into the water. 11 million gallons of oil had leaked out and had contaminated 1300 miles of shoreline. -
Energy Policy Act
The Act addressed energy production in the United States. It offered incentives to companies if they used technology that avoid the emission of greenhouse gases. It also regulated the required mixture of biofuel and gasoline. -
Desert Protection Act
The bill was signed by Bill Clinton and designated 69 more wilderness areas and established Death Valley and Joshua Tree Nationals Parks. It also required that Native Americans have access to the lands. -
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Kyoto Protocol
The protocol created targets for emission reductions internationally. The purpose was to reduce emissions from highly developed countries who produce the most. -
World Population hits 6 billion people
A baby was born in Sarajevo that topped the 6 billion mark. That day became known at the "Day of 6 Billion." -
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IPCC Report on Climate Change
The report stated that the earth has warmed and sea levels are starting to grow. Snow coverage has also decreased dramatically. It concluded that human's actions are the ones affecting this change. -
BP Oil Spill in the Gulf
An oil drilling rig, Deepwater Horizon, exploded and sank releasing oil into the water. 4 million barrels of oil leaked in an 87 day period. 11 people died in the explosion.
