AP Environmental Science

By cyount
  • 2016 BCE

    10,000 years ago: Agricultural Revolution

    Switched from hunter-gatherers to farmers.

  • 275 years ago: Industrial Revolution

    Handmade items are replaced by machines.

  • 1838: John Muir

    Early advocate to preserve wilderness

  • 1854: Walden by Henry David Thoreau

    A book about the reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings.

  • 1862: Homestead Act

    An act signed by Abraham Lincoln that encouraged people to settle in the west. The people would gain ownership after they live on the land for 5 years.

  • 1891: General Revision Act

    An act that set aside 16 million acres of land for federal use.

  • 1872:Yellowstone National Park founded

    The largest national park was found.

  • 1875:American Forestry Association founded

    Group that aims to protect, restore, and enhance the use of trees.

  • 1890: Yosemite plus Sequoia National Park founded

    A large national park is opened.

  • 1892: Sierra Club founded

    Club that helped to push a cleaner Earth with less fossil fuels.

  • 1900: Lacey Act

    A law that bans illegal trafficking of animals.

  • 1901-1909: Golden Age of Conversation (Theodore Roosevelt)

    Theodore Roosevelt was a "conservationist" president that tried to help the environment. A bunch of laws and regulations were passed during this time.

  • 1903: First National wildlife refuge established

    It was established on Pelican Island.

  • 1905: Aldo Leopold

    He wrote the book The Sand County Almanac and was a believer of land ethics.

  • 1905: U.S. Forest service founded

    An association that helps to conserve the actions of forests. They watch over national parks.

  • 1905:Gifford Pinchot

    He was the first Chief of the US Forest Service.

  • 1905: Audubon Society founded

    A group that focuses on restoring natural ecosystems (especially birds).

  • 1906: Antiquities Act

    The first law to establish archaeologist sites on public land.

  • 1907: Congress became upset because Roosevelt was waving so much forest land so they banned further withdrawals

    Congress stopped Roosevelt's actions of waving forest land.

  • 1912: U.S. National Park service founded

    The national park service was a federal group that regulates the country's national parks.

  • 1930s: Dust Bowl

    The Dust Bowl was when different sediments were blown by strong winds causing huge dust storms. These storms affected the health of the humans and the environment of the area.

  • 1933: Civilian Conservation Corps founded

    This was one of FDR's "New Deal" programs. It pushed for better working conditions.

  • 1933: Soil Conservation Service founded

    This group was founded after the Dust Bowl incident. Its job was to pass and promote different programs and acts.

  • 1934: Taylor Grazing Act

    This was an act signed by FDR. It was intended to stop injury to public grazing land.

  • 1934: Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act

    This act required a person to have a certain stamp to hunt birds such as duck and other migratory birds.

  • 1940: Fish plus Wildlife Service founded

    This group was to help conserve the fish, wildlife, and plant populations to benefit people.

  • 1947: FIFRA (Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Control Act)

    This is a regulation to help pesticide applicators, consumers, and the environment. This act helps eliminate dangerous pesticides.

  • 1962: Silent Spring published by Rachel Carson

    This was an award winning book. It talked about the bad effects on the environment.

  • 1963: Wilderness Act

    This act preserved around 9 million acres of land.

  • 1963: Clear Air Act

    This is a federal law. It enforces the prevention of air pollution and the control of air pollution.

  • 1968: Wild and Scenic Rivers Act

    This was an act to preserve certain rivers of value such as the Mississippi River.

  • 1969: Cuyahoga River in Clevelend, Ohio, caught fire

    This river caught fire due to high water pollution. It caused thousands of dollars in damage.

  • 1969: NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act

    This act created the President's Council on environmental quality. It also, promoted the enhancement of the environment.

  • 1970: First Earth Day

  • 1970: Environmental Protection Agency established

  • 1973: Endangered Species Act

  • 1973: OPEC oil embargo

    This increased gas prices from $3 to $12 a barrel. It went into effect due to the United States and Western Europe supporting Israel in war.

  • 1974: Roland and Molina (UCI) announce that CFCs are depleting the ozone layer

  • 1976: RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act)

    This act helps govern the law of waste removal. It puts regulations on waste removal methods.

  • 1977: Clean Water Act

    This is a federal law governing clean water. It tries to ban polluted waterways from happening.

  • 1977: Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act

    This act regulates the effects of coal mining on the environment. Part of it regulates working mines while the other part regulates non working mines.

  • 1978: Love Canal, NY (toxic wste leaks into residential houses)

    1978: Love Canal, NY (toxic wste leaks into residential houses)
    The Hooker Chemical Company buried 22,000 tons of chemical waste. A school was built on this land and toxic waste started to seep out and caused a bunch of problems.

  • 1979: 3 Mile Island Nuclear accident

    1979: 3 Mile Island Nuclear accident
    This is considered the worst nuclear disaster in US history. A reactor melted and caused large amounts of radiation to leak out into the environment.

  • 1980: Alaskan Lands Act

    This act gave Alaska a bunch of national parks. It gave protection to 150 million acres of land for wildlife refuges, national parks, and conservation areas.

  • 1980: CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act a.k.a. Super-Fund

  • 1984: Bhopal, India (chemical toxic cloud kills 2,000)

    Over 500,000 people were exposed to a chemical gas. Around 4,000 people died and many more were injured.

  • 1986: Chernobyl

    This was one of the largest nuclear spills in history. It happened in Ukraine. The land is still recovering from the spill.

  • 1987: Montreal Protocol

    This is an international treaty that is used to issue laws to protect the ozone layer. It also regulates all substances that negatively affect the ozone layer.

  • 1989: Exxon Valdez

    This oil spill occurred in Alaska. Between 11 and 38 millions gallons of crude oil spilled into the ocean. This was also one of the first uses for bioremediation.

  • 1992: Energy Policy Act of 1992

    This act focuses on energy efficiency, energy conservation, and energy management. It provided incentives for clean energy use for companies.

  • 1994: Desert Protection Act

    This law created Death Valley and Joshua Tree National Parks. It did this by preserving 1.6 million acres of land.

  • 1997-2005: Kyoto Protocol

    This programs commits countries to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. This is based on global warming causes from human interaction.

  • 1999: World population hits 6 billion

  • 2010: BP Oil Spill

    2010: BP Oil Spill
    The sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig caused oil to spill into the Gulf of Mexico. Oil flowed for 87 days into the ocean. This is the largest accidental marine oil spill in history.

  • 2015: COP21

    This is a plan to prevent global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. It was created by the UN Framework on Climate Change.