-
For every five trees cut down colonists were ordered to conserve one tree.
-
Congress passed the Yellowstone Act, making Yellowstone the first national park "dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" and "for the preservation, from injury or spoilation, of all timber, mineral deposits, natural curiosities, or wonders. . . and their retention in their natural condition."
-
The Lacey Act prohibited the transport of illegally obtained wildlife across state lines, and outlawed hunting in Yellowstone National Park.
-
In his annual message to Congress, President Roosevelt suggested, “provisions should be made for preservation of the bison,” calling it a “real misfortune” should the species become extinct. The American bison population, once 70 million, had dwindled to fewer than 300.
-
Congress passed the Burton Act, which preserved Niagara Falls from hydroelectric power facilities.
-
After a seven year debate between environmentalists and Californians seeking water rights, Congress passed the Raker Act, authorizing the flooding of Hetch Hetchy Valley and the building of O’Shaughnessy Dam, in Yosemite National Park.
-
Congress established the National Park Service. Today there are approximately 400 national parks across America, comprising approximately 4% of the entire U.S., or 84.6 billion acres of preserved land.
-
New York sued New Jersey commissioners to stop dumping sewage in the New York harbor. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of New Jersey, and the dumping continued.
-
Salt Lake City was the first U.S. city to conduct a large scale survey of air pollution
-
The first ethanol plant opened in Atchison, KS. The biofuel brand, Agrol, was sold throughout the Midwest with the slogan, “Try a tankful—you’ll be thankful.”
