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10,000 BCE
Agricultural Revolution
The Agricultural Revolution began approximately 10,000 years ago. -
Industrial Revolution Began
The Industrial Revolution began about 275 years ago. -
John Muir is Born
John Muir was a naturalist and author who established Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park. (Picture: Photograph of John Muir) -
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Walden is a book authored by Henry David Thoreau. It is a memoir that recalls when he lived by Walden Pond in Massachusetts. (Picture: Drawing from Walden) -
The Homestead Act
The Homestead Act was signed by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20th, 1862. This allowed people to take over 160 acres of free land. (Picture: Poster displaying land.) -
Yellowstone National Park Founded
Yellowstone Nation Park was founded on March 1st, 1872, and was the first United States national park. This happened when the president signed the land into protection. (Picture: Yellowstone National Park vintage poster) -
American Forestry Foundation Founded
John Aston Warder founded the American Forestry Foundation in 1875. The foundation was related to forest conservation, and merged with the American Forestry Congress in 1882. -
Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks Founded
Founded by John Muir, these two national parks were established in 1980. This led to more forest conservation efforts, a triumph among the forestry community. -
Sierra Club Founded
The Sierra Club, was founded by John Muir in order to protect the environment. Muir held the position as president until his death in 1914. (Picture: Current Sierra Club logo.) -
Lacey Act Founded
The Lacey Act prohibited people from selling, importing, exporting, acquiring, or purchasing fish, wildlife, or plants that have violated any laws, either by the U.S., state, or Indians. It was passed in 1900. -
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Golden Age of Conservation
During the Golden Age of Conservation, Theodore Roosevelt, nicknamed the "conservationist president," conserved over 230 million acres while he was in presidency. He also established 5 national parks. -
First National Wildlife Refuge Established
The first national wildlife refuge, Pelican Island in Vero Beach, Florida, was founded by Theodore Roosevelt. It remains a refuge to this day, leading to 563 refuges created in the years after. (Picture: Pelican Island) -
Gifford Pinchot as U.S. Forest Service Chief
Gifford Pinchot was appinted as the first Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. Five years later he was fired. He is also notable as the 28th governor of Pennsylvania. (Picture: Gifford Pinchot) -
Aldo Leopold
Aldo Leopold became the director of the Audubon Society in 1935, 30 years later after its founding in 1905. He also founded the Wilderness Society in 1935. (Picture: Aldo Leopold) -
Audubon Society Founded
The Audubon Society was founded with the objective of conserving places where birds breed, protecting many different species. Prior to its founding, it also helped establish the refuge in Pelican Island. (Picture: Audubon Society Logo) -
US Forest Service Founded
Theodore Roosevelt gave U.S. reserves to the U.S. Forest Service, with Gifford Pinchot being appointed as its first chief. These reserves were named national forests. (Picture: U.S. Forest Service Badge) -
Antiquities Act
The Antiquities Act was passed by Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. Its purpose was to conserve archaeological and scientific opportunities in the environment. -
U.S. National Park Service Founded
The U.S. National Park Service was signed by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916. It was created so that a single organization would be managing national parks. -
Civilian Conservation Corps Founded
The Civilian Conservation Corps were signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in order to benefit his interests of conservation and finding jobs for youth. Tasks for the CCC include both soil and forest conservation. (Picture: Poster advertisement for the CCC.) -
Taylor Grazing Act
The Taylor Grazing Act was signed to prevent overconsumption of grass by livestock. This was likely in order to protect land for future generations. (Picture: Grazing livestock) -
Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act
This stamp act requires anyone who is hunting waterfowl and is at least 16 years old to have a Federal hunting stamp. It is also known as the "Duck Stamp Act." (Picture: Example of a stamp.) -
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Founded
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's job is to conserve, protect fish, wildlife, plants, and habitats. (Picture: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Logo) -
Silent Spring Published by Rachel Carson
Silent Spring touched on the issue of DDT as a pesticide, as it greatly harmed the environment and ecosystem, killing off insects besides the ones targeted. (Picture: Rachel Carson, next to the cover of her novel, Silent Spring.) -
Wilderness Act
The Wilderness Act wanted to make the Earth as natural as possible, describing as if to make the environment "untouched," like humanity was not there. In other words, it wanted to make sure humanity has a lesser impact on the environment. -
Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act was placed in order to make sure rivers for future generations are as clean and natural as they originally were. This is described as a "free-flowing" condition. (Picture: A river.) -
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
NEPA directed that the U.S. government did not undergo anything that would put a major toll on the environment, making sure that it was at least discussed first. -
Cuyahoga River in Ohio Caught Fire
In 1969, the oil-polluted Cuyahoga River caught fire. There are no known pictures of the 1969 fire, with a prominent picture of a boat engulfed in flames was actually from a previous fire 17 years ago. (Picture: 1952 Cuyahoga fire.) -
Clean Air Act
The Clean Air Act was passed in order to regulate what chemicals and pollutants are released into the air, in order for the welfare of American citizens. (Picture: Factory smoke stacks.) -
The First Earth Day
The idea of the first Earth Day came from Gaylord Nelson, a United States senator. He conceived the day as a way to teach society about taking care of the environment. (Picture: A newspaper depicting the headline "Earth Day!") -
Environmental Protection Agency Founded
The EPA was founded in order to create a healthy environment free of pollution for the benefit of American society. (Picture: EPA Logo) -
FIFRA: Federal, Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Control Act
This act made sure that all pesticides were licensed by the EPA, making sure that they do not severely harm the environment. (Picture: Someone spraying pesticide.) -
OPEC and Oil Embargo
An oil embargo occurred during the Arab-Israeli War, where OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) embargoed against the United States. (Picture: Cars waiting in line for gas.) -
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act was passed to conserve endangered or threatened species. -
Rowland and Molina Announce that CFC's are Depleting the Ozone Layer
Roland and Molina made this announcement based on existing facts and hypotheses, rather creating an experiment. They noticed that CFCs could be affecting the Earth's ozone layer. (Picture: Rowland and Molina.) -
RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act)
The RCRA dictates how hazards should be treated and disposed properly. -
Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act dictates the standards for water quality, especially regarding pollutants and contaminants. (Picture: Polluted water.) -
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
This act regulated surface mining, ensuring abandoned mines were also reclaimed. (Picture: An example of surface mining.) -
Love Canal, NY
Love Canal, New York, used to be a dumping site for chemicals, which was later filled over with dirt, and then sold for land. A neighborhood was built over it, but upon reaching a large amount of rainfall, chemicals leached out into the surface. The area is also known to have many birth defects and illnesses. (Picture: A sign by Love Canal, New York.) -
Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident
On Three Mile Island, the second reactor experienced a partial meltdown, and is regarded as the worst incident in the United States nuclear history. This made regulations much tighter. (Picture: Three Mile Island.) -
Bhopal Island Disaster
The Bhopal disaster was a chemical leak in Bhopal, India. 45 tons of gaseous methyl isocyanate leaked from a nearby plant for insecticides. (Picture: An image of a plant.) -
CERCLA (Superfund)
Superfund was created in order to treat and properly dispose of hazardous industrial waste. It also created requirements when closing sites that have previously held hazardous material. -
Chernobyl
The Chernobyl 4 reactor was destroyed in this incident, due to a poor design, and poorly trained workers. 134 confirmed cases of acute radiation syndrome (ARS) were diagnosed due to this accident. (Picture: A photo of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant.) -
Montreal Protocol
The Montreal Protocol was carried in order to protect the Earth's ozone layer by reducing the use of ozone depleting substances. (Picture: The ozone layer.) -
Exxon Valdez Disaster
The Exxon Valdez disaster happened where the ship crashed into a reef on March 24th. This is likely due to the pilot or navigator's inability to correctly maneuver the ship. (Picture: An aerial view of the Exxon Valdez disaster.) -
Energy Policy Act
The Energy Policy Act describes the different types of energy, and offers loans to anyone who creates technology that emits a reduced amount of greenhouse gases compared to others. -
Desert Protection Act
The Desert Protection Act of 1994 works on conserving deserts, and included making Death Valley a national park. (Picture: Death Valley National Park) -
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Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol aimed to reduce pollutants and emissions as an agreement. -
World Population Hits 6 Billion People
At this point in time, the world population reached a total of at least 6,000,000,000 people. -
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IPCC Report on Climate Change
The report notes that there is constantly melting snow and ice, and rising sea levels, likely due to greenhouse gas emissions. -
Deepwater Horizon BP Oil Spill in the Gulf
This oil spill is considered the worst in history. The Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and sunk, and leaked oil and gas into the ocean. (Picture: The adverse effect of the oil on the environment and its water.
