When was the first Earth Day? The disaster that started it all
On 28 January 1969, a well called Platform A, which had been drilled by Union Oil six miles (10 km) off the coast of Santa Barbara in California, blew out. More than 3 million US gallons of oil spilled, killing over 10,000 seabirds, dolphins, seals and sea lions.
In response, activists joined forces to create environmental regulations, promote environmental education, and establish an “Earth Day”.
Photo by AP
Among the proponents of Earth Day were people at the forefront of fighting this disaster: Selma Rubin, Marc McGinnes and Bud Bottoms, founder of Get Oil Out.
The activist Denis Hayes said that Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin was inspired to create Earth Day after seeing an 800-square-mile (2,100 km²) oil slick in the Santa Barbara Channel from an aeroplane.
At a UNESCO conference in San Francisco in 1969, peace activist John McConnell proposed a day to honour the Earth and the concept of peace. This was first observed on 21 March 1970, the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere.
This day of nature's equilibrium was later endorsed in a proclamation written by McConnell and signed by Secretary-General U Thant at the United Nations.
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Senator Gaylord Nelson (left) and Denis Hayes (right)
Photos by Wikimedia Commons
A nationwide event
United States Senator Gaylord Nelson proposed holding a nationwide environmental teach-in on 22 April 1970 and hired Hayes to coordinate it.
Julian Koenig, an advertising writer, came up with the name "Earth Day". Hayes and his staff expanded the event to encompass the entire United States, going beyond the original idea for a teach-in.
Meanwhile, US President Richard Nixon had established the Environmental Protection Agency, a new federal government agency. They note that the first Earth Day also preceded a wave of environmental legislation passed in the US in the early 1970s, including the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
Earth Day began as a local campaign in the United States in 1970, spreading to 141 countries by 1990. By 2000, the annual event had reached nearly every corner of the globe.
Today, the day has become something of a yearly milestone for the global environmental movement.
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Cronology
1969
The environmental disaster known as the 'Santa Barbara oil spill' occurred when Platform A well blew out, spilling more than three million gallons of oil into the ocean and killing over 10,000 species.
Activists joined forces to promote the creation of environmental regulations and education.
At a UNESCO conference in San Francisco, peace activist John McConnell proposed a day to honour the Earth.
United States Senator Gaylord Nelson proposed a nationwide environmental teach-in for 22 April 1970 and hired a young activist named Denis Hayes as the national coordinator.
1970
These organising efforts culminated in the first Earth Day in 1970, with approximately 20 million people participating.
US President Richard Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency, a new federal government agency.
The first Earth Day also preceded a wave of environmental legislation passed in the US, including the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, and Endangered Species Act, they note.
1990
Earth Day began as a local campaign in the United States in 1970, spreading to 141 countries by 1990. By 2000, the annual event had reached nearly every corner of the globe.
Today, the day has become something of a yearly milestone for the global environmental movement.
Photo by PeopleImages Yuri A/Shutterstock
Sources: EPA, The Independent
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