Activity 4.1 – US Environmental History and Major Regulations

 Activity 4.1 – US Environmental History and Major Regulations

The US has had many ups and downs for the environment and it’s safety throughout the birth of the country, continuing on till present day. The US faces many consequences from past actions from harming the environment, and now we’re struggling to reverse damages before they’re permanent. To understand how we got here, we have to go back to when the US was first created, and how endless resources turned into unsafe environmental practices. 

At the start of the US’ birth, early pioneers of the country were treated with resources as far as the eye can see. There was no thought of how expanding and settling would affect the land around them, because it was all fresh and new. When one tree was used for making houses, another tree was in sight, when one animal was killed, there was more to hunt. This idea of new territory made the early settlers hungry for more, and their actions were soon met with warnings. When people started to notice that the environment wasn’t invincible and infinite, there were new ideas presented on how to treat it. Ideas like the Brundtland Report, which gave voice to concerns about the environment by observing what was happening to it, demonstrated that the environment needs to be kept safe. There were three major periods within environmental policy in the US, and they all played a role in the present protection and sustainability of our environment. This collection of periods was later on to be known as the American Conservation Movement. 

The first major period of the movement was called the Resource Efficiency period, which showed how widespread agricultural practices at the time were impractical and inefficient. This era gave headway to groups rethinking the way they managed certain aspects of their lives, with their relationship to their land being the main focus. People started to realize the negative effects that rapid expansion was having on the environment, and it clicked that something had to be done to better manage it. Farming, timbering, mining and smelting, all had to be redone in a better, more convenient way to keep the environment sustainable for years to come. This time brought in the creation of environmental sciences and engineering, as well as public health. 

The second major period of time within North America’s environmental history was the Transcendental movement, which was more associated with feeling the environment itself. This point in time was a reaction to increasing urbanism and population, and the culture around environmental health. The ideas presented were more pointed towards how people could see the natural beauty in the world around them, rather than the sciences that were showing what was happening to the environment. Rather than appealing to people in a scary, “our environment is dying” way, pioneers of the movement sought to show people that we should take care of our earth because it’s beautiful. A big influence on people in this era was a man named Ralph Waldo Emerson, who made an essay that depicts how we are one with nature, and because we are one with nature, it’s health and well being is connected to ours. This example of beauty was also made clear in painting and depictions of different environments, which popped up during this time. Through the paintings, people could really take in how amazing the earth is, without actually being in that specific area. This idea of connection with the environment started to dwindle down eventually, but it still had a far reach on how people cared for the world around them. 

The third big period of the American Conservation Movement was the Role of Industry, which created the justification of overusing resources. Expansion of the US was at the forefront of this period, which deemed exploiting resources as a necessary requirement to make the US more widespread. There was no remorse for the environment during this period, and created significant environmental decay throughout the US. More goods and services became available for people to use, the middle class had more opportunities for wealth, and there was now rapid access to once unavailable locations. This period wasn’t all bad for the US though, since this saw the birth of land conservation with protection in certain areas like national parks. The national park service was formed during this time, which made people realize that the environment around us must be nurtured and cared for. The health and safety of our environment shouldn’t be forgotten in the wake of rapid growth for this country. 

Sources Cited:

Russell, E., & Fairfax, S. K. (2014). Guide to U.S. Environmental Policy

Theis, T., & Tomkin, J. (Eds). (2018). Sustainability: A comprehensive foundation

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