By the time you read this column, April 22, Earth Day 2025, will have passed, but no matter, because every day is a day to cherish and protect this lovely blue planet that we all call home. Unfortunately, we don’t always practice good stewardship of the earth.
We all need a review, and Earth Day is the ideal time to remember that American cities once were covered in choking, gray smog, and the country’s waterways were polluted with mine tailings, deadly chemicals, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and animal waste.
A few writers and activists, like Marjorie Stoneman Douglas (“The Everglades: River of Grass,” 1947) and Rachel Carson (“The Silent Spring,” 1962) spoke out about the land and water pollution caused by huge conglomerates and the indiscriminate use by the U.S. government of deadly pesticides like DDT. Initially, their voices barely were heard, but over time, more and more people began to listen and pay attention to what they had to say.
Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin was...