"One way to open your eyes is to ask yourself, what if I had never seen this before? What if I knew I would never see it again?" ~ Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson's groundbreaking book, Silent Spring called for a ban on harmful pesticides. Carson used her extensive scientific knowledge, her prolific writing skills, and her love of nature, to make citizens aware of the dangerous chemicals in our air. She provided scientific evidence of the devastating effects these chemicals had on living things changing the way we viewed the environment forever.
Carson was already a renowned nature author and marine biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service when she heard from a friend on Cape Cod, Massachusetts about large bird kills that had occurred as the result of DDT sprayings. To no avail, Carson tried to gain the interest of a magazine to publish her findings about the incident. Then she decided to go ahead and tackle writing a book about the issue.
In Carson's meticulous prose, Silent Spring describes how chemicals enter the food chain and accumulate in the fatty tissue of the bodies of humans and animals causing cancer and genetic damage. Carson's conclusion was that DDT and other pesticides had irrevocably harmed birds and animals. She also presented an alarming statement that the pesticide had contaminated the entire world's food supply. In the most evocative chapter, "A Fable for Tomorrow, depicts an American town where all life -- from fish to birds to apple blossoms to human children had been silenced by the insidious effects of DDT.
In the early 1960s, The New Yorker picked up the story. After the release of the article, claims by chemical companies and terrified readers attacked Carson's words: "If man were to faithfully follow the teachings of Miss Carson, we would return to the Dark Ages, and the insects and diseases and vermin would once again inherit the earth." American Cyanamid Chemical Company
Much to the chemical company's dismay, and because of Carson's findings, DDT was eventually banned. Many believe Carson was one of the inspirations behind the formation of the EPA: There is no question that Silent Spring prompted the Federal Government to take action against water and air pollution as well as against the misuse of chemicals several years before it otherwise might have moved from a government natural resources expert after Carson's death.
Rachel Carson's message still resonates strong today and it is a strong reminder that one individual can, and did, change our nation's pollution history. She not only cleaned up a pollution problem, she led the way for the EPA to clean up the water, land and air for the future.
Let the legacy of Silent Spring serve as an awareness wake-up call: All living creatures are vulnerable and the littlest ones have the most to lose.