Earth Day 2025 Interesting Facts
The first Earth Day was 55 years ago in 1970 on April 22.
Over 20 million Americans participated in the first Earth Day celebration, which was envisioned as a ‘national teach-in on the environment.’
It was founded by Gaylord Nelson, US Senator from Wisconsin after witnessing the impact of a massive oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara.
The leak started on January 28th, 1969 and lasted more than 11 days.
Once the leak was contained, roughly 3 million gallons of oil had spread over 35 miles.
At the time, this was the largest oil spill in our country’s history. Over 50 years later, it is still ranked third in size.
Sadly, despite efforts to clean and care for birds affected by the spill, at least 3700 (official count though scientific estimates are much higher) birds died.
Ironically, Earth Day this year is being celebrated as the California Coastal Commission is battling Sable Offshore Oil over their efforts to repair miles of an old pipeline to restart oil production along the coast.
Each year, the Earth Day organization focuses on a specific challenge or aspect of the environment. This year the theme is ‘Our Power, Our Planet’ highlighting the need for renewable clean energy sources to combat climate change, preserve biodiversity, protect ecosystems, and eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels.
Today, Earth Day activities are planned worldwide including a beach cleanup at Jalama Beach at 10AM! Contact @thesucculentqueen for more details on the beach cleanup.
To find out more visit earthday.org and help us make every day Earth Day!
https://www.independent.com/2025/04/16/california-coastal-commission-makes-waves-in-santa-barbara/