COMMISSIONER RANDY LEONARD'S BLOG

Earth Day: Flashback to the 5th Dimension

 

Earth Day and EPA Turns 40

The 5th Dimension won 2 Grammy Awards in 1970 for Record of the Year and Best Contemporary Vocal Performance by a group.  The song was “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” a medley of two songs from the musical Hair.  It was truly a dawning of the Age of Aquarius and time to let the sunshine in, a time for the nation to wake up and take action to protect our environment.

 

It is hard to believe that until the seventies there were no regulatory means to protect the environment.  Factories were free to produce their toxic waste and release the pollutants into the air and streams.  Environmental concerns were a non-political issue for our government.  Senator Gaylord Nelson, from Wisconsin beginning in 1962 strived to change that by pushing the environment into the political arena.  Senator Nelson spoke on environmental issues in appearances across the country.  While touring he learned that the people were concerned about the environment but not their elected leaders. 

 

It was 1969 and the anti-Vietnam War demonstrations called “teach-ins” had spread through the nation’s college campuses.  The “teach-ins” inspired Senator Nelson to form a grassroots protest and put the environment onto the national agenda.

 

November 30, 1969, 5 months before the first Earth Day, The New York Times reported on the current environmental events:

 

"Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam...a national day of observance of environmental problems...is being planned for next spring...when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'...coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned...."

 

 

 

On April 22, 1970, 20 million people participated in the inaugural Earth Day activities around the United States.  Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment.

 

 

Senator Gaylord later commented on the success of Earth Day, “Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.”

 

 

In the months following Earth Day, President Richard Nixon and Congress established the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in response to the growing public demand for cleaner water, air and land.  On December 2, 1970, the EPA opened its doors in downtown Washington, D.C.  The EPA’s goal is to repair the damage already done to the environment and to establish guidelines for a cleaner and safer environment for all future generations.

 

 

Let the sunshine in!

 

New City Archive Center preparing for Spring grand opening!

On Friday, Commissioner Leonard and staff visited the soon-to-open Portland Archives and Records Center, or PARC.

In 2007, Commissioner Leonard worked with the leadership at Portland State University to develop plans and funding for the City's Archives to be included as part of the University's new rec center and administration offices.  The City's Archives had been located on Columbia Boulevard in a very old building (an old incinerator) that was in an inconvenient location and that the Archives had outgrown.  

Randy's passion for history drove him to recognize the opportunity to partner with Portland State and to fight for the funding to make the joint project a reality.  He is very proud to see it coming to life.

Beginning in May, PARC will be located at 1800 SW 6th Ave, Suite 550.  The LEED Gold certified building is complete and the shelves in the lower level are being mounted to house the city's most precious historic papers and photographs. 

The fifth floor public research center is beautiful and inspires you to want to learn more about Portland. You can see Mt. Hood in one direction, PSU's bustling plaza with street cars and the MAX passing below, and a gorgeous example of Portland's green efforts: an eco- roof, where people can enjoy fresh air and the views in a photosynthesizing, long-lasting environment that keeps runoff out of the stormwater system. 

Researching the City's history just got a whole lot sexier!

  

 

Shelves in the climate-controlled basement level, ready for archives to be delivered and organized.  This is where the professionals will access the records that the public requests on the 5th floor.

 Posted by Anna DiBenedetto