Happy Earth Day: 5 Facts You Need to Know

In case you haven’t heard, today marks the 45^th anniversary of Earth Day – and according to the Earth Day website, this “could be the most exciting year in environmental history.”

Here at Hazardous Waste Experts, we attribute that potential to the exciting global shift towards sustainability. Earth Day gives each and every one of us the chance to renew our commitment to building a safer, healthier, and cleaner world – a commitment we can honor by implementing sustainable practices in our daily lives every day of the year.

In observance of this important holiday, we want to share some facts about Earth Day and the state of our planet with you:

1. Earth Day played a serious role in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (it was created just eight months after the first Earth Day, and also inspired conservation-based legislation like the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act);
2. A tragic oil spill in Santa Barbara, California, triggered Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson to start the Earth Day holiday tradition in 1970;
3. Aldo Leopold, environmentalist and author, was basically the father of sustainability – he was the first person on record raising concerns about our planet’s ability to both sustain its natural processes and life forms and handle the harmful impacts of mankind;
4. We’re currently dumping 19.4 billion pounds of plastic in the ocean (in the span of just one year);
5. Live Science has reported that we’re losing oughly million acres of forest every year; and
6. According to The 2015 United Nations World Water Development Report, “unless the international community ‘dramatically’ improves water supply management, the planet may face a 40% shortfall within the next 15 years.”

If becoming more sustainable – and helping to change the tide –  is one of your goals, we can help you achieve it. We can help you find alternative disposal methods for your waste and provide you with a sustainability consultation (so that you can ultimately generate less waste altogether). We will also continue to provide you with content focusing on green business practices.

Happy Earth Day!