EARTH DAY GIVES TIMELY REMINDER

Today is Earth Day. The day has been so designated to call attention to some of the serious problems Mother Earth faces if each of us does not help to eliminate them.

None of us like to be told we have to do certain things in a commanding manner. We like to operate as free souls and do our own thinking. The world we live in is a Garden of Eden filled with beauty for us to enjoy, not destroy. We are destroying much of the good and beautiful in our garden. We need to keep our air clean, and the same applies to our land, water and ourselves.

When this continent was discovered it was clean and beautiful. The native Americans, the Indians, and their forbearers kept it that way. They took from the land and water only what they needed at the time, and they took pride in protecting the land. We must do the same.

As a nation, Americans tend to be wasteful. This does not apply to just a few Americans but all of us. We tend to take and to buy more than we use, and we throw away much that is still usable. It has been estimated that the average American family throws away 100 pounds of trash per week. Perhaps we do not actually throw it in a waste can or burn it; perhaps it goes into a flea market, a garage sale or a rummage sale for someone else to use and throw away. It is hard to form new habits and correct our faults. Sometimes it requires self discipline. None of us relish that, because too often we think we are perfect. It is other people who need to be taught new habits. If Mother Nature could remind us that her beautiful Earth is fragile in outspoken words, we might pay more attention. All she can do is show us, and this she did in the 1930s. That is when the world suddenly awakened to this "protect the environment" problem and began to take action. In the meantime our population has increased many folds. Now greater attention is needed to correct trash problems. By 1995 (three years hence) the landfills of most cities will be full. There will be no room for more trash.

Americans are interesting, likable folk who have faced other serious problems and solved them and they will do the same for Mother Earth. During World War II, we smashed tin cans, saved rags, and did many things to help, and we will unite and "solve the trash case."

During World War I, European farmers could not cultivate their farms and raise crops. Many fields became battlefields. Europe turned to the United States to feed the allied nations. The American farmers did a magnificent job, both during and after the wars, feeding nations where people were starving.

Land that had never been put under cultivation in this country produced crops. Food was sent after the wars to our enemies. Read the accounts because it will make you proud. American farmers fed many countries. The shortage of food and high prices developed later and wheat rose during WWI to $1.00 a bushel. Cotton during the war was used in ammunition, and it rose in price. Sikeston had many millionaires because farmers had such large amounts of land where cotton and wheat were raised. The same condition developed during and after WWII.

When WWI ended, these new farms throughout the country continued to be plowed and many of them were planted. A sudden drought effected major sections of the country where crops and livestock were raised.

Although crops continued to be raised, often the velocity of wind increased over freshly plowed fields and dust clouds formed that rose into the atmosphere. People and animals were effected.

Sediment from the dust and sand clogged rivers, decreased reservoir capacity, restricted navigation and damaged houses, public recreation, and scenic areas. Land eroded, money was scare and credit bad so farmers could not repair eroded areas. Banks failed, unemployment rose, and a Great Depression followed WWI.

By 1933, Congress created the Soil Erosion Service to assist farmers and ranchers. By 1935, this agency was transferred to the United States Department of Agriculture, and later renamed Soil Conservation Service. It was the beginning of Earth Day. Public awareness of the movement to protect and observe Earth Day began in 1970.

Another drought in the 1950s caused concern. Dust storms caused prices to rise and dust clouds rose 20,000 to 50,000 feet into the atmosphere. It was a repeat of the Chicken Little Story, "The Sky Was Falling." Brown clouds were a form of trash that caused television, radio, newspapers, and magazines to pay attention to the environmental conditions taking place. Many daily newscasts were given, including farm and market reports.

Land grant colleges joined to help find ways to conserve land, water and air. The United State Environmental Protective Agency was formed. The Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and the Department of the Interior also deal with efforts to protect the environment.

All of these departments, both national and local, relate to what Earth Day is now bringing to the individual attention of each person who lives in the country, because it is later than you think. We must learn to be kind and protect Mother Earth.