# RevolutionaryHeroes Rachel Carson

You may not know this, but Rachel Carson has had a HUGE impact on your life. Ah, where to begin? Unleaded gasoline. The discovery and control of acid rain in our forests. Making the dumping of toxic waste in low-income neighborhoods illegal. Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) out of your life forever.

Exactly, 55 years ago, Rachel Carson wrote ‘Silent Spring.’ This book triggered a grassroots environmental movement so strong that it changed the government. Literally. Not only did her work manage to outlaw hazardous pesticides like DDT, it is also directly responsible for the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency. Yes, that EPA, which is in the process of being dismantled as we speak.

So what does the EPA actually do? The EPA makes sure that all Americans are protected from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work, (i.e., everywhere).

How do they do it? Some may consider it the unexciting work of government. When Congress writes an environmental law, the EPA writes the regulations—and enforces them.

The big question is: who stands to benefit the most if the EPA disappears? Answer: Not you. The people, or rather the organizations, that would benefit are the same ones that tried to stop the EPA from coming into existence in the first place—chemical companies, corporations that burn fossil fuels, and the mining, lumber and agricultural industries to name a few.

Are you going to let this happen?