Word: ddt
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...When DDT first appeared in the U.S. in 1942, it seemed almost like a miracle drug. Cheap and efficient, it destroyed pests, reduced such insect-borne diseases as malaria, and brought bumper harvests. But over the years scientists found disturbing evidence, first publicized in Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, that DDT was harmful to animals too, and might threaten man as well...
After 17 months of weighing the evidence pro and con, Environmental Protection Administrator William D. Ruckelshaus announced his verdict last week: "DDT is an uncontrollable, durable chemical that persists in the aquatic and terrestrial environments." Because it lasts so long, it can build up in fish and animals until it "may have a serious effect" on human beings...
With that, he imposed an almost total ban on the pesticide (exceptions: in cases of sudden epidemic, when DDT is the most effective means of combatting disease-carrying insects; shipment to countries where malaria is a problem; and use on onions, green peppers and sweet potatoes in certain areas that are particularly vulnerable to pests). The ban will not go into effect until the end of the year, allowing time to train farmers in using DOT'S chief substitute, methyl parathion, which is highly toxic but breaks down soon after being used...
...immediately challenged in suits filed by the manufacturer and processors of DDT. Another challenge came from the Environmental Defense Fund, which has been chiefly responsible for forcing the issue. It filed a court petition asking that the ban go into effect immediately and that it forbid all domestic applications of the onetime miracle...
Joining forces with other environmentalist groups, the pair put together the most sweeping antipollution law ever submitted to a statewide vote. If put into effect, the 23-part measure would ban new coastal oil drilling, impose a five-year moratorium on the construction of nuclear power plants, outlaw DDT and other "hard" pesticides, sharply reduce the sulfur content in diesel fuel and phase out all lead additives in gasoline. It would impose harsh fines on air polluters-.4% of their gross annual incomes daily. It would also bar from environmental-control boards anyone with a financial interest in any automotive...