A World-Changer is Born
After graduating from the Pennsylvania College for Women, Carson worked as a marine biologist for many years and wrote several books about the ocean. But as she worked, she became increasingly concerned about an issue closer to home - the side effects of spraying pesticides on crops.
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A Call to Action
DDT was one of the most popular -and dangerous - pesticides of the time. Residents of Long Island and New England discovered the dangerous side effects of this 'miracle chemical' when the USDA sprayed it over their homes to kill fire ants that lived there. The DDT killed the ants, but it also killed many other local animals including birds and grasshoppers. The ensuing lawsuit prompted Rachel Carson to begin research.
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“These sprays, dusts, and aerosols are now applied almost universally to farms, gardens, forests, and homes. Nonselective chemicals that have the power to kill every insect, the 'good' and the 'bad,' to still the song of birds and the leaping of fish in the streams, to coat the leaves with a deadly film, and to linger on in soil — all this though the intended target may be only a few weeds or insects. Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a barrage of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life? They should not be called 'insecticides,' but 'biocides.'” -Silent Spring