Reorganization Plan No. 3
Reorganization Plan No. 3 (35 FR 15623, 84 Stat. 2086) was an executive order submitted to the United States Congress on July 9, 1970 by President Richard Nixon establishing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and setting forth the components of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The order consolidated components from different Federal agencies to form the EPA, "a strong, independent agency" that would establish and enforce federal environmental protection laws. Unlike other agencies such as OSHA, the EPA was not established by a single enabling act of Congress.
According to author Jack Lewis, the decade of the 1960s fostered a general consensus of the American public to increase protection and betterment of the environment. Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1962, which is widely credited with helping to launch the environmental movement. On January 28, 1969, eight days after Richard Nixon became the 37th President, a blowout on the ocean bottom near Union Oil's Platform "A" on the Dos Cuadras field leaked between 80,000 and 100,000 barrels (16,000 m3) of oil into the water of the Santa Barbara Channel, near Santa Barbara, California. The oil spill polluted a 60-mile stretch of coastline, harming marine wildlife and damaging the local fishing economy. The event led to widespread criticism of both Union Oil and the offshore oil drilling industry. On April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day brought millions of Americans together to peacefully demonstrate in support of environmental reform.
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