2007 In Massachusetts et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency et al. Supreme Court rules
that EPA must regulate carbon dioxide levels.
Energy Independence and Security Act amends EPA program and gives more
authority to Department of Transportation to set rules.
CAFE standard raised to 35 mi/gal by 2020.
Arctic Sea ice reaches an all-time low.
350.org web platform starts operation as outgrowth of Step It Up campaign to
demand action from Congress on climate change.
2008 California Green Building Standards Code published; first statewide green build-
ing standards.
2009 In California et al. v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, appeals court reinstates the
Roadless Rule on 40 million acres of national forest.
U.S. Court of Appeals upholds 2006 decision in U.S. vs. Philip Morris that found
the tobacco companies liable for having “engaged in and executed... a massive
50-year scheme to defraud the public, including consumers of cigarettes,” and sets
in motion the establishment of widespread smoking bans.
Omnibus Public Lands Management Act adds more than 2 million acres of wil-
derness to National Wilderness Preservation System.
2010 Deepwater Horizon-British Petroleum oil rig explosion in Gulf of Mexico results
in largest oil spill in U.S. history.
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative launched to protect and restore the largest sur-
face freshwater system in the world.
2011 Protests against Keystone XL Pipeline begin.
Fukishima Daichi Nuclear Reactor disaster results from earthquake.
2014 Huge chemical spill in Nitro, West Virginia.
Flint, Michigan, drinking water crisis begins, potentially exposing more than
100,000 residents to high levels of lead.
Hurricane Sandy, the second costliest hurricane in U.S. history, causes major dam-
age in New York City.
2015 Paris Accords: U.S. agrees to reduce CO2 emissions by 26-28 percent below 2005
levels by 2025.
Hawaii enacts nation’s first 100 percent RES goal (100 percent of state’s energy
will be renewable by 2025).
Clean Power Plan to combat anthropogenic climate change unveiled by EPA.
Appendix I: Significant Dates in American Environmental History 299