Dr. Robert K. Musil
1. Carson has left an extremely widespread legacy behind, but what do you feel is the most important part of this legacy that is still relevant today?
The most important part of Rachel Carson’s legacy is that nature and human life are connected, that the effect of toxic chemicals and other environmental harms is as important to human health as to animals and ecosystems.
2. Today, how are environmentalist groups continuing Rachel Carson's legacy?
In many ways. Most directly, many groups work to get rid of pesticides and other harmful and toxic substances. These include the Rachel Carson Council, the Environmental Working Group, Physicians for Social Responsibility, and others. But since Rachel saw issues as connected and was aware early on of problems like global warming, nuclear weapons, power and wastes and overpopulation, groups that tackle these issues carry on her legacy, too. Some examples include the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, and many others.
3. What is the biggest problem facing the environment today?
The biggest environmental problem facing groups is global climate change that is harming people, animals, and other wildlife, and threatening entire small island nations through sea level rise and more. But the problem facing groups is how to best communicate the dangers of climate change and the benefits of renewable energy and so on when they are not obvious and they are complicated. Thus environmental groups have a political problem in combatting distortions and disinformation spread easily in today’s media by a small number of wealthy energy corporations (oil, gas, coal) and a few super- rich individuals like the Koch brothers and their allies in Congress and right-wing media like Fox News.
4. Did Carson's work have a world impact?
Yes. She was quite famous and popular in England, Germany and the rest of Europe and today has large followings in Japan and elsewhere. Silent Spring has been translated into many languages and is still widely read today.
5. How was Carson considered a leader in this environmental movement?
Rachel was given awards many times by major environmental groups at the time like the Audubon Society, Wilderness Society, National Wildlife Federation and so on. She was good friends with the leaders of many groups who looked to her leadership, among them David Brower, then head of the Sierra Club. But Rachel was a leader in policy and government, too, working closely with the Secretary of the Interior under Kennedy, Stuart Udall, and on a number of Kennedy Administration Task Forces and groups. Because she was a scientist and a very popular author she had wide respect and was better known than other leaders.
6. Have other controversies over Carson's work, besides the argument that without pesticides farm yields would be drastically reduced, arisen? If not would you be able to explain the mentioned controversy a little more?
There is no serious controversy over Rachel Carson, but a few right-wing commentators and blog sites have tried to say that she is responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of Africans since she banned DDT which can be used to prevent malaria. This is like the attacks on Rachel in her day by paid corporate scientists and others who called her a communist and a sloppy scientist. She was attacked because she was so revered, popular and effective. Today, the same is true since she is an icon of the environment movement. If she can be tarred and discredited (smeared) than all environmentalism is suspect. However, DDT was only banned in the US after Rachel’s death and was never fully banned internationally. I was at the treaty negotiations where some American groups wanted a total, immediate ban on DDT (as were 11 other toxic chemicals) However, I and others worked on a compromise to get the treaty (now the Stockholm Convention) through by allowing a phase out (not a ban) of DDT along with a public health emergency exemption to use it in a controlled way if a nation could demonstrate it need for a sever epidemic outbreak. DDT was also creating resistance in mosquitoes long before its restriction. The entire “controversy” is bogus.
To conclude, perhaps the best legacy of Rachel is that she showed that women could be leaders, effective scientists, and courageous in the face of scurrilous, unfounded attacks.
The most important part of Rachel Carson’s legacy is that nature and human life are connected, that the effect of toxic chemicals and other environmental harms is as important to human health as to animals and ecosystems.
2. Today, how are environmentalist groups continuing Rachel Carson's legacy?
In many ways. Most directly, many groups work to get rid of pesticides and other harmful and toxic substances. These include the Rachel Carson Council, the Environmental Working Group, Physicians for Social Responsibility, and others. But since Rachel saw issues as connected and was aware early on of problems like global warming, nuclear weapons, power and wastes and overpopulation, groups that tackle these issues carry on her legacy, too. Some examples include the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, and many others.
3. What is the biggest problem facing the environment today?
The biggest environmental problem facing groups is global climate change that is harming people, animals, and other wildlife, and threatening entire small island nations through sea level rise and more. But the problem facing groups is how to best communicate the dangers of climate change and the benefits of renewable energy and so on when they are not obvious and they are complicated. Thus environmental groups have a political problem in combatting distortions and disinformation spread easily in today’s media by a small number of wealthy energy corporations (oil, gas, coal) and a few super- rich individuals like the Koch brothers and their allies in Congress and right-wing media like Fox News.
4. Did Carson's work have a world impact?
Yes. She was quite famous and popular in England, Germany and the rest of Europe and today has large followings in Japan and elsewhere. Silent Spring has been translated into many languages and is still widely read today.
5. How was Carson considered a leader in this environmental movement?
Rachel was given awards many times by major environmental groups at the time like the Audubon Society, Wilderness Society, National Wildlife Federation and so on. She was good friends with the leaders of many groups who looked to her leadership, among them David Brower, then head of the Sierra Club. But Rachel was a leader in policy and government, too, working closely with the Secretary of the Interior under Kennedy, Stuart Udall, and on a number of Kennedy Administration Task Forces and groups. Because she was a scientist and a very popular author she had wide respect and was better known than other leaders.
6. Have other controversies over Carson's work, besides the argument that without pesticides farm yields would be drastically reduced, arisen? If not would you be able to explain the mentioned controversy a little more?
There is no serious controversy over Rachel Carson, but a few right-wing commentators and blog sites have tried to say that she is responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of Africans since she banned DDT which can be used to prevent malaria. This is like the attacks on Rachel in her day by paid corporate scientists and others who called her a communist and a sloppy scientist. She was attacked because she was so revered, popular and effective. Today, the same is true since she is an icon of the environment movement. If she can be tarred and discredited (smeared) than all environmentalism is suspect. However, DDT was only banned in the US after Rachel’s death and was never fully banned internationally. I was at the treaty negotiations where some American groups wanted a total, immediate ban on DDT (as were 11 other toxic chemicals) However, I and others worked on a compromise to get the treaty (now the Stockholm Convention) through by allowing a phase out (not a ban) of DDT along with a public health emergency exemption to use it in a controlled way if a nation could demonstrate it need for a sever epidemic outbreak. DDT was also creating resistance in mosquitoes long before its restriction. The entire “controversy” is bogus.
To conclude, perhaps the best legacy of Rachel is that she showed that women could be leaders, effective scientists, and courageous in the face of scurrilous, unfounded attacks.