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Sept. 3, 1964: The Wilderness Act is signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson, protecting 9 million acres of wilderness, mostly in the western United States.

 

Sept. 3, 1980: Vietnam-era activist Abbie Hoffman (at right, in 1969) emerges from hiding after spending years as a fugitive from drug charges. In the late '70s, Hoffman hid in broad daylight under the pseudonym “Barry Freed.” He led the upstate New York group Save the River and successfully fought plans by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the St. Lawrence River. Hoffman tapes a TV interview with Barbara Walters, and surrenders to the police the next day.

 

Sept. 3, 2002: The U.N.’s summit on Sustainable Development forges agreements between nations to create safe energy and clean water projects in the developing world, and to protect biodiversity.

 

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

 

This feature is compiled by Peter Dykstra, an MNN contributor and publisher of Environmental Health News and The Daily Climate.