Pennsylvania Environmental Council

The environmental movement in the United States took hold during the 1960s at a time when college campuses across the country were taking part in Earth Day celebrations. There was a renewed focus on the issues and the current state of the environment. In 1969, a small number of conservationists joined together to take action on behalf of the environment in Pennsylvania. This group saw the need for a statewide citizen's organization that had the capability to link activities of prior organizations including watershed associations, Audubon societies, garden clubs and conservancies, Trout Unlimited, the Sierra Club, the Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, and the League of Women Voters. This organization was named the Pennsylvania Environmental Coordinating Council and was later changed to the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC). In October 1969, it was decided that the Pennsylvania Environmental Council was to become the group dedicated to legislative action. The PEC incorporated into their mission a lobbying group for environmental protection legislation and regulations. Their counterpart, the Environmental Planning and Information Center (EPIC), was to serve as more of a tax exempt research/information group. At the time of this split, both groups were incorporated into the Pennsylvania system in January 1970. Although PEC and EPIC existed as separate entities, they worked closely together on various issues. The physical separation only existed for the purpose of cooperating with federal tax laws. PEC and EPIC worked out of the same office and slowly grew as an organization. PEC used lobbying techniques to pass environmental legislation through the Pennsylvania government. In addition, the PEC also published their own newsletters such as, News and Views, which alerted citizens of upcoming environmental meetings and current legislative issues of environmental concern. PEC and EPIC also presented conferences on environmental policies and issues to relay information to the people on the current state of affairs. The information portrayed at the conferences included the environmental issues dealing with air, water, solid waste, land protection, education, population, growth, surface mining, and toxic waste. PEC successfully expanded as an organization throughout the 1970s through the presentation of these conferences, newsletters, lobbying, and seminars. In 1973, EPIC was renamed the Pennsylvania Environmental Research Foundation. Then, in the mid-1980s, the Pennsylvania Environmental Research Foundation merged into the PEC and the two groups became known simply as the PEC. The merging of these two sections of Pennsylvania's environmental organizations created the version of the PEC as it functions today "joining policy work with on-the-ground education projects" (PEC). Throughout the 1970s and into the beginning of the 1980s, PEC had a number of primary activities. PEC aimed to bring all environmental issues to the surface in Pennsylvania and address them each accordingly. Once an environmental issue was surfaced, PEC aimed for the passage of legislation and regulation for that issue. Legislation, such as the Flood Plain Control Act passed in October 1978, was passed successfully because of consistent lobbying on behalf of PEC. PEC has not changed its approach to environmental issues. PEC has become an informational source on environmental issues and policy. Today, PEC provides various informative programs. In addition, the organization has grown from one original office to five and is now staffed by 33 members.