The first-ever Earth Day was in 1970 and this year was the 52nd annual Earth Day. Every year on April 22, it is the anniversary of the start of the modern environmental movement in 1970. Earth Day was created by Gaylord Nelson, a politician, and environmentalist from Wisconsin. Nelson also served as a United States Senator and governor. Before the first Earth Day, many Americans were consuming large amounts of gas due to big and inefficient automobiles. Air pollution was only getting worse and worse, America had no idea of the environmental issues that they were facing and how polluted their environment was to the point it was threatening human health. In 1962, Rachel Carson published the New York Times bestseller, Silent Spring. The book sold more than 500,000 copies in 24 countries, raising awareness and bringing light to the concern for pollution, public health, and the environment. On Earth Day, many often help plant trees because 15 billion trees are cut in a year, they turn off the lights to lessen fossil fuels that contribute to climate change and limit water usage to conserve water.