Earth Day 2018

The EPA today…
Pruit will undoit, let Pruit undoit

If the environmental law
Limits what polluters can do
Let Pruit undoit, let Pruit undoit

In 1948, Donora, PA
A poisonous cloud
Came to stay a few days
Yes, people died
Yes, people were sickened
The human cost increased awareness
State and federal laws to protect lives were quickened
But
The EPA today…The Clean Air Act
Let Pruit undoit, let Pruit undoit

In 1970, in the USA
The first Earth Day
Hurray, hurray
In December that year
Congress authorized the EPA but
In 2018
Industries are polluting streams
Quaking the earth
Fulfilling coal and steel dreams–
Will becoming “great again”
Bring acid rain again?

The little creature who spoke for the trees
Has gone away
He
has a pulmonary disease

The EPA today
Let Pruit undoit, let Pruit undoit
Hurray, hurray
Is the EPA going away?
Is the EPA going away?

Paul Cech has been writing poetry since 1970. Several of his poems have been published as Saturday Poems in the Pittsburgh- Post Gazette and the Thomas Merton Center of Pittsburgh has published several of his poems in NewPeople. Read other articles by Paul.