ENVIRONMENT ACTION COMMITTEE OF CO-OP CITY.

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Photograph album showing grassroots environmental activism in the Bronx. An evocative collection of snapshots chronicling the first two years of the Environment Action Committee (EAC). The voluntary organization was founded by and for the residents of Co-Op City, the largest housing co-operative in the world, and aimed to improve public health and quality of life. Activities shown include recycling initiatives, outreach work with schools, and participation in community events.On 18 October 1972, the activities of the EAC were presented at Congress by the politician Jonathon B. Bingham as a "particularly energetic and excellent" example of grassroots environmental activism. Citing a report by EAC chair Harry Hertzberg, Bingham praised many of the initiatives captured in the present photographs. Nine pages of the album capture a can-recycling programs, which Bingham singled out for its "remarkable work in handling one of the toughest environmental jobs". Another six pages show the EAC Ecology Fairs and the EAC's exhibit at the Bronx Day celebrations in 1971, which gave "much prominence to Co-Op City" (Congressional Record, pp. 37596-7). Several photographs in the album show the proximity of the Pelham Bay landfill site to residential Co-Op City buildings. One of the EAC's greatest achievements was the closure of the site, which they achieved in 1979, after several years campaigning and co-operation with other community groups.

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