by Jonathan Hiskes. Penn State historian Adam Rome studies the American environmental movement and is working on a book about the first Earth Day, which was prompted in part by an offshore drilling disaster in Santa Barbara. Yesterday, he told the Washington Post that it could take another year before we can tell if the Gulf oil leak yields real environmental progress. He fleshed out that thought in a conversation with Grist. —– Q. We’ve seen a lot of hand-wringing among greens about not seeing any large-scale progress since the Gulf of Mexico spill. It’s a dire thought that something this big isn’t enough to spur a change in our relationship with oil. But, historically speaking, are greens being too impatient?

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