One of the lasting legacies of the 1960s is Earth Day, first observed in the U.S. in 1970 and now celebrated (or at least, observed) in 192 countries around the world. The environmental movement that pushed the first Earth Day can also claim at least some credit for the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the national Environmental Protection Act, and the Clean Water Act, all passed and signed into law in the 1970s.

And while it’s good to recall that history now and then, it’s more important to ask, “What has the environmental movement done lately?” Depending on how one views major issues like climate change, the answer to that question could be either negative or positive.

One positive (to us) development was a report earlier this month from the U.S. Energy Information Administration that new electrical generation from solar power plants in 2013 surpassed the amount of new generation from coal-fired plants. New solar generation added nearly 3,000 megawatts in 2013, double the 1,500 megawatts of new coal-fired generation. Added natural gas-fired generation of more than 6,800 megawatts and wind-powered generation of more than 1,000 megawatts made and even larger dent in the amount of carbon emissions that would be coming from U.S. electricity generation in the future.

Solar panel makers like First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR), SunPower Corp. (NYSE: SPWR), and SunEdison Inc. (NYSE: SUNE) and installers like SolarCity Corp. (NASDAQ: SCTY) are going concerns that owe their existence and profits to a wider understanding of the benefits of cleaner energy. SunEdison, for example, is getting a 10% share price boost on the news of an investment from David Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital. Does anyone imagine that a hedge fund would have pumped a large investment into a solar panel maker 10 or 15 years ago?

Earth Day has been raising Americans’ consciousness of environmental matters for more than 40 years now. It’s a modest, but meaningful contribution, and the payoff has been much more than modest..

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