1990 Great Lakes, Great Legacy? by Dr. Theo Colborn: book published detailing developmental, reproductive, metabolic and behavioral damage to Great Lakes wildlife from persistent chemical pollutants. Dr. Colborn, who received her PhD at age 58, was the founder of the EDC field.
Theo Colborn, Alex Davidson, Sharon Green, R.A. (Tony) Hodge; C. Ian Jackson, Richard A. Liroff, Great Lakes, Great Legacy? (Washington, D.C.: The Conservation Foundation, 1990).
1991 Wingspread conference organized by Drs. Theo Colborn and Pete Myers resulted in the Wingspread Consensus Statement. At the meeting Dr. Myers coined the term endocrine disruptor. This conference marked the beginning of the endocrine disruption field.
Dr. Colborn discusses organizing Wingspread:
1991 Dr. Ana Soto wonders why breast cancer cells are proliferating in the new test tubes purchased for her lab. She identifies the problem as the estrogenic compound nonylphenol leaching from the plastic tubes.
p-Nonyl-phenol: an estrogenic xenobiotic released from “modified” polystyrene. Soto AM, Justicia H, Wray JW, Sonnenschein C. Environ Health Perspect. 1991 May;92:167-73.
1991 Second assessment of dioxin initiated by EPA. EPA administrator Bill Reilly tells The New York Times: “We are now seeing new information on dioxin that suggests a lower risk assessment for dioxin should be applied” (Schneider 1991).
Johnson J. (1995). Dioxin risk: are we sure yet? Environmental science & technology, 29(1), 24A–5A. pdf.
1991 Impact of the Environment on Reproductive Health workshop in Copenhagen, sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Niels Skakkebaek presented data on increasing rates of testicular cancer with a meta analysis of semen quality. He presented the hypothesis that testicular cancer and infertility were due to poor semen quality and that congenital testicular abnormalities may be biologically linked. Dr. John McLachlan presented data on industrial estrogenic chemicals polluting the environment.
Michal, F., Grigor, K. M., Negro-Vilar, A., & Skakkebaek, N. E. (1993). Impact of the environment on reproductive health: executive summary. Environmental health perspectives, 101 Suppl 2(Suppl 2), 159–167.