1966 The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) began as the Division of Environmental Health Sciences within the NIH. In 1969, the division was elevated to full NIH institute status.
1968 Yushō disease mass poisoning in Japan when rice bran oil produced by the Kanemi Company was contaminated with PCBs and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), leading to endocrine-related health effects.
Aoki Y. (2001). Polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, and polychlorinated dibenzofurans as endocrine disrupters–what we have learned from Yusho disease. Environmental research, 86(1), 2–11.
1969 Cuyohoga River burns in Ohio, raising environmental awareness.