"It would prove to be a hellish campaign. Ethyl was a powerful corporation with many friends in high places."
-Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything
Clair Patterson discovered the problem of lead pollution while he was dating the Earth. To accurately gauge Earth's age, Patterson was measuring the amount of lead isotopes in extremely ancient rocks. This is because uranium has a steady decay rate into lead. Patterson was using a technique similar to carbon dating to uncover how old these rocks, and subsequently how old the Earth, must be. After years of tedious work collecting and studying samples, Clair Patterson dated the earth at 4,550 million years, which is a figure that still stands today.
It was during this process of dating the Earth that Patterson realized that all of his rock samples became inexplicably contaminated with atmospheric lead whenever they were exposed to air. Where was all this new lead coming from? The answer soon presented itself: tetraethyl gasoline. With concern, determination, and an impressive knowledge of geochemistry, Patterson set out to remove this poison from American industry.
It was during this process of dating the Earth that Patterson realized that all of his rock samples became inexplicably contaminated with atmospheric lead whenever they were exposed to air. Where was all this new lead coming from? The answer soon presented itself: tetraethyl gasoline. With concern, determination, and an impressive knowledge of geochemistry, Patterson set out to remove this poison from American industry.
Clair Patterson realized that he needed a way to prove that the level of lead in the atmosphere had been much lower before the commercialization of tetraethyl fuel additive. He found proof in Greenland ice cores. By studying the layers of ice samples, Patterson could observe the changes in lead levels throughout the ages. Patterson soon discovered that since 1923, the year tetraethyl had been put on the market, lead levels in the atmosphere had climbed at an alarming rate. Armed with this knowledge, Patterson became an outspoken critic of the leaded gasoline industry. He gave lectures, wrote papers, and published research that condemned tetraethyl lead. However, Ethyl Gasoline Corporation would not give up its highly profitable product without a fight.