John T. Pegors papers

John T. Pegors was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, October 25, 1921, the oldest of five sons of Sam and Adeline. He studied journalism at the University of Minnesota, served as a SeaBee, the Construction Battalion of the U. S. Navy, in the Pacific and on New Guinea. In 1943, he married Donna Washburn in Minneapolis. He became a master plumber and supported Donna’s studies in music and opera in Austria and Germany. He was an ardent advocate for environmental protection. In 1972, he was appointed Regional Director for Northeastern Minnesota for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) until he retired November 4, 1989 – early, due to health problems. His responsibilities were for seven counties’ air, water, solid waste, noise, and hazardous waste regulations. It was said that he “focused on the Big Picture – ignoring bureaucratic matters.” Pegors was an outspoken critic of agencies (including the MPCA), local and national governments, and individuals who he believed were not vigorous enough in protecting the public’s and the planet’s quality of life. He died at age 85, January 20, 2007.

John Pegors was a member, officer, program director, project coordinator, or interested party of nearly every water or air pollution dilemma touching Minnesota or Lake Superior. His interests were always in a national and international context. National and international publications and subject files – copper salvage in China, EPA gas mileage guidelines, rainforest of Brazil, Everglades, ozone depletion, global climate change, polar bear habitat loss, Washington state and Canadian border disputes, San Francisco Bay Area earthquakes, Zambia’s approach to conservation, etc., could not be retained. A sample of the scope of his interests is reflected in the periodical titles that were removed or kept only when there was a local component: The Amicus Journal, A Publication of the Natural Resources Defense Council, NY, NY The Bay Watcher, Newsletter of Save San Francisco Bay Association, CA The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist, Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science Catalyst, The Magazine of the Union of Concerned Scientists Alliance Almanac, Clean Water Action Alliance of Minnesota Clean Water Fund mailings Currents, Lake Superior Center EEBA News, Energy & Environment Building Association, Bloomington, MN Environment, HELDREF Publications, Helen Dwight Reid Educational Foundation Focus, International Joint Commission Forest Magazine: Conserving Our Natural Heritage, Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics (FSEEE) Inner Voice, Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics, Eugene, OR Journal of Pesticide Reform, Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides Minnesota Environment, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Minnesota for an Energy-Efficient Economy Minnesota Land Recycling Bulletin, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Minnesota Superfund Bulletin, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Minnesota Superfund Quarterly, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Natural Resources Defense Council mailings Nucleus, The Magazine of the Union of Concerned Scientists, Cambridge, MA Newsletter, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Power Line, Environmental Action Foundation and Energy Conservation Coalition Public Citizen News, founded by Ralph Nader in 1971 Superior Vision, A Newsletter for the Lake Superior Bioregion by Lake Superior Alliance of Canadian and US environmental groups Sustainable Energy for Economic Development (SEED) Sustainable Resources Center Nature’s Voice, Natural Resources Defense Council On Earth, Natural Resources Defense Council Outdoor America, Izaak Walton League of America Waltonian, [Minnesota] Izaak Walton League of America Weatherwise, The Magazine about Weather by the Helen Dwight Reid Educational Foundation Wildflower, Journal of the National Wildflower Research Center, Austin, TX