Environmental Pockmarks

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Now that we are looking toward new approaches for governing the U.S. and its relationship to the world, some review of landmark environmental actions taken by the Bush administration is in order, and gives new meaning to the word landmark (e.g. includes airmarking, etc., related to pockmark).

The stage was set in March 2001 with the U.S.'s rejection of the Kyoto Protocol, which had been negotiated by more than 100 countries seeking to reduce emissions of the largest nations, ours being responsible for the greatest amount.

In order to keep the profits flowing and emissions belching for oil, coal, utilities, and other industries, in 2002, the administration stated that CO2 was not a pollutant, and hence not subject to regulation under the Clean Air Act. (The Supreme Court later overruled this.) In the same year, dirtier older power plants and factories were given a break from having to install pollution control equipment. More recently, when California tried to set stricter standards on auto emissions, the EPA prevented this attempt toward progress.

Millions of acres were opened up for oil and gas drilling in the Rockies and Alaska, and in 2005, the Roadless Area Conservation Rule (created at the end of the Clinton administration) was repealed, opening up wilderness areas in 39 states to logging and new roads.

Congressional testimony, NASA reports, and media contacts on the subject of Climate Change were systematically edited, altered, or suppressed by members of the administration in order to downplay inherent dangers and influence policy makers.

At least one small part of the planet is better off, environmentally speaking that is. Northwestern Hawaii now has the largest marine sanctuary in the world. We can thank our president for that and know that a new day is coming.

Related Links

• PBS Documentary: The Bush Environmental Legacy
• Congressional report on political interference with climate change science
• More Ecofacts columns

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