Monday, April 22, 1996
Flurry of environmental activity can’t erase past Congressional
recordBy Diane MacEachern
This year’s anniversary of Earth Day may be marked by an unusual
level of activity from an unlikely troupe of "environmentalists"
 anti-environment members of Congress who have spent the last
year systematically knocking the teeth out of the laws and policies
that protect our air and water and safeguard our natural resources,
and who now face re-election by an electorate that is decidedly
pro-environment.
These senators and representatives have left almost no law or
regulation unturned in their effort to undo the 26 years of
progress made since the first Earth Day was observed on April 22,
1970.
Almost any ordinance that favors people over pollution seems to
have found itself in the sights of the anti-environment
congressional majority. But several regulations  most notably
those that protect endangered species, conserve our public lands
and safeguard human health and safety  have been particularly
singled out for "streamlining," the Capitol Hill euphemism for
undercutting the fundamental and successful way in which our
country prevents pollution and conserves our natural resource
treasure chest for future generations.
Among the most egregious anti-environment actions taken by the
104th Congress are laws that eviscerate the Endangered Species Act,
expedite the clear-cutting of our ancient forests and cut funding
for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
According to EPA Administrator Carol Browner, who testified at
recent hearings on Capitol Hill, enforcement of environmental
standards; cleanup of toxic waste sites and leaking oil tanks; and
water quality control have all suffered as a result of
congressionally imposed budget cutbacks. The cutbacks have reduced
funds for environmental enforcement by 25 percent and denied
communities across the United States $712 million in funding to
safeguard drinking water and keep raw sewage out of rivers. "We
cannot ensure the American people their air is clean, their
drinking water is safe, the health of their children is protected,"
Browner noted.
U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt expressed similar concern
over the efforts of anti-environment legislators to dismantle the
National Park Service and undermine the Endangered Species Act. "I
have yet to meet an American who says we have too many national
parks," Babbitt testified as he voiced misgivings over the forced
closing of 368 parks and visitor areas during the recent budget
impasses.
The hue and cry generated by both government officials charged
with protecting our environment and by a public that strongly
favors strengthening, not weakening, our environmental laws have
begun to worry anti-environment members of Congress who are
planning re-election campaigns and know they’ll have to defend
their pro-pollution votes at town hall meetings, chicken dinners
and candidate debates.
Particularly alarming to this "brown crowd" is the recent
election of Representative Ron Wyden to fill the vacated U.S.
Senate seat of Oregon Senator Bob Packwood. Wyden, who ran on a
strong pro-environment platform, successfully made an issue of his
opponent’s record as a corporate polluter.
Republicans, whose anti-environment record far outstrips that of
the Democrats, are particularly concerned that their zealotry will
take its toll at the polls in November. Late last year, a
memorandum issued by the House Republican Conference urged its
members to launch what amounted to greenwashing campaigns at home
to distract voters from the votes they’ve cast on Capitol Hill.
Among other activities, the memo urges GOP members to plant
trees, join in a community litter pick-up, visit a zoo, create a
data base of "caring constituents," and yes, even participate in
local Earth Day activities.
Environmentalists like Carl Pope, executive director of the
nationally based Sierra Club, aren’t impressed. "Don’t be fooled,"
he advises. "Every time a member of Congress plants a tree, find
out whether he or she voted for the "salvage" rider that is
allowing clear-cutting on our national forest. If your senator or
representative makes a symbolic visit to a recycling center, ask
about his or her vote to reduce the EPA’s budget. If they stop by
the zoo, get their position on the Endangered Species Act."
"Americans do not want to roll back the environmental gains of
the past," believes Deb Callahan, president of the League of
Conservation Voters, "not on Earth Day, not on any day.
Any politician who mistakenly believes they do, does so at his
or her own peril."
MacEachern is president of Vanguard Communications, a
Washington- based firm that specializes in environmental
issues.