Environment has no friend in Bush

Atlanta Journal Constitution ^ | June 6, 2003 | Editorial

[Rennes Templar]

O beautiful for smoggy skies For stunted fields of grain,

For fading mountain majesties Above the barren plain

If the Bush administration continues its current pace of dismantling environmental protections, Katharine Lee Bates' 110-year-old "America the Beautiful" will be ancient history. While Americans were tuned into the war in Iraq, the Bush administration was waging a quieter war on the environment.

With the help of a GOP-dominated Congress eager to please the energy lobby, the Bush team is well on its way to commercializing the nation's precious natural resources. Leading the charge are industry-friendly agency appointees -- former timber lobbyist Mark Rey, who oversees U.S. Forest Service policies, and former oil and mining lobbyist Steven Griles, deputy secretary of the Interior Department.

Sweetheart court settlements crafted by the Bush Justice Department consistently favor industry. In addition, gaping holes have been punched in long-standing regulations under the guise of friendly sounding initiatives such as "Clear Skies" and "Healthy Forests."

There is a ray of hope in growing state and local government protests. Local officials are bringing lawsuits reflecting their fear that revenues from tourism and outdoor recreation could decline. Their concerns are warranted, given that weakened protections will allow utilities to spew more pollution and sully rivers, forests and national monuments.

Meanwhile, here's a sampling of Bush's stealth attacks on the environment:

The "Clear Skies" illusion: The Bush Environmental Protection Agency supports emissions trading instead of air quality regulations that punish violators. Emissions trading could be a good approach, but not when it allows utilities to burn 80 million more tons of coal, double sulfur emissions and release three times as much mercury.

The end of wilderness: In 2001, one of the administration's first actions was to freeze implementation of a popular Clinton-era roadless preservation rule. If road-building continues in the few remaining forests with wilderness potential, there will be no more wilderness.

And that's fine with Interior Secretary Gale Norton, who recently agreed to withdraw 2.6 million acres of potential Utah wilderness and quietly told select senators she would forgo her authority to identify any additional Western wilderness areas. That means many national monuments, even lands adjacent to the Grand Canyon are open to energy exploration.

Dirty deals on clean water: Last year, EPA officials rolled back protection of 20 million acres of fragile wetlands. This spring, the Interior Department announced support for water marketing as a way to apportion scarce supplies during drought. That would allow water to flow to the highest bidder with little protection for the environment or broader public interests.

Shortchanging endangered species: Last month, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided to freeze any new critical habitat designations, using a $2 million agency budget shortage as the excuse. The act needs fine-tuning, not dismantling or defunding.

Logging to protect forests: Bush's "Healthy Forests" initiative, which supposedly prevents fires near residential areas, recently sailed through the U.S. House of Representatives. But it allows logging in interior old-growth forests far from residential communities.

The fragmented southern Appalachians will see more logging, too, thanks to a vaguely defined disease-prevention loophole. The fact is that forest officials can already cut diseased trees.

The global warming debacle: One of Bush's first actions in office was to withdraw the United States as a signatory to the Kyoto climate change treaty, an action met with uniform international disapproval. After appointing his own scientific panel, which confirmed that global warming is real and is caused largely by fossil fuel burning and carbon dioxide emissions, Bush still refused to support more stringent fuel economy standards for automobile makers.

Contrary to the mind-set of this administration, there is nothing "radical" about conservation. What's radical is Bush's war on the environment

[Rennes Templar]

Dubya has been challenging environmental extremism just as he has been challenging terrorism. What a breath of fresh air!

[an amused spectator]

I see that Cynthia Tucker hasn't cornered the market on lies at the AJC. ;-)

[Torie]

This is all quite entertaining. The dirty little secret is that the richest nation on earth protects its environment more than anywhere on earth. But that does not mean that one should trade even more environmental protections at the cost of the economy that simply don't pencil. It is a balancing test. Does the author of this screed grapple with balancing economic efficiency and growth with environmental externalities in any substantive way? The answer is no. In fact, it is hell no. Just more spam in the public square. There is so much spam these days. No wonder, the arteries are closing. I feel chest pains.

[sackofcatfood]

The environment is our enemy. It is incessantly trying to rid itself of mankind with earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and hurricanes. We must destroy it first.

KILL THE ENVIRONMENT!

[Navy Patriot]

Whenever I have occasion to read the AJC, I take out my highlighter and mark revealing passages in the text. When I am done I see that the AJC is full of Marx.

[solo gringo]

I think this ember would be better off in france.Stupid is as stupid wrote.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

Logging to protect forests: Bush's "Healthy Forests" initiative, which supposedly prevents fires near residential areas, recently sailed through the U.S. House of Representatives. But it allows logging in interior old-growth forests far from residential communities.

Thats where the fires usually start DUMBARSE i guess you envirowhackos want to control lightning and disenchanted forest workers too?

How about they control something important like your willingness to deprive people of the very things that god put here for us to use at our descretion

Oh i forgot you would rather rid the earth of humans so we couldnt step on a snail darter or live in a affordable house made from FINE AMERICAN WOOD not canadian expensive imported seconds These whackos need a muzzle or better yet a shovel to build a fire break !

[c-b 1]

Is the Sierra Club writing editorials for tha Atlanta Constipation now?

[Rennes Templar]

lol

[Jorge]

After the "arsenic in the water" nonsense..I don't believe anything enviro-nazis say about Bush.

And it seems that after the way they screwed up California's power production and put them deeply into dept..the environmentalists have lost a lot of support everywhere.

[Brimack34]

Dashole no friend to the enviroment!! He said it was alright too log all of SD. Where was the outrage.

[Victor K]

We need more well-reasoned arguments to clarify the air, not hysteria.

Our forests are being replanted at about twice the rate that they are being cut. There are more acres of forestland in America than there were 100 years ago. Nearly every product you use has either been made from, packaged in or coated with something that came from a tree.

Forests are a gift from God, just like other resources, to be used wisely for our betterment. "Stop you fretting, it only leads to evil."

We had one of the coldest winters ever on record in this part of the world. Lake Superior froze completely over, which seldom happens. "Global warming" is manufactured by globalists who want to have power across people of all nations. People who so easily succumb to such nonsense do their bidding. Your hysteria about such things will not lead to anything good.

[SierraWasp]

"What a breath of fresh air!"

True enough! However, this screed is as foul as a blazing saddles campfire sing-along!!!

This writer is just plain "Howlin at the Moon," like a lunatic!!! (sorry Howlin)

[sleepr]

OK as, a complete newby and lurker for 3 years I'm wondering " should there have been an "Alert" for us neophites ( spell) on posts such as this.

Ps,as a newby my donation for this first post will follow tomorrow AM. THANKs to all.

[doug from upland]

The whacko left are the ones responsible for doing great damage to forests. Dead wood needs to be cleared and sometimes forests need to be thinned. What good are they if people can't use them?

[Torie]

What good are they if people can't use them?

Bio-diversity. There is a cure for cancer in those endangered plants. Actually, people "using" forests is a bit about protecting the rare and beautiful. It is another one of those balancing tests and judgment calls. It needs to be considered on a case by case basis.

[RJayneJ]

Quote of the Day by TheBigB

[Russell Scott]

This tree monkey's argument is as tired and bogus as "tax cut for the rich".

[sackofcatfood]

Pssst. . . this may take you by surprise but
1) I do not support purposely trying to kill off the environment.
2) I am actually a 17 year old boy, not an unusally internet-savvy sack of cat food, as my name would suggest.

Some things are meant to be taken in jest. For future reference, Freepers are usually quite sane, sensical people and if they say something absurd, it can usually be dismissed as an article of humor.

[LittleJoe]

Dubya has been challenging environmental extremism just as he has been challenging terrorism. What a breath of fresh air!

I sure wish he would challenge them here in California. The idiotic environmental extremist lawmakers here have made me a criminal.

I live in the mountains, in an extreme fire danger area. The law requires me to keep my property weed free. If I don't, I can be arrested.

My old weed eater quit. I can't buy a new one in California because the idiotic legislaters outlawed them. I tried to order one online, but no company will ship one to California because of the new law.

I'm going to drive to Reno in the morning to buy one. If I get caught bringing it into California, I will be arrested. If I don't buy one and clear the weeds on my property, I will be arrested.

Nice place to live, California. The governor can steal billions from the taxpayers and give it to his cronies, but I'm a criminal because of some stupid idiotic environmental garbage!!!