Environmentalism Since the 1960's

Unit 4: Contemporary Culture, 1960-Present

Section 6: Toward the 21st Century

Environmentalism Since the 1960's

The 1970s brought growing concerns with the NUCLEAR POWER INDUSTRY. Fission plants produced hazardous by-products that were difficult to dispose of safely. An accident at a nuclear power plant at THREE MILE ISLAND near Harrisburg nearly released a lethal bubble of radioactive gas into the atmosphere in 1979. Pressure groups mounted protests against nuclear testing by the United States. President Carter announced a bold initiative to develop renewable sources of energy.

Ford and Carter Two Different Perspectives

Both President Ford and President Carter were faced with a stagnating economy and lackluster support for their administrations but their perspectives on the environment were in almost directly opposition.

"I pursue the goal of clean air and pure water. But I must also pursue the objective of maximum jobs and continued economic progress." - President Gerald Ford, July, 1975

President Ford usually came down on the side of industry. He wanted to spur the sagging economy and he supported offshore oil development, the expansion of the coal industry, and increasing support and dependence on nuclear power.

"We should not be diverted from our cause by false claims that the protection of our ecology and wildlife means an end to growth and a decline in jobs." - Governor Jimmy Carter, September, 1976

*Carter inspects the newly installed White House solar panels with staffers and the press.*

Carter was a fierce advocate for the environment. Once elected he boosted the budget for the EPA and drafted and supported environmentally friendly legislation. He set aside hundreds of acres in Alaska as wilderness preservation. He even put 32 solar panels on the White House in order to heat water. However, his greatest achievement was the passage of the Superfund legislation in response to Love Canal. Love Canal was a housing community built on a toxic dump site. Once children began getting sick and barrels of toxic waste began appearing in people's lawns, the federal government became involved and helped evacuate the site and clean it up.

The Reagan Administration

The position of the Reagan administration on the environment is far more complicated. In the first years of his presidency, Ronald Reagan focused on deregulation of industry, reduced enforcement of existing legislation, and opened a wide variety of public lands for private use - mining, grazing, etc. He also ignored previous administrations international agreements and angered Canada who was suffering from air pollution and acid rain that began in the industries in the United States. And he removed the solar panels from the White House.

However, later in his administration, Reagan created a new National Park. He focused on restoring national parks by charging admission, and he protected the federal regulation of important resources like coal.

The overarching theme of the Reagan administration and the environment was that it was lost opportunity. The right saw it as lost opportunity to continue massive deregulation programs and the privatization of resources and the promotion of industry. Environmental activists and the those on the left declared it a catastrophic loss of time. Climate change was understood and happening, acid rain, energy conservation, and other long range problems were becoming understood and the momentum of the environmental movement to address these issues was lost.

Summary

Ever since Carter and Reagan, the environmental policies of presidents has fallen fairly predictably along party lines. Republican presidents favor deregulation and private incentives for ecological responsibility while Democratic presidents favor safeguarding the environment through legislation. However, the growing understanding of the impact of the environmental issues on the world has led to increased efforts to create global solutions. In the next section you will investigate an international meeting and treaty held in Kyoto, Japan attended by President Clinton.

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