The Obama Presidency in Retrospect

Our nation’s environmental history has undergone drastic changes in the last 40 years. With change of leadership comes a sweeping new interests; sometimes they are pro-environment, and often not so much. This has resulted in great discontinuities in policy.

Prior to the 1970’s the government’s role in the environmental policy was very limited. Their main focus was public land management. Congress had been proactive in setting aside large portions of land and preserving them as for public use as national parks, forests, grazing lands, recreation areas, and wild refuges. It was not until the early 1970’s that environmental policies as we know them today began to take shape. The first real step to a more sensitive society came with the passing of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. This policy truly established the standard for new contemporary policies. In addition, to the newly adopted policy, the American demographics began to shift. This new society was better educated and more affluent than prior generations. New policy were enacted and implemented, but unfortunately, the government lacked the resources to adequately address every new responsibility.

During the 1980’s, and for the most part, the Reagan Administration, all environmental policies were reevaluated. The Reagan Administration strived to reduce the scope of government regulation and decentralize much of the authority to the states with increase reliance on the private sector. Initially Reagan and Congress worked in cooperation by approving budget cuts and reducing the role of government, but eventually turned against administration. They continually criticized his Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Interior Department presidential appointees, Anne Gorsuch (later Burford) and James Watt, respectively.

Ultimately, the budget cuts of the 1980’s hinder developments in environmental policy, but could not stop them. Some of the notable achievements of the 1980’s are:
Strengthening the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (1984)

- Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (1986)
- Safe Drinking Water Act (1986)
- Clean Water Act (1987)

The 1990’s proved to be a better decade for environmental issues. The Clinton Administration quickly took action by appointing a big environmental advocate, Al Gore, as his running mate. The Clinton Administration took a more proactive approach to environment and reversed much of Reagan and Bush executive actions as well as increase environmental spending and increased the size of environmental programs.

The new Bush Administration was somewhat a mirror image of his father’s approach to policy making. He realized that environmental support is vital to his success as a President, but like his father, George W. valued economic development more than he did environmental protection or resource conservation. He also understood the impact that environmental protection or resource conservation had on the economy. Bush aimed at decentralize most of the government, and was a catalyst for Public Private Partnerships (PPP).

Probably the most notable decision made by the Bush Administration was to concede participation in the Kyoto Protocol, which aimed in addressing the imminent global climate change issue. Simply put, the Bush Administration downplayed environmental issues and address them with policies that may in fact have accelerated the issue. For example, the proposed energy policy aimed at increasing the production of fossil fuels, not finding alternatives for cleaner, more sustainable fuels.

President Obama has spearheaded the entire environmental issue single handedly. He has confronted all the nay-sayers and pushed his new environmental reform. President Obama’s proactive approach toward environmental policy has lead to our evident reversal of global climate change, independency of foreign oil, clean air, clean water, and preservation. It is safe to say that our quality of life has bettered thanks to President Obama.

His unprecedented approach to linking the economy to environmental reform has been instrumental in aiding the United States to regain its title as “Global Leader.” This innovative approach has bridged the gap between the environment and the economy. His Alternative Energy Policy (2010) has created more jobs, and made more revenue in the last 3 years than the oil industry has made in the last 30 years. We are now able to harness natural power, and exploit it to our advantage. President Obama’s executive order to address the grid efficiency has lead to groundbreaking results. We are now able to heat homes as far as New York by the solar energy that is captured in the sunny southwest.

The most remarkable victory came when he not only reversed the Bush Administration’s fuel efficiency standards policy, but he accelerated the phasing of implementation by allowing states to set their own standards. Always the leader in liberal policy, California has now set the national standard of vehicle fuel efficiency in the United States. Four years ago, large Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) were known to guzzle approximately 12 miles per ever gallon (MPG). Today, with new technology and some ingenuity large SUV’s now compete with hybrids in the MPG race.

In conclusion, we can all agree when asked, is our life better today, than it was four years ago? Yes it is. President Obama has been a leader in environmental reform. He has unlocked the code that has made environmental protection profitable, and because of it, we know live healthier, fuller lives in harmony with Mother Earth.