Al Gore's Views of Environmental issues


		AcuSafe Home Page -> September Newsletter
		Al Gore on Environmental Issues

Last month, AcuSafe highlighted the environmental record and positions of George W. Bush. Now it's Al Gore's turn. Mr. Gore has had a strong environmentalist record for many years, even publishing the book Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit. Here is a synopsis of his message, record, and what his opponents say about his record. The material describing his record comes from the Gore/Lieberman 2000 web site, while the material opposing his positions is found primarily under the Bush/Cheney Web Site. Every effort has been made to give equal treatment to the two candidates.

Al Gore

His Message

"None of our children should have to worry whether the water they drink is pure or the air they breathe is clean," Gore said. "We have proven, once and for all, that pollution does not have to be the price of prosperity. If Congress ever passes a measure that would unacceptably undermine our environment or weaken critical public health protections, I will veto it."

"For me, a commitment to the environment has always run deeper than politics. We have to do what's right for our environment, because it involves all of our lives - from the simple security of knowing that our drinking water is safe, to the more ominous thinning of the ice caps at the top of the Earth."

What He Says About His Record

Gore and the Administration Strengthened Clean Air Protections. In 1997, the Administration approved strong new clean air standards for soot and smog that could prevent up to 15,000 premature deaths a year and improve the lives of millions of Americans who suffer from respiratory illnesses. They are currently defending the standards against legal assaults by polluters.
Gore was an Original Cosponsor of the Water Quality Act of 1987, which amended the nation's main water pollution control law, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972 (the Clean Water Act). This Act established, for the first time, a mandatory federal permit program to control discharges of industrial and municipal wastewater. In addition, the Act also authorized $18 billion for sewage treatment plants and other funds for water pollution control programs.

Gore Helped Lead Early Efforts Against Global Warming. As Vice President, and as a U.S. Senator, Al Gore has been recognized as an early leader in international efforts to combat global warming:
- Co-sponsored early legislation to study the implications of global warming and to encourage the development of environmental technologies to combat global warming.
- Chaired the U.S. Congressional delegation to the Interparliamentary Conference on the Global Environment, which reached an agreement between 40 nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Led the U.S. Senate delegation to the "Earth Summit," which produced a new understanding of the role of the interdependency of environment, trade and finance, consumption patterns and the need to set out to determine a long-term plan for global sustainable development.
- Helped produce an agreement at the Kyoto Global Warming Conference among 150 nations for limiting the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere.
Gore Pushed the Bush Administration to Speed the Phase-Out of Ozone Depleting Chemicals. Gore sponsored an amendment to express the sense of the Senate that the EPA should accelerate the phase-out of chemicals that deplete the ozone layer and move to strengthen the 1987 Montreal Protocol to protect the ozone layer. The New York Times reported that Gore's amendment helped to push the Bush Administration to "a surprise reversal of its public position…support[ing] a Senate action to phase out much faster the chemicals that damage the protective ozone layer high in the atmosphere." In 1989, 300,000 metric tons of CFCs were emitted in the United States. By 1996, ozone depleting chloroflurocarbon (CFC) emissions were eliminated.
Gore and the Administration Worked to Expand Our Ability to Address Global Climate Change. Al Gore and the Administration secured $11.6 billion for the Global Change Research Program to enhance surface and satellite monitoring of changes in temperature and precipitation and expand climate change research efforts. The Administration also secured more than $2 billion to research and develop clean energy technologies within carbon-emitting sectors of the economy as part of the Climate Change Technology Initiative.
Gore is Working to Meet the Challenge of Global Warming. Al Gore and the Administration proposed an FY 2001 budget, which includes $2.4 billion -- a 42 percent increase -- to combat global climate change, and $1.7 billion for scientific research into factors influencing climate and the likely consequences of global warming.
Gore Chaired Some of the First Congressional Hearings on Toxic Waste Clean Up. On October 30, 1978, Al Gore chaired the first congressional oversight hearing on the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) dealing with toxic waste clean up. This House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing was the first in a lengthy series of hearings that examined hazardous waste dump sites, and laid the groundwork for passage of the Superfund Act in 1980. At Gore's urging, the committee later undertook a "Waste Disposal Site Survey" of the 53 largest domestic chemical companies. This survey disclosed data on 3,383 disposal sites, approximately 2,000 of which were previously unknown to the EPA.
The Clinton-Gore Administration Cleaned Up 3 times as Many Toxic Waste Sites as the Reagan and Bush Administrations Combined. Since 1993, the Clinton-Gore Administration has cleaned up 525 toxic waste sites- over three times more than were cleaned up during the previous 12 years. Cleanup is completed or underway at over 90% of all Superfund sites. Furthermore, the Clinton-Gore Administration has worked to reduce the release of toxic chemicals in private industry and from the federal government. Toxic chemical releases were down over 23% between 1991 and 1997, and Department of Defense toxic releases have fallen 64.8% between 1994 and 1998.
Gore Launched the Administration's Livable Communities Initiative. Al Gore launched the Administration's Livable Communities initiative to provide citizens and communities with the tools and the resources needed to encourage smart growth, ease congestion, and improve quality of life. The initiative includes a citizen website and calls for $700 million in tax credits to help local communities raise $10.75 billion in Better America Bonds to achieve quality of life improvements for Americans. In addition, the Administration's FY2001 budget calls for $9.3 billion, a 14 percent increase, for the Administration's Livable Communities initiative to help communities grow in ways that enhance quality and strong economies.
Gore Led the Administration's Successful Brownfield Redevelopment Efforts. In May 1997, Al Gore announced the Administration's Brownfields National Partnership to streamline resources from 20 federal agencies to address Brownfield cleanup and redevelopment. The program contributed to the Administration's successful revitalization of over 30,000 brownfield sites across America since 1995. The Administration also provided almost $70 million in seed grants to over 300 communities and brought over $1.6 billion in private funds into revitalization projects.
Gore and the Administration Have Been Fighting for Full Funding of the Lands Legacy Initiative. For the second year in a row, Al Gore and the Administration have proposed full and permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) through their Lands Legacy initiative. As part of their FY2001 budget proposal, the President and Vice President have requested $1.4 billion for the Lands Legacy initiative to build upon the $652 million secured by the Administration for the initiative in the FY2000 budget. The Clinton-Gore Administration is the first administration in many years to request full funding of the LCWF.
Gore and the Administration Have Protected America's Environmental Treasures. Al Gore has taken an active role in the Administration's efforts to protect our environmental treasures. In 1996, Gore unveiled a strategy to protect the Everglades, and in 1998 Gore unveiled a $7.8 billion proposal to restore the natural water flow in the Everglades. Gore also supported efforts to ban drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and to protect valuable roadless areas in National forests. In addition, the Administration has used the Antiquities Act to preserve and protect five natural treasures - more acreage in the lower 48 states than any prior administration in history. The Administration also has created 13 new national parks.
Gore and the Administration Have Protected America's Rivers and Forests. The Clinton-Gore Administration worked to protect more than 10 million acres of old growth reserves in the Pacific Northwest, and to restore and revitalize 14 "American Heritage Rivers." In 1994, the Administration created a Pacific Northwest Forest plan to protect the Northern Spotted Owl while allowing timber-dependent communities the opportunity for economic growth. Timber harvested from national forests has decreased 54.8% while recreational use of national forests has increased 29.6% from 263 to 341 million visitor days between 1992 and 1998.
Gore and the Administration Worked To Protect Forests and Biodiversity Around the World. In its FY 2001 budget, the Administration called for $150 million for a new Greening the Globe initiative to help stem the loss of forests worldwide.

What His Detractors Say About His Record

Gore is too willing to neglect the effect that his decisions have on businesses. His solutions are prescriptive and do not consider the costs to our nation's industries.
The Kyoto Protocol, which Gore supports, is a bad idea. Any emissions reductions achieved by the United States and the 38 other nations subject to Kyoto's limits would be quickly overwhelmed by the explosive growth in emissions from China, India, South Korea, Mexico and the other 130 or so developing nations that are not legally bound by limits in the treaty. At the same time, the Kyoto treaty would harm the U.S. economy. It would require us to reduce energy use as much as 40 percent below the levels otherwise expected in the year 2010. The Energy Information Administration, an independent arm of the U.S. Department of Energy, predicts that Kyoto could cause gasoline prices to rise by 53 percent and electricity prices by 86 percent over the next decade.
Al Gore's targeted initiative focusing primarily on renewable energy, which represents at most four percent of the total energy consumption in the United States, is woefully inadequate in addressing our short or long-term energy challenges. A focus on renewable energy alone will not decrease America's reliance on foreign oil. Gore offers no solution concerning increased domestic oil production to decrease America's reliance on foreign oil.
Gore's plan to reduce emissions from older electric utility plants is voluntary and does not require more stringent emission standards. The environmental community has already signaled it’s opposition to this Gore proposal: "And environmentalists say the plan is in direct violation of the Clinton Administration’s mantra of ‘polluter pays.
Gore has refused to take a definitive stand on whether to breach dams in the Pacific Northwest in order to rehabilitate waterways and allow endangered salmon species to procreate more readily. Bush has signaled strong opposition to breaching dams there and wants to emphasize private restocking efforts.