Time for a Positive Vision of America’s Environment

Restore and Respect America the Beautiful

With the Trump Administration attacks on climate science, renewable energy, research, power plan emissions standards, EVs, national monuments, and pretty much anything that smacks of environmental protection, it is not surprising that most responses from the environmental community and the Democratic party have been to defend the status quo.

The defensive posture has resulted in a perceived lack of vision or alternative.  With that in mind, here’s a pretty straight-forward set of actions and principles.  You may have some different elements or quibbles, but it feels like time to remind people that we can build on 60 years of environmental action rather than rip it apart.  We really don’t need to return to the polluted past.  What if the alternative agenda looks a bit like this top 10:

1. Protect and maintain wildlands and national parks and monuments for all
2. Reduce electricity prices by
   1. Supporting cheap and clean wind and solar, including on federal land and offshore
   2. Funding clean energy research
   3. Building a national energy grid
   4. Promoting bidirectional charging from EVs for grid stability
3. Ensure safe drinking water
   1. Focusing on toxic hotspots like Flint, MI
   2. End forever chemicals
4. Reduce fossil fuel pollution
   1. Stop methane emissions
   2. Support EVs and reduce cost of EVs
   3. Invest in battery research
   4. Support alternatives to plastics made from fossil fuel
   5. Develop worker transition plans
5. Expand work to reduce wildfire and smoke impacts
   1. Work with states and local communities
   2. Expand data access
   3. Promote native knowledge
6. Preserve farmland and improve soil
   1. Regenerative agriculture
   2. Climate smart practices that increase yield and reduce costs
   3. Reduce methane emissions
7. Support community resilience
8. Expand clean manufacturing
   1. Focus on climate technology, including batteries
   2. Compete with China
9. Expand public-private partnerships for financing
   1. For electrical transmission
   2. EV infrastructure
   3. Community resilience
10. Support new approaches to transportation
    1. Robo service for transit
    2. Integration with rail
11. (bonus item): Support real science and research

Isn’t that better than climate denial, gutting of national park services, additional subsidies for oil companies, and reduced funding for transportation?