Before “Bad” was good, “Cool” was hot and green was “Green,” a long list of events transpired in the environmental space that portended significant change for the country. Much of these changes were brought on, either wittingly or unwittingly, at the presidential level. Below are presidents of the U.S. who, either directly or indirectly, had the most profound impact on the environment and related matters, which today we call “green.”
Five worst environmental Presidents:
George W. Bush (2001 – 2009)
A highly polarizing figure, President George W. Bush has been widely criticized for his dismal record on the environment (and well known for his deep ties to the oil industry. Under Bush’s leadership oil companies enjoyed the highest profits in the history of the world). In fact, leading green advocate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has said, “You simply can’t talk honestly about the environment today without criticizing this president. George W. Bush will go down as the worst environmental president in our nation’s history.” Kennedy’s book Crimes Against Nature details how Bush has rewritten the nation’s environmental laws in favor of industry and filled the ranks of regulatory agencies with former lobbyists and corporate executives.
Bush rolled back laws (and stymied enforcement) on air pollution and standards for arsenic in drinking water. He pushed to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other federal lands to destructive drilling, promoted mountaintop removal coal mining, stepped up logging on public lands, slashed support for family planning around the world, fought against fuel economy and other efficiency standards and deliberately dragged his heels on the issue of climate change. The Bush administration has been accused of politicizing and distorting government science, particularly when it comes to global warming, and even floated a plan for corporate sponsorship of landmarks (sometimes referred to as the “Pepsi Grand Canyon” fiasco).
Ronald Reagan (1981 – 1989)
Although Ronald Reagan had been pretty solid on the environment as governor of California, he seemed to take a turn for the worse once he got to the White House. “The Reagan administration adopted an extraordinarily aggressive policy of issuing leases for oil, gas and coal development on tens of millions of acres of national lands — more than any other administration in history,” the Wilderness Society’s David Alberswerth has reported.
Perhaps setting the tone for much of his policy, Reagan famously (and bizarrely) said “trees cause more pollution than automobiles do,” and that if “you’ve seen one tree you’ve seen them all.” As president Reagan shocked greens by hiring the notorious James Watt and Anne Gorsuch for the heads of the Department of Interior and the EPA. The industry-friendly appointees worked tirelessly to roll back environmental regulations, from the Clean Air Act to the Clean Water Act
Reagan’s Superfund director, Rita Lavelle, was sent to jail after a Congressional investigation into alleged corruption (called “Sewergate”). Lavelle returned to prison in 2005 after being accused of fraud in a case of faked environmental cleanup in the private sector.
Reagan also rolled back Carter’s CAFE standards for car gas mileage, slashed funding for renewable energy (sending the burgeoning industry into a freefall it still hasn’t recovered from), signed an executive order that forces unworkable evacuation plans on communities surrounding nuclear power plants, and unceremoniously ripped the solar panels off the White House. Reagan may have been a nice man, but he drove us right back into oil addiction, some say setting the stage for years of global conflict and indirect funding of terrorism.
Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961)
Dwight D. Eisenhower was a tremendously popular war hero and U.S. president. He supported civil rights (though not as much as some would have liked) and strengthened social programs. He also expanded U.S. military and political influence around the world and fought the Cold War with the Soviet Union, which included stockpiling of dangerous nuclear weapons and heavy investment in the “military-industrial-complex,” a term that Eisenhower himself coined in his farewell speech.
One of Ike’s major projects was creation of a vast interstate highway system, something he saw as integral to the nation’s defense and as a spur to modernization and development. Unfortunately, more efficient, cleaner mass transit took a far back seat, and that set us up for addiction to a car-based culture, with all the oil use and sprawl that has resulted in subsequent decades.
In the post-war era we had a chance for smart growth, but it got handed over to increasingly powerful car, road and oil lobbies.
Richard Nixon (1969 – 1974)
Among other things, Nixon unleashed the biggest bombing campaign the world had ever known on Southeast Asia, and approved the use of agent orange and napalm, which were ecological nightmares, as well as weapons of war.
At home, Nixon’s Secretary of Agriculture, Earl Butz, put the country on track for a corn-syrup based diet that has led to record levels of obesity, as well as millions of acres of destructive industrial agriculture. Butz’s mantra to farmers was “get big or get out.” He urged farmers to plant commodity crops like corn “from fencerow to fencerow,” encouraging the rise of big agribusiness over small family farms.
Warren Harding (1921-1923)
Former newspaper publisher Warren Harding is often labeled as one of the country’s worst presidents, despite having won the office by the largest landslide, and having enjoyed enormous popularity while serving. Today, the Ohio conservative is most often remembered for the corruption that was rampant in his administration.
The most infamous was the complicated Teapot Dome scandal, in which Harding’s Secretary of the Interior, Albert B. Fall, was convicted of accepting bribes and illegal no-interest personal loans in exchange for the leasing of public oil fields to business associates. Other officials were also convicted of taking bribes and kickbacks, two committed suicide, and another was found running an illegal network for drugs and alcohol.
The scheme to plunder the Earth for personal gain is perhaps indicative of an administration that seemed to view nature largely as something to be tamed and taken from
Five best environmental Presidents:
Jimmy Carter (1977 – 1981)
Like Roosevelt before him, Carter didn’t just sign environmental laws. Carter lobbied for their creation and passage as well. From the first year of his presidency he was active in environmental issues. 1977 saw the creation of the Department of Energy, as well as the passage of the Soil and Water Conservation Act, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, and amendments on the Clean Air Act which helped set clean air standards. The next year, Congress passed that National Energy Act, the Antarctic Conservation Act, and the Endangered American Wilderness Act.
It was 1980, however, that was Carter’s biggest personal triumph in lobbying Congress. Earlier that year the Superfund legislation was passed, giving the EPA the funds and responsibility to clean up abandoned toxic waste dumps. Carter’s biggest personal victory that year, however, was the passage of the Alaskan National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Carter and others, including a number of celebrities, had lobbied hard for the passage of the bill. The act conserved more than 100 million acres and 26 rivers in Alaska.
Teddy Roosevelt (1901-1909)
Teddy Roosevelt is more famous for his environmental actions than any other president in history. A committed outdoorsman, he made conservation of America’s natural resources a cornerstone of his policy. He repeatedly lobbied Congress to pass measures for the conservation of forests, water, soil and wildlife.
Roosevelt is mistakenly credited for the creation of the National Park Service, which was actually created by Woodrow Wilson in 1916. What Roosevelt created was the National Wildlife Refuge System. He designated Pelican Island, Florida the first National Wildlife Refuge in 1903. He proceeded to place large areas of land under federal protection during his presidency, about 230 million acres in total. This was made easier by the 1906 Antiquities Act, which gave a president the ability to designate areas as national monuments without Congressional approval. This gave the lands some federal protection, and Roosevelt took full advantage of the act.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-1945)
The next Roosevelt to arrive in office also had a great environmental impact, although he couldn’t compare to his elder relative. FDR’s most important contribution to American environmentalism was the establishment of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The CCC was intended to help decrease unemployment during the Great Depression as part of FDR’s “New Deal”. More than 2.5 million people served in the CCC from 1933 to 1942. They planted millions of trees, opened summer camps, and generally improved America’s infrastructure and environment.
FDR pushed a lot of legislation through Congress during his time in office, so it’s no surprise there were several other environmental bills he signed into law. Both the Soil Conservation Service and the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act were passed during FDR’s time as president.
Richard Nixon (1969 – 1974)
Although Richard Nixon earned a reputation as a manipulative, sneaky criminal who fought dirty and mercilessly attacked his enemies, but he presided over a time that saw more powerful environmental protection laws enacted than any before it. He probably didn’t care about all of them and we all know about his downfall, but this important period in U.S. environmental history should not be ignored. By most accounts, he was not a nice person. That being said, Nixon’s signature made some of the most important environmental legislation in U.S. history into law.
In 1970 he signed the Clean Air Act and created the Environmental Protection Agency. While the EPA has spent the last few years protecting the environment by telling California it should let cars pollute more, it once did a decent job of trying to make our environment better.
1972 was a banner year for environmental legislation. Here’s a list of some of the bills passed that year: the Coastal Zone Management Act, the Ocean Dumping Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Federal Insecticide, Fungide, Rodenticide Act, and the Toxic Substances Control Act. The rest of Nixon’s term was no less eventful, and it saw the Endangered Species Act passed in 1973 and the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1974.
Abraham Lincoln (1861 – 1865)
It’s probably safe to say that Lincoln is not really remembered for his environmental legacy. Bringing an end to slavery and presiding over the Union during the Civil War were far more famous and important, and they deservedly overshadow his accomplishments in other areas.
However, this doesn’t mean he didn’t do anything for the environment. In 1862 Lincoln established the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). At the time more than 90% of Americans were farmers, so this was an important and powerful department. The USDA still has a major impact on our environment, as does U.S. agriculture.
He also authorized the establishment of the National Academy of Sciences in 1863. In addition, he signed one of the first conservation laws, which helped lay the foundations of the national park service. In 1864 Lincoln signed a bill which established protection for the Yosemite Valley in California. The aim of the bill was the protection of the valley’s trees, an idea that had gained support when a massive and famous redwood called the Mother of the Forest was felled in 1851, sparking outrage across the country.
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