POL 313 Environmental Policy Notes 3
Politics of competence: Individuals in democracies believe that all citizens ought to have a voice
in governing, however we grant some individuals a powerful status to make decisions for us.
This is the reality of science in policy making. - There are a few but not many scientists in
Congress: Knowledge is power, but giving someone that knowledge and power is difficult to
verify: how can we be sure that what they are saying is accurate and trustworthy for use in
policymaking? Various logic guidelines: whether forms of reasoning triumph in which domain of
governing v. politics. People wish to disregard what they're saying if they have information that
we don't grasp. Politics: evidence is important, but so is charm, and presentation. Science:
presenting the obvious facts and the way things are done. - Scientists simply cannot provide
politicians and the general public with Duration, in addition to Stephen Hawking: Doubt
regarding future results; Extrapolation; Ex: Planet unable to sustain growing population and mass
consumption; did not account for all conservation measures; etc. Peak oil, Malthus, the Club of
Rome, and Look at how many times they've been proven wrong on each of these points:
Insufficient trust can be attributed to scientists' ignorance of the subject at hand and their
perception that nothing is renowned; Twist; the practice of exaggerating the positive aspects of
outcome; Rotational sensor; Research reactionary; someone who holds an opposing viewpoint to
that held by scientists. - Credibility in other fields – Journalists' Facts don't merely speak for
themselves; they must be presented so that individuals may see and comprehend both viewpoints
of any issue.
The significance of pure academics in formulating policies and the fact that there are always
several solutions to a given issue - Scientific assessment panels: IPCC: Scientists gather to
discuss the current level of knowledge for the globe and produce a study that policymakers may
use to determine what should be done next for the planet. They can make use of the guidance on
various policies, their effects, and advantages: job of an honest broker. American environmental
movement history: - Contemporary environmental movement: late 1960s to the present -
post-materialism: the idea that in the modern world, people's material wants are met because of
increased affluence, welfare states, and democracies - The majority of individuals do not worry
about where they will get their next meal because all of their needs have been addressed. -
Quality of life concerns: now that our existence is guaranteed, we can care about other things.
more significant in governance. - Populism: Now that people can contemplate topics other than
just survival, they are considering who they are and what they believe as individuals.
(conservationists) - Social Sustainability and ecologists have joined forces: minority of color and
where they live and work - Progressive ERa: ecology from 1890 to 1920 - The frontier stops
when a nation is neither explored nor populated, allowing for no further human expansion. -
Physical peak oil: asks the public this question. - Devastation of the buffalo 1914: migrant
pigeon; immigration
2 Ecological Motions: 1890–1920 Liberalism against Preservatism Maintaining items under their
original conditions means leaving them intact. The Public Lands Initiative began with the
establishment of Yosemite and Yellowstone in the 1890s. John Muir also launched the Sierra
Club. Conser: aware of the resource constraints, but wanting to provide for seeking additional;
conserving and limiting so they will be accessible for the near term. - Tragedy of the Commons:
involve the government, reserve resources for prudent use, and do not restrict usage in any way.
Establishing and exploiting trees as energy sources is an example of "WISE MANAGEMENT." -
Gifford Pinchot - Continued production - Teddy Roosevelt supported the Antiquities Act, yet it
was still permitted. Rich guys who can be used whatever they choose are the stereotype. The
subsequent several decades see a pause in environmentalism due to financial difficulties. 1930s:
New Deal During the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created labor
programs and offered jobs to men who couldn't find employment elsewhere. Permaculture
principles is the practice of promoting the use of uninhabited land in the midst of the nation for
agricultural purposes. They planted maize where the dirt had simply blown away, ripping out
plants with deep roots in the process. shoddy soil practices Battling Erosion: Dust Bowl-
Tennessee Valley Authority's first goal was not to safeguard the environment but rather to
stimulate the Tennessee Valley's economy. - Installed dams and brought jobs to the area, which
led to waterways and environmental expansions for water and enjoyment. - Moreover, for
responsible water and land use by local farmers.
Since the 1960s, there has been a contemporary ecological progression. Rachel Carson's book
Silent Spring, which was inspired by the idea that pesticides were killing birds and that
agricultural chemicals in general were harming the environment, predicted that the spring would
come without the sound of birds. - Credible scientists and writers who were environmentalists
The outcry against her as a woman scientist was severe. Kennedy took notice and formed the
presidential scientist activist group. PSAC: 1963 - DDT: First employed as an efficient mosquito
repellent, it accumulates in the environment and has negative effects on other creatures that eat
those animals as well as people who consume those animals. For birds, egg shells turn out to be
flimsy; the shells just shattered. reduced the higher order birds, particularly the eagle, which is
our national bird. - Megafauna with charisma: easier to persuade people to part with their cash if
they're adorable
Highway Beautification Act: 1965 was the first time a politician utilized her position of authority
to declutter billboards and roadways. - Established first lady, Nixon established the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970 by executive order after stories about air
pollution in cities and images of the Cuyahoga River catching fire three times were published in
the news. - Paul Ehrlich, The Population Bomb, 1968 The Earth can only support so much
population increase before it reaches its carrying capacity; thus, we require zero population
growth. Around the time of Earth Day in 1970, the electrified third rail became a political hot
topic in America. By the 1970s, everyone was aware that action needed to be taken. Legislation
from the 1970s: These were the most significant developments to environmental law since then.
BECAUSE TO THIRD RAIL ISSUES, I HAVEN'T EVEN SEEN THEM PASSED SINCE
THEN ll. pollo "Large Blue Marble" in a 1961 photo the Clean Water Acts Act on Endangered
Species Amendments for cleaner air RCRASuperfund (CERCLA) (CERCLA) Other significant
occasions - Notwithstanding the fact that no one perished in the Three Mile Island Disaster in
1979 when radioactive steam was spilled, it might have been far worse and resulted in China
Syndrome. What transpired in the 1980s following this period? 1981–1993: Reagan–Bush
administration It was attempted to be changed into a valence issue: shift it to hardly being there
because everyone is aware of the issue and the solution to this issue. - Counter movement to the
environmental movement to sustain profit. Ex: Outside of everything, valence electrons. -
Position issue: relocated to a location where the parties are at odds with views on issues
Republicans become more pro-business while Democrats become the party that is more
ecologically sound. - After consumerism: problems with quality of life: The United States is said
to be the most post-materialistic nation, lagging behind other nations in this regard.
Post-materialism hasn't taken hold as much in the United States as it has in other nations.
cuts to environmental program money - Caused Ragen to face backlash: - James Watt (Interior):
He was forced to defend his deregulation-related judgments in court after public lands were
opened up for mining and grazing. Watt was let go after making inappropriate comments. George
W. Bush, president pro-environment - Not as enticing as Ragen Recognized that seeming more
frugal was not a smart idea. Boston Harbor was a disaster; he used the environmental issue
against him when campaigning for president. - Clean Air Amendments of 1990, one of the few
changes enacted after the 1970s 1993 through 2001 was the Bill Clinton administration. -Al Gore
promoted the theory of global warming and that it was caused by people while he served as vice
president and as the candidate's running partner. - Captain Ozone: shows Bush's ineptitude on
environmental concerns by confusing the two who Comments for the Book Report: - Using a
honey stick and global warming two distinct strategies - Compare and contrast what interests you
more. - Make the connection between the course context and the book intriguing; this is not a
reaction. How did you integrate the lessons from the course with the book? - You don't need to
respond to these questions as they are stated explicitly. - You can reorder the questions if you'd
like; don't be robotic. Notes Subsequent: - BTUtax: excise tax: rapidly decreased - Split
government: only the first two years of the Democrats' control of the House allowed them to do
anything besides push for executive orders, which Clinton signed: The Kyoto Protocol: Congress
and the Senate would have opposed the accord even if it had been presented to them.
-Presidential orders to tackle climate change were issued at the last minute, and Bush quickly
revoked many of them. Except: Whose Bush Tried to overturn the decision to reduce the quantity
of arsenic in the water, but who is in favor of arsenic in drinking water? - Wilderness areas were
created and made completely unusable under the Antiquities Act.
