Karen Telleen-Lawton, Noozhawk Columnist (read original in Noozhawk here)
Jimmy Carter famously installed solar panels on the White House in 1979. (His successor removed them.) With the passing of our 39th president on Dec. 29 at age 100, a whirlwind tour of the achievements of the top environmental presidents may be energizing.
We could begin with Abraham Lincoln (in office 1861-65). Mark Fiege, a leading environmental historian from Colorado State University, believes Lincoln would have been considered an environmentalist if the term had existed.
Fiege reports that Lincoln believed the betterment and improvement of the natural world would ultimately lead to the betterment and improvement of man.
Teddy Roosevelt (in office 1901-09) is considered the conservation president. In addition to launching five parks and the first 18 national monuments, he established the U.S. Forest Service to reduce logging and mining on federal lands.
Roosevelt created more than 100 wildlife refuges and bird preserves. He was also responsible for the crucial Antiquities Act, providing the basis for future presidents to safeguard important sites from destruction and looting.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (in office 1933-45) created the Civilian Conservation Corps. Over nearly a decade of the Great Depression, the CCC employed 3 million men to plant trees, revegetate and control erosion on farmland, and build campgrounds and trails.
Locally, the CCC built La Purísima Mission State Historic Park, considered one of their most impressive California projects.
Lyndon Johnson’s (in office 1963-69) environmental achievements were colossal. He created the Wilderness Act (1964), the Land and Water Conservation Act (1965), and the Endangered Species Act (1966).
Under Johnson’s tenure, 50 national parks were created or enlarged; he established the National Trails System in 1968.
First Lady Lady Bird Johnson was instrumental in advocating for many of these. She also initiated the Beautification Project, saying, “Where flowers bloom, so does hope – and hope is the precious, indispensable ingredient.”
The first government agency whose charge was to protect and health of Americans and the environment was launched by Richard M. Nixon (in office 1933-45 1969-74).
The Environmental Protection Agency dates from 1970, as does the Clean Air Act. These rich accomplishments were followed in 1972 and 1973 with the Clean Water Act, pesticide legislation, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
Carter’s (in office 1977-81) White House solar panels symbolized his desire to promote renewable energy. He established the Department of Energy in 1977 to support research and development in alternative, non-fossil fuels.
Carter signed acts dealing with coal mining in national parks, soil and water conservation, and wilderness protection.
Californians appreciate Bill Clinton (in office 1993-2001) for the California Desert Protection Act, which upgraded Death Valley and Joshua Tree to national parks.
Clinton established Utah’s gargantuan Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and effected 100 national wilderness areas, monuments, preserves, and heritage areas. He also established the Roadless Rule protecting some national forest lands.
Barack Obama (in office 2009-17) was the first president to recognize the threat of climate disruption. His Clean Power Plan was instrumental in reaching the Paris climate agreement of 2015.
Obama used the Antiquities Act to great effect for national monuments. His America’s Great Outdoors Initiative promoted community-based recreation and conservation, especially for under-represented populations.
Joe Biden (in office 2021-25) signed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, a massive climate stimulus which incentivizes clean and green energy projects. He also introduced a methane fee and approved legislation to reduce hydrofluorocarbon.
Biden has created more national monuments in a single term than anyone since Carter, according to NPR. Last Thursday, President Biden established the Chuckwall and Sattitla National Monuments.
It’s worth contemplating where we might have been if these protections were never instituted or further weakened by successors.
Although the incoming president undertook at least 74 actions to weaken environmental protections in his first term, Donald Trump (in office 2016-20) also signed the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act.
Some believe Trump’s administration could pose a risk for current and future national monuments or even challenge the century-old Antiquities Act itself. Alternatively, he could embrace his iconoclastic tendencies for the good, building an environmental legacy that will serve Americans’ competitive advantage far into the future.
Of the top presidents supporting the environment, one third (including Lincoln) were Republicans. Might Trump have the mettle of a true maverick?
Karen Telleen-Lawton, Noozhawk Columnist
Karen Telleen-Lawton is an eco-writer, sharing information and insights about economics and ecology, finances and the environment. Having recently retired from financial planning and advising, she spends more time exploring the outdoors — and reading and writing about it. The opinions expressed are her own.
