Getting to Green

1. The Green Movement's Bipartisan Roots and Recent Political Paralysis

On November 15, 1990, Republican president George H. W. Bush, with Environmental Protection Agency administrator William K. Reilly (who had been president of the World Wildlife Fund before taking the job) at his side, signed the Clean Air Act of 1990, which required that acid rain causing sulfur and nitrogen dioxide emissions be reduced by about 50 percent.

Bipartisan origins. The modern environmental movement in America began with strong bipartisan support. In the 1970s, landmark environmental legislation like the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act passed with overwhelming majorities from both parties. Republican presidents like Richard Nixon played crucial roles in establishing key environmental protections and agencies.

Recent paralysis. However, since the 1990s, environmental issues have become increasingly polarized along party lines. The "Great Estrangement" between conservatives and environmentalists has led to gridlock on major environmental policies. No significant federal environmental legislation has passed in over 25 years, despite growing ecological challenges.

Causes of paralysis:

• Rise of anti-regulatory ideology on the right
• Leftward drift of mainstream environmental groups
• Climate change emerging as a wedge issue
• Influence of fossil fuel interests in politics
• Decline in bipartisan cooperation in Congress overall

2. Market Fundamentalism: The Right's Antienvironmental Orthodoxy

The conservative's commitment to the market has much to teach about the appropriate nature of government intervention in environmental matters.

False dichotomy. Market fundamentalists on the right have promoted a false dichotomy between environmental protection and economic growth. This "jobs vs. environment" framing ignores evidence that environmental regulations often spur innovation and create new economic opportunities.

Regulatory antipathy. Conservative antipathy toward regulation has led to blanket opposition to environmental protections, rather than nuanced consideration of costs and benefits. This ignores the long conservative tradition of using government judiciously to correct market failures and protect public goods.

Property rights absolutism. An absolutist view of property rights has emerged on the right, opposing even modest land use regulations as government overreach. This overlooks the conservative principle that rights come with responsibilities, including stewardship of natural resources for future generations.

3. Anticapitalist Tendencies: The Left's Environmental Pitfall

Saving nature benefits all living things, including humanity, which depend on healthy biotic systems.

Growth skepticism. Many environmentalists remain skeptical of economic growth, seeing it as inherently destructive to nature. This alienates potential allies and ignores how prosperity can support conservation efforts.

Anticorporate bias. Some on the left view corporations as inherently destructive to the environment, rather than potential partners in sustainability. This overlooks successful corporate-environmental partnerships and the power of market incentives to drive positive change.

Technological pessimism. A strain of deep ecology in the movement is skeptical of technological solutions to environmental problems. This can lead to unrealistic calls for a return to preindustrial lifestyles, rather than embracing innovation as a key tool for sustainability.

4. Climate Change: The Ultimate Wedge Issue

The Green agenda is at a standstill. During the past twenty-­five years, not only have we failed to move any piece of landmark federal environmental legislation, but federal spending on environment and conservation shrank from about 4 percent of the nation's budget to less than 1 percent.

Political polarization. Climate change has become the most divisive environmental issue, with stark partisan differences in beliefs about its reality, causes, and solutions. This has made compromise nearly impossible on climate policy.

Policy failures. Despite scientific consensus on the urgency of action, efforts to pass comprehensive climate legislation have repeatedly failed in the U.S. The collapse of cap-and-trade legislation in 2010 was a particularly devastating setback.

Center Green approach:

• Acknowledge scientific consensus while admitting uncertainty about specific impacts
• Focus on achievable, incremental steps rather than comprehensive global solutions
• Emphasize climate resilience and adaptation alongside emissions reduction
• Highlight economic opportunities in clean energy and efficiency
• Use moral arguments about stewardship to appeal to conservatives

5. The Land Trust Movement: A Model for Bipartisan Conservation

The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which it must turn over to the next generation increased, and not impaired, in value.

Bipartisan success. The land trust movement has been uniquely successful in maintaining broad bipartisan support for conservation. It has protected millions of acres through voluntary, market-based tools like conservation easements.

Keys to success:

• Focus on local, tangible benefits of conservation
• Use of voluntary, market-based tools rather than regulation
• Appeal to diverse motivations (hunting, farming, scenery, etc.)
• Grassroots, community-based organizational structure
• Emphasis on stewardship and property rights

Lessons for broader movement. The land trust model demonstrates how environmental goals can be achieved through methods appealing to both conservatives and liberals. It shows the power of focusing on shared values and local connections to nature.

6. Center Green: A Pragmatic Approach to Environmental Policy

Center Green is a modest change in approach rooted in the way America is, not a utopian vision of what it could become. It is, above all, pragmatic and nonideological, where policy is measured not by whether it is the optimum solution, but by the two-part test of whether it would make a meaningful contribution to an environmental problem and whether it is achievable politically.

Pragmatic focus. Center Green seeks achievable environmental progress rather than ideological purity. It prioritizes policies that can gain bipartisan support and make meaningful improvements, even if not comprehensive solutions.

Key principles:

• Use market-based tools where possible, but accept regulation when necessary
• Embrace technological innovation as part of the solution
• Focus on local and state-level action when federal gridlock persists
• Highlight economic opportunities in environmental protection
• Use moral arguments about stewardship to appeal across ideological lines
• Accept incremental progress rather than demanding perfection

Examples:

• Support natural gas as a bridge fuel to reduce coal use
• Focus on improving rather than banning fracking
• Emphasize climate resilience alongside emissions reduction

7. Reconnecting Conservatives with Conservation: A Moral Imperative

The principled conservative has an obligation to prudently husband all of a society's resources: the civic capital that consists of the society's institutions and laws, the national wealth and productive capacity that is its economic capital, and its natural resources.

Conservative roots. Conservation has deep roots in conservative thought, from Edmund Burke to Theodore Roosevelt. It aligns with core conservative principles like stewardship, responsibility to future generations, and prudent management of resources.

Moral framing. Appealing to conservative moral values can help reconnect the right with environmentalism:

• Stewardship and responsibility
• Prudence and caution in the face of uncertainty
• Patriotism and love of America's natural heritage
• Virtues like temperance and self-restraint

Political opportunity. Embracing conservation could help Republicans appeal to moderates and independents, particularly younger voters concerned about environmental issues. It offers a way to update conservatism for the 21st century.

8. Reforming the Green Movement: A Decalogue for Progress

Center Green declines to deploy "sustainability" as some sort of quasi-scientific imperative that trumps normal debates about policy.

Honesty and humility. Environmental groups must be more transparent about uncertainties and avoid exaggeration. Admitting the complexity of issues builds credibility.

Positive vision. Instead of focusing solely on dire warnings, paint an inspiring picture of a sustainable future. Show how environmental protection enhances quality of life.

Embrace compromise. Be willing to accept incremental progress and work with diverse allies, including businesses when appropriate.

Economic realism. Accept the necessity of economic growth and work to make it sustainable rather than opposing growth outright.

Broaden the base. Diversify membership and leadership to better reflect America's demographics. Embrace urban environmental issues alongside wilderness preservation.

Political engagement. Build grassroots political power through local organizing and coalition-building. Develop more sophisticated lobbying and electoral strategies.

Key reforms:

1. Tell the truth, admit uncertainty, and be humble
2. Be hopeful and articulate a positive vision
3. Accept compromise and incremental progress
4. Accept the imperative of growth
5. Accept capitalism
6. Recognize that business is not always the enemy
7. Make moral arguments for conservation
8. Avoid mission creep
9. Connect and mobilize at the grassroots level
10. Embrace cities as part of the environmental agenda

Last updated: November 19, 2024