The 2004 presidential candidates barely discussed the environment. Energy and ecological issues stalled in the 108th Congress. But this Congress promises action; and President Bush apparently intends to push his ecological and energy initiatives this year.

Within a few days after the election, Administration and congressional officials were claiming a mandate on opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for drilling; increasing oil and gas drilling on other public lands; reconsidering landmark environmental legislation like the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act. With the war in Iraq, and the President's plans to not only make the tax cuts permanent but also cut the record deficit in half, funding for environmental protection could be reduced. 

Energy Bill

Senator Domenici (R-NM) will again chair the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He will reintroduce his comprehensive energy bill, which has stalled for two years. With a bigger Republican majority, more of the bill is likely to pass the Senate; it could be broken into smaller pieces to improve its likelihood of passage. The bill calls for drilling in ANWR and many other western and coastal areas, as well as giving billions of dollars of tax breaks to oil, coal, gas, and nuclear companies; along with some support for renewable energy and authorization for the President's hydrogen fuel cell initiative.

House Majority Leader DeLay (R-TX) insisted that the bill include a liability waiver for the makers of gasoline additive methyl tertiary butyl ether. (MTBE is a groundwater pollutant.) Many of its manufacturers are located in Texas. Many Senate Democrats and some Republicans have feared that taxpayers would end up paying for a major MTBE cleanup. 

(Opponents of ANWR drilling and the liability exemption for MTBE doomed the energy bill last Congress.  Without a waiver for MTBE, southern conservatives did not support it, and Democrats and moderate Republicans had enough votes to filibuster the bill if ANWR was included. Only a few of the tax provisions in the bill passed, as part of the corporate tax measure passed through other committees.)

Senate Republicans expect this passage to be easier, since most of the southern Democrats who left the Senate opposed drilling in the Arctic, and have been replaced by Republicans who favor drilling. 

One new Senator, Ken Salazar (D-CO), could be a key vote on energy and the environment, for he won a seat on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Sens. Domenici and Salazar have their work cut out for them. If an energy bill is passed it may be because moderates in both parties believe that something needs to be passed.

The debate over drilling for oil in ANWR is a key symbolic issue. For many Republicans it symbolizes energy independence. For many Democrats, ANWR is and represents the most vulnerable wild lands in the U.S. President Bush and Senate Republicans have announced that they will use the FY06 budget process to try again to open it to oil and gas drilling. The Democrats will use every means and measure to block them.  

Clean Air

The President's Clear Skies initiative has languished for three years. A bigger Republican majority in both chambers may breathe new life into it. The White House and congressional Republicans have announced their intention to re-introduce it early in the Congress.

Clean air is considered by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Its chair, Sen. Inhofe, (R-OK) went to the Senate floor on Jan. 5, 2004 to ridicule scientists who argue that global warming is occurring. Inhofe wants to push Clear Skies, which would roll back clean air legislation and allow more sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide(s), and mercury pollution.

On mercury pollution: current law would cut mercury emissions from power plants 90 percent by 2008; the President's plan would extend the timeline 20 years, with only a 70 percent cut. The Clear Skies plan does not reduce pollution from methane and carbon dioxide - the major contributors to global warming. Bipartisan legislation to curb power plant pollution, including CO2, is expected to be offered as an alternative to Clear Skies.

Last Congress, Sen. McCain (R-AZ) chaired the Commerce Committee, where he developed the McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship Act and was able to conduct hearings on climate change. His bill-to curb the gases that cause global warming-was defeated 55-43. The defeat was a 'victory' in that it showed an increasing number of Senators who favor climate control measures. Industry sources had expected the bill to get only 30 votes. Without Sen. McCain chairing Commerce, it is unlikely that his Act will come to a vote, for House and Senate Republican leaders and the White House oppose action on climate change. 

Clean Water

The Clean Water Act is also under threat. According to a study by the U.S. PIRG, the EPA failed to take action against widespread violations of the Clean Water Act by plants and factories across the nation. More than 60 percent of all major facilities in the country exceeded their Clean Water Act permit limits on discharges into waterways at least once between Jan. 1, 2002, and June 30, 2003.

Cuts in funding hurt EPA's enforcement ability, and may result in less enforcement of the Clean Water Act. Mr. Bush proposed an EPA budget $575 million below the FY 2004 appropriation, to $7.789 billion, and the House bill lopped off $36 million. The Senate bill contained $8.5 billion. The conference report brought EPA funding up to $8.08 billion, $277 million below the FY 2004 enacted level, and $329 million above the budget request. Much of the money above the President's request funded hun- dreds of select projects in Members' states and districts. The Clean Water State Revolving Fund received $1.1 billion, compared to $850 million requested and in the House bill, and $1.35 billion in the Senate version.

The EPA will issue new guidelines to make it easier for sewage treatment authorities to dump partially treated wastewater during heavy rainfalls. Currently, partially treated wastewater can be dumped into storm drains during hurricanes and other times when there is no alternative. Joan Rose, a water pollution microbiologist, said that the EPA ignores the fact that wastewater can spread disease through unhealthy parasites and viruses.1 These pathogens are not covered by the current Clean Water Act. 

Endangered Species Act

The Endangered Species Act has been called the modern Noah's Ark. Since President Nixon signed it in 1973, more than 1,200 plant and animal species have been listed as endangered, but only 17 have been taken off the list due to recovering numbers. An effort in 1994, by then Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, to radically overhaul the Act failed in part due to the active involvement of the religious community. Since 1994, efforts to change the Act have been more piecemeal than efforts to jettison it entirely. Still, these smaller efforts to change the Act could be devastating.

Rep. Pombo (R-CA) chairs the House Resources Committee, where the Endangered Species Act will be considered in the House. Pombo has long wanted to change the Act to make it more difficult for the Fish and Wildlife Service to protect land from development as a means of saving endangered species. In July 2004, Pombo's committee passed legislation to make it harder to set aside land to protect endangered species, but the bill was never voted on by the full House. Pombo is expected to push the same bill.  His proposals could make it harder to repopulate endangered species.  

Appointments

Congress will see battles in the Senate over the new head of the EPA, and which new judges will interpret environmental laws. In December, President Bush nominated EPA Administrator Leavitt for a cabinet position as Secretary of Health and Human Services. His successor at the EPA has not yet been named, but the Senate will go through its third confirmation of a Bush Administration EPA chief. 

Oceans

U.S. policy on oceans received considerable attention last Congress. Two commissions produced reports calling for a major overhaul in the way the federal government manages the oceans. On December 17th, President Bush ordered the formation of a Committee on Ocean Policy to coordinate actions by federal agencies. The recent tsunami in the Indian Ocean will likely prompt pressure for congressional action to make sure that federal agencies coordinate their work. The Administration faces continued opposition from conservatives in the Senate in its effort to finally get the Law of the Sea III treaty ratified. Sacred Oceans & Seas will be the theme of this year's Earth Day Sunday, April 24. Download resources for your congregation. 

Change in the Political Climate?

Environmental issues may not have been central to the 2004 presidential campaign, but industry representatives and environmental groups expect them to be key in the 109th Congress. Conservative members of Congress will be working to roll back environmental laws. Pro-environment members will be working to stop the rollback. The religious community will be working to help all Members of Congress understand that caring for God's creation is a moral issue and a calling for all people.