8 



ombudsman office, give it legal status, and move it right under the 

 Secretary of EPA to stress the importance of that program. 



Finally, and I suppose this could fall easily under that commis- 

 sion to study environmental laws, I am impressed by the recom- 

 mendation of the National Commission on the Environment, which 

 was a distinguished bipartisan group headed by the former EPA 

 Administrator, Russell Train, which called on the department in 

 its new status to formulate a national environmental strategy, a 

 way to bolster the process of stating what our goals are here, inte- 

 grating the various departments of our Government in those goals, 

 and in having a standard by which we can measure our progress or 

 lack of progress. 



So I think we have an extraordinary opportunity here not just to 

 create the form that mirrors the substance, but to give it additional 

 substance which will put our country at the forefront of environ- 

 mental protection and economic development. I hope we do not lose 

 the opportunity to do that. 



Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



Prepared Statement of Senator Lieberman 



Mr. Chairman, members of the Committee, we urgently need to place the environ- 

 ment at the center of the Nation's agenda. I believe the Department of the Environ- 

 ment Act will help us do that. I am pleased to join as an original co-sponsor of the 

 bill, and I thank the Chairman for his continued leadership on the Bill. 



The fundamentgd reason for creating such a department is that the environment 

 has become a strategic issue that demands a coordinated response at the highest 

 level of government. As Vice President Al Gore and others have compellingly 

 argued, at stake are not only the health of this nation's lakes, rivers, forests, and 

 wetlands, and the quality of life for our citizens, but the ecological integrity of the 

 planet. Problems like global warming and the loss of biodiversity have brought the 

 environment to the top of the international agenda. Domestically, a variety of local 

 and regional problems, including urban ozone and unacceptable lead levels in chil- 

 dren, persist in threatening our environment and our health. These problems are 

 not simple. Solving them will require political leadership and clear plems of action. 



These plans must integrate environmental protection objectives with other nation- 

 al objectives. Environmental protection is inexorably linked with the economy. Over 

 the long term, a healthy economy depends on a productive workforce and a healthy 

 environment. Environmental regulation has returned major economic benefits 

 through, for example, reducing health care costs, and has spurred a strong domestic 

 pollution control industry. 



The strategic challenge we now face is to pursue policies that promote both eco- 

 nomic development and environmental protection. To accomplish this, the new De- 

 partment will need to employ an array of new policy tools that complement the tra- 

 ditional command and control environmental regulatory scheme. For example, the 

 Department must further pollution prevention, and strengthen the economic incen- 

 tives for reducing pollution. It should also assume a new role in promoting the de- 

 velopment and widespread use of environmentally clean technologies. 



The new Department will also need to work effectively with other parts of the 

 Federal Government. Policies of other departments rarely have environmental pro- 

 tection as a primary goal, but often have an important effect on the quality of our 

 land, sea, and air. "Transportation and energy policy, for example, will be central to 

 any strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Agricultural policy will contin- 

 ue to have a far reaching effect on water quality. In recent years EPA has made 

 strides in working with other Federal institutions to address environmental con- 

 cerns, but it has only cracked the tip of the iceberg. Elevating EPA to a Cabinet 

 department will foster critical pwlicy integration. 



Hence, the EPA has before it the challenges of shaping policies that benefit both 

 the environment and the economy, and of moving environmental considerations into 

 the forefront of policy decisions throughout the U.S. government. The Cabinet bill 

 can help jump-stsul this effort. But the bill could be strengthened in this regard. I 

 am considering three amendments ail of which seek to improve both the competi- 

 tiveness of U.S. industry and further environmental protection. 



