115 



SUMMARY AND BECOMMENDATtONS 



envimnmental policies in the context of other consitUratiom, particularij 

 economic The office should also work to identify ways in which the activities 

 of all federal departments and agencies can be directed toward sustainahle 

 development and risk-reduction objectives. 



The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) was established by 

 the National Environmental Pblicy Aa in 1969. Shoitly afterward, the White 

 House Office of Environmental Quality (OEQ) was established by the En- 

 vironmental Quality Improvement Act of 1970. CEQ has always been the 

 dominant organizational entity. However, over the past four years, CEQ has 

 operated not as a council, but as an office administered by a rhQJrman who 

 also serves as the director of OEQ We believe that the activities of CEQ 

 should be integrated into the Office of Environmental Quality. We consid- 

 ered other organizational mechanisms to provide a fixal point for environ- 

 mental policymaking in the White House. Building on the existing OEQ 

 rather than establishing an entirely new entity is, in our view, the most efficient 

 approach. 



We believe that OEQ's mission should be expanded and that it should 

 be administered by a direcror who serves simultaneously as the Assistant 

 to the President for the Environment. In this capacity the dircnor should 

 lead eSbrts in the White House to develop environmental policy options, 

 presenting proposals to the President and the Cabinet for their consider- 

 ation. The direaor should also be responsible for looking across all dcpan- 

 ments and agencies and identifying ways in which federal activities can be 

 dircaed toward the environmental objectives of the President. 



As discussed in an earlier Commission report, actions should be 

 taken "to assure the stable and sustained functioning of a high-level mech- 

 anism concerned with linking environment, energy, and the economy."" 

 OEQ should work with OSTP to idendiy major R&D needs, ro promote 

 the improvement of risk assessment and risk management procedures, and 

 to coordinate m^or R&D initiatives. In addidon, OEQ should work closely 

 with the Office of Management and Budget in guiding the budget prt>ccss 

 with respect to environmental programs. 



■ An Institute for Envi ro nme ntal Assessment (lEA) should be established 

 to evaluate global and national environmental problems artd to develop 

 alternative approaches to them. The federal government currently lacks a 

 critical mass of individuals who can assess the infotmanon resulting from 

 our natural science research effi)rTS in the context of cuircnt economic social, 

 and polirical considerations. We recommend the establishment of an Insri- 

 tute for Environmental Assessment dedicated to the evaluarion of global 

 and narional envirormiental problems, the analysis of research and moni- 

 toring data pcnaining to them, the assessment of emerging environmental 



