243 



Sustainable development is predicated on the recognition that eco- 

 nomic and environmental goals are inextricably linked. I.ong-tcrm 

 growth depends on a sound environment, and resources to protect the 

 environment will come from economic strength. Both goals — that is. 

 environmental and economic health — are intended to improve the 

 quality of life of individuals, communities, and society. To the extent 

 that either environmental or economic policy impoverishes the quality 

 of life, it has failed. 



The choice between crisis and sustainable development is one that 

 our nation shares with the rest of the world. It must be addressed 

 through international cooperation and by U.S. commitment to action 

 at home and leadership abroad. As the world's single largest economy, 

 the largest user of natural resources, the largest producer and consumer 

 of energy, and the largest producer of carbon dioxide pollution, the 

 United States has a special responsibility to exercise world leadership. 

 Indeed, a commitment to such leadership is essential. The complexity 

 and scope of current environmental challenges demand the ingenuity, 

 expertise, and technology for which the United States is famous. 



Over the past 20 years, an impressive array of federal, state, and 

 local pollution control and resource management programs, both pub- 

 lic and private, have been instituted in the United States. Total U.S. 

 expenditures on environmental protection now average more than 2 

 percent of the gross national product annually. The United States has 

 had the foresight to adopt stringent environmental laws and regula- 

 tions and to make sizable economic investments in pollution control 

 and energy efficiency. As a result, our nation has not had to contend 

 with landscapes as blighted, air and water as polluted, soils as poisoned, 

 or public health as ravaged as in Central and Eastern Europe. The mea- 

 surable environmental progress made by the United States should be a 

 source of national pride. 



Still, our country's environmental achievements should not lull 

 Americans into complacency. Despite numerous victories, the United 

 States is losing many battles: 



* Global environmental probUms to which the United States makes 

 no small contribution — loss of biodiversity, climate change, and 

 stratospheric ozone depletion, for instance — are placing both 

 human and natural systems at grave risk. 



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