252 



Prepared Statement of Jay D. Hair 



Good Morning, Mr. Chairman. I am grateful for the opportunity to testify before 

 you today to urge that S. 171 be passed in this Congress to place the Environmental 

 Protection Agency in the Cabinet. Elevation of EPA to Cabinet level is long overdue. 

 It is time to formally acknowledge that environmental protection is as vital to our 

 nation as defense, commerce, veterans affairs, and education. 



You, Mr. Chairman are to be applauded for once again taking the lead on this 

 vital issue. You have shown unflagging commitment to EPA elevation through the 

 difficulties and disappointments of the last two sessions of Congress. Let's hoi>e that 

 by Earth Day, April 22nd, your efforts will have finally come to fruition. 



Before I begin, it might be helpful for the Committee to have some background 

 about the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and its work. The Federation is the 

 Nation's largest conservation education organization. Founded in 1936, the Federa- 

 tion, its 5.3 million members and supporters, and its affiliated state organizations 

 work to educate and empower individuals and organizations to conserve natural re- 

 sources, protect the environment and build a globally sustainable future environ- 

 ment for our children. 



I will address, briefly, three broad and compelling reasons for elevating EPA to 

 cabinet level. 



First, the protection of the Nation's environment is critical to the quality of life of 

 every U.S. citizen and to the country's economic vitality. Therefore, environmental 

 concerns must be central in the deliberations of the Nation's highest policy making 

 forum — the Cabinet. 



The Environmental Protection Agency touches the lives of every citizen and is a 

 factor in business and governmental decisions across a wide range of issues. The 

 Agency administers laws which require it to gauge the risks to human hesdth from 

 chemicals and pollutants; it must ascertain and publish the fuel economy of automo- 

 biles; it must monitor the quality of air and water and make sure it meets predeter- 

 mined standards; it influences industries ranging from public utilities to cattle feed- 

 lots. 



The time has come to give EPA a place at the Cabinet table, where its leader can 

 be a part of deliberations which bear upon the spending of billions of dollars and 

 influence the destiny of citizens. This nation must have a Department of the Envi- 

 ronment which has the authority to address long-festering problems of air and 

 water pollution, wetlands loss, pesticide hazards, and toxic waste cleanups. More- 

 over, we need a Secretary of the Environment who can negotiate, at equal rank, 

 with the Secretaries of Energy and Defense over the clean up of nuclear and other 

 hazardous wastes that are products of their Departments' activities. 



Second, protecting the environment and conserving natural resources is a global 

 issue, requiring strong, aggressive U.S. leadership. 



From global warming to ozone depletion, it is apparent that the environment 

 must be confronted as a global as well as a national issue. It is time for the Nation's 

 primary environmental institution to be accorded a priority position commensurate 

 with the challenges that it faces. 



Unprecedented cooperation among nations will be needed to tackle transboundary 

 environmental problems. In its current status, EPA is unable to directly negotiate 

 on issues like global warming and ozone depletion because international protocol re- 

 serves that authority to Cabinet-level officials. There is no better illustration of this 

 point than the position of U.S. officials at last June's Earth Summit in Rio. Negotia- 

 tions on global environmental issues on behalf of the United States were led by the 

 State Department while EPA officials were relegated to a supporting role. It is as- 

 tonishing that the United States is one of the few nations that does not have a cabi- 

 net-level ministry or department for the environment. 



Passage of legislation that would create a U.S. Department of the Environment 

 would demonstrate our commitment, at the highest level of our government, to join 

 with other nations in tackling global environmental problems. 



Finally, I want to touch on a thread that weaves through my other two points: 

 The need, both in this country and abroad, to make environmental protection the 

 centerpiece of economic growth. 



One of the major challenges of this decade will be to incorporate environmental 

 stewardship into our way of doing business. In contrast to the theme of the Reagan- 

 Bush years that the Nation must choose economic growth or environmental protec- 

 tion, it is becoming increasingly clear that environmental protection is critical to 

 economic competitiveness. Economies resting on a dwindling, deteriorating resource 

 base are doomed to stagnation and failure. 



