Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2024
Abstract
This is a profound moment for environmental protection efforts in our country. Over the past half-century, under presidents of both parties, we have made great progress addressing the challenges that led to the enactment of our environmental laws during the 1970s. Our air is cleaner, our rivers and streams are healthier, and we have far fewer hazardous waste sites. We have achieved those successes because of conscientious companies across America who meet their environmental obligations and the vigilance of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Justice Department when companies break the law and put their profits before the health of our communities.
Despite those successes, we face numerous challenges, starting with the existential threat of climate disruption, the scourge of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination, and the reality that, for too long, the worst effects of pollution have been visited upon overburdened communities. The steps we take today to address these 21st century environmental challenges will shape our legacy—and will determine whether we provide a sustainable future for our children and our grandchildren.
Environmental protection should not be partisan. A changing climate, with searing heat, wildfires, worsening storms, and increasing drought does not care whether we are conservatives or progressives, Republicans or Democrats. The obligation to protect military families and farming communities from PFAS contamination likewise should not be a partisan issue.
Recommended Citation
Uhlmann, David. "21st-Century Environmental Challenges and Revitalizing EPA Enforcement." Trends 55, no. 3 (2024): 1-7.
Included in
Energy and Utilities Law Commons, Environmental Law Commons, Natural Resources Law Commons
Comments
Published in Trends January/February 2024, Vol. 55, No. 3, © 2024 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or downloaded or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association.