By Laurie Johnson. Posted on the Natural Resources Defense Council's Switchboard blog. September 13, 2010.
With stalled clean energy legislation in DC, opponents of environmental protection have shifted their focus away from pro-active legislation toward dismantling existing environmental protection laws. Against the Supreme Court’s mandate, industry-funded politicians and the lobbyists that support them (e.g. National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)) are trying to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from doing its job: requiring polluters to reduce global warming pollution. Predictably, they are making the same argument they’ve always made—one that’s never come true: “Protecting the environment will destroy jobs; it will be impossible for firms to meet any new requirements and stay in business at the same time.”
By Laurie Johnson. Posted on the Natural Resources Defense Council's Switchboard blog. June 18, 2009.
Over three decades of experience with environmental regulation show that investments in environmental protection, coupled with GDP growth, led to an increase in jobs that were orders of magnitude larger than any job losses caused by environmental requirements. The dire job loss predictions by industry simply never came to pass. Instead, tens of thousands of new jobs were created every year, much more than the job reductions per year that various government agencies and academic analyses found after the fact, in only a few sectors.[1] We detail the data further below.
Wind the tape back to before environmental regulations were passed, and we see that the opponents of the day, just like today's climate obstructionists, made dire job loss forecasts. They never came true.
By Peter Dreier and Donald Cohen. Posted on Huffington Post. May 11, 2009.
In its first 100 days, the Obama administration did more to address global warming and the environmental crisis than the Bush administration did in eight years.
Republicans Can't Name A Single "Job Killer" Regulation
By James Lardner. Posted on ReMapping Debate. January 25, 2011.
"Job-killing regulations? Opponents fail to support claims with evidence" investigates the right-wing’s persistent use of “job killer” rhetoric to describe anything they don’t like.
Read MoreProtecting the Clean Air Act: Getting the Jobs and Investment Story Right
By Laurie Johnson. Posted on the Natural Resources Defense Council's Switchboard blog. September 13, 2010.
With stalled clean energy legislation in DC, opponents of environmental protection have shifted their focus away from pro-active legislation toward dismantling existing environmental protection laws. Against the Supreme Court’s mandate, industry-funded politicians and the lobbyists that support them (e.g. National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)) are trying to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from doing its job: requiring polluters to reduce global warming pollution. Predictably, they are making the same argument they’ve always made—one that’s never come true: “Protecting the environment will destroy jobs; it will be impossible for firms to meet any new requirements and stay in business at the same time.”
Read MoreThe Historical Record of Job Growth and Environmental Protection: A Convenient Truth for Climate Legislation
By Laurie Johnson. Posted on the Natural Resources Defense Council's Switchboard blog. June 18, 2009.
Over three decades of experience with environmental regulation show that investments in environmental protection, coupled with GDP growth, led to an increase in jobs that were orders of magnitude larger than any job losses caused by environmental requirements. The dire job loss predictions by industry simply never came to pass. Instead, tens of thousands of new jobs were created every year, much more than the job reductions per year that various government agencies and academic analyses found after the fact, in only a few sectors.[1] We detail the data further below.
Read MoreWind the tape back to before environmental regulations were passed, and we see that the opponents of the day, just like today's climate obstructionists, made dire job loss forecasts. They never came true.
Crying Wolf Again: Big Business Gearing up for a Fight Against Obama’s Environmental Program
By Peter Dreier and Donald Cohen. Posted on Huffington Post. May 11, 2009.
In its first 100 days, the Obama administration did more to address global warming and the environmental crisis than the Bush administration did in eight years.
Read More