In Search of a New Environmentalism — Hayward Replies

Last month, over at Law & Liberty, Steven Hayward initiated a conversation on the need for a “new environmentalism” and what it should look like. To close out the conversation, Hayward has responded to comments on his initial essay offered by Richard Morrison, Allan C. Carlson, and yours truly.

Hayward’s whole responsive essay is worth a read, but I though I would highlight the portion that responds to my comments (and not just because it is flattering).

Jonathan Adler’s contribution makes some of my arguments better than I do, which is no surprise, since I have two rules about anything Adler writes in this domain: 1) Never disagree or argue with Adler; 2) If you disagree with Adler, see Rule Number 1. There is one aspect of his reflections I want to amplify—the political malpractice of most conservatives and Republicans on environmental policy. He does not put it quite that bluntly, but I will. Back in 1970, National Review editorialized that “it would be political suicide to concede [the environment] to the Left.” Allowing the environment to become a near-monopoly of the left hasn’t quite been suicidal for conservatism, but it has been bad for … the environment.

Here, the nub of the problem is a non-sequitur unique to conservatives. It has become the default position to reason that because we dislike costly and centralized bureaucracy, environmental problems must therefore be phony, or even a “hoax.” To be sure, many environmental problems have been overestimated or deliberately exaggerated, from acid rain, deforestation, soil erosion, resource depletion, bee colony collapse, various toxic threats, the population bomb, etc., but that does not mean they are phony or insignificant. And the environmental policy record of most Republican Administrations is quite good, only Republicans seem not to know this or how to talk about it (or usually both). The environment for Republicans is like national defense for Democrats—an issue they don’t like, study, or make a policy priority.

As Hayward notes, there are occasional signs that some within the Republican Party recognize this problem, but there has yet been no sustained effort to provide a meaningful (let alone principled) alternative approach to environmental protection, and this a problem.env