White House Whitewash

In a first-of-its-kind environmental survey released today, the U.S. EPA said that the nation's air, water, and land are cleaner and better protected than they were 30 years ago, though sprawl and air quality, among other problems, continue to pose challenges for the nation. But the survey's credibility was compromised by reports last week that the White House heavily edited the document, deleting information that pointed to climate change as a significant problem. The report also makes no mention of potential harm to humans and wildlife from pesticides and industrial chemicals, and it contains little data on environmental health risks that are especially threatening to children. Environmentalists, unsurprisingly, were skeptical of the report. "None of the improvements catalogued here reflect actions taken by this administration," said Greg Wetstone of the Natural Resources Defense Council. "The report can be the baseline we use to measure the dramatic increases in air and water pollution, global warming, and ozone depletion as a result of the Bush policies."