by Warigia Bowman, Professor of Law, University of New Mexico School of Law

The environmental policy proposals of the Republican and Democratic parties stand in stark contrast. One way to evaluate each party’s position is to look at their platforms. These platforms are carefully crafted by party leaders, then voted on quadrennially at their national conventions by delegates from all over the country.

The Democratic Platform weighs in at 92 pages. By contrast, the Republican Platform is 28 pages long. The Republican Platform is replete with over-capitalization in nearly every sentence. Several sentences lack a subject and a verb. This stylistic approach is sure to shock the most experienced of K–12 teachers. The preamble of the Democratic Party’s Platform begins with a touching acknowledgement of the indigenous lands on which the Democratic National Convention was being held. The preamble of the Republican Platform promises to “DRILL, BABY, DRILL,” to make the US “Energy Independent and even Dominant again,” confirming that oil and gas concerns are powerful players among GOP stakeholders.

The environment barely rates a mention in the Republican platform. Two of twenty COMPLETELY CAPITALIZED propositions refer to environmental issues. These include platform positions four and fifteen. Platform item four states MAKE AMERICA THE DOMINANT ENERGY PRODUCER IN THE WORLD, BY FAR! Platform item fifteen reads: CANCEL THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE MANDATE AND CUT COSTLY AND BURDENSOME REGULATIONS. The Republican Platform goes on to recommend “lifting restrictions on American Energy Production and terminating the Socialist Green New Deal.” Never mind that the Green New Deal is not socialist and has not been passed.

The GOP’s platform speaks in code about the environment. Where it describes plans to cut “costly and burdensome regulations,” and reinstate President Trump’s deregulation policies, this is code for rolling back environmental protections that keep America’s water, air, and land safe and healthy. The GOP platform also advocates streamlining the permitting process. This is code for eliminating oversight by the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers which help prevent pollutants from entering the environment. Further, the permitting process is highly regulatory; it will be time consuming to roll back some of these protections. The platform also promises to “end market-distorting regulations on oil, gas and coal.” This language essentially means reducing environmental regulations that protect Americans from the pollution resulting from fossil fuel production. Ironically, many argue that fossil fuels are seriously under-regulated. From an environmental standpoint, further reducing regulations would be catastrophic.

As might be expected, the Democratic platform highlights several strong environmental positions. In the preamble, the Democratic platform emphasizes the party’s commitment to “fighting climate change, reducing pollution, and fueling a clean energy boom.” The platform’s preamble mentions the climate crisis again in its last paragraph, emphasizing that climate issues are key for the party. The platform devotes an entire chapter to environmental issues, including clean energy, pollution reduction, environmental justice, climate change reduction, and conservation.

Energy is the area that presents the starkest contrast in the platforms. While the GOP focuses on increased support for fossil fuels, the Democratic party focuses on clean energy.

The Democratic platform lays out some of the ways that Trump’s presidency weakened the EPA, increased pollution, and gutted environmental regulations. Biden and Harris can point to significant environmental victories, including significant investments in clean energy, including in clean energy jobs, and tax rebates through the Inflation Reduction Act designed to improve the energy efficiency of American homes. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law represents another success. The Democratic Platform’s emphasis on environmental justice is an innovative approach aimed at reducing inequity, and paying attention to marginalized communities, which are disproportionately affected by legacy pollution. Democrats also indicate a commitment to conservation, protecting national parks, reducing oil and gas drilling in environmentally sensitive areas, and protecting rivers and wetlands.
The Democratic party platform presents a nuanced, detailed, and thoughtful approach to the environmental problems facing the United States, and the globe. If you care about the environment, the Democratic party is the party most committed to systematic change and progress in this area, while still creating jobs, and protecting communities.