Environmental Quality 2000: Michigan and America at the 30th Anniversary of Earth Day

Public opinion about the environment is often marked by unwarranted pessimism about the state of our air, water, and natural resources. But the most recent government data show that America in general, and Michigan in particular, have seen impressive gains in environmental quality since the first Earth Day 30 years ago. This report presents decades of facts and figures on Michigan and U.S. air and water quality, land use, and other environmental factors to show that, far from worsening, environmental conditions have actually improved substantially-and are likely to continue improving.

Contents

• Executive Summary
• Introduction: Earth Day Thirty Years Later
• The Rise of Environmentalism and the "New Regulation"
• Environmentalism and Social Revolution
• Michigan: Industry and Ecology
• Air Quality in the United States and Michigan
  • The State of Air Quality in Michigan
    • Lead
    • Carbon Monoxide
    • Ozone
    • Particulate Matter
    • Sulfur Dioxide
    • Nitrogen Dioxide
  • Analyzing National Air Quality Trends
    • Indoor Air Quality
  • The Trend toward Cleaner Air
• Water Quality in the United States and Michigan
  • Two Recent Case Studies in Water Quality Improvement
    • North Carolina's Pamlico-Tar River Project
    • The Mississippi River
  • The State of Water Quality in Michigan
    • The Great Lakes
  • The Future of Water Quality
• Land Use and Condition, Toxic Releases, and Resource Use in the United States and Michigan
  • Soil Erosion
  • Toxics Release Inventory
  • The Challenge of "Sustainable Development": From Concept to Practice
    • Sustainability and Renewable Resources
    • Sustainability and Non-Renewable Resources
  • The Relationship between Economic Growth and Sustainability
• Conclusion: Toward an Environmentalism of Consensus
• Acknowledgements
• About the Authors
• Endnotes