For Immediate Release: April 8, 1998

New Study Shows Public Fears Over Environmental Performance Unfounded

San Francisco – "Contrary to public opinion, environmental quality has improved dramatically over the last 20 years," concludes the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) in the new report, Index of Leading Environmental Indicators. "Both the U.S. and Canada are showing improvements in environmental performance in almost every major category."

Using government data, the report presents trendlines and analysis on the progress of environmental quality in the U.S. and Canada over the last two decades. The study includes the following indicators: air quality, water quality, natural resources, land use, solid waste, energy, pesticides, toxic release, and wildlife.

"The purpose of the Index is to fill the gap in public understanding and to correct many of the misperceptions about environmental progress," explains Dana C. Joel, Director of Research at PRI and one of the authors of the study.

Among the study’s findings:

• Air Quality: Ambient levels of nitrogen oxide, one of the key components of ground-level ozone, decreased by 37 percent in the U.S. between 1975 and 1995. Ambient levels of ozone fell 26 percent between 1976 and 1995.

• Natural Resources: The U.S. consumes less than 20 percent of the available renewable freshwater resources. Between 1980 and 1990, total water use in the U.S. decreased 9.5 percent.

• Land Use: The ratio of protected areas to urban and agricultural lands grew from 6.4 percent in 1959 to 23 percent in 1987.

"The research presented in the Index demonstrates that fears about environmental degradation in the U.S. and Canada are unfounded," concludes Erin Schiller, PRI’s Policy Fellow and one of the study’s authors.

Copies of the report will be released on April 16, 1998, at PRI’s press conference at the National Press Club, Washington, D.C. Advance copies are available by contacting Jan James at (415) 989-0833, or via e-mail at mailto:jgrimley@pacificresearch.org.

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The Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of the principles of individual freedom and personal responsibility. The Institute believes these principles are best encouraged through policies that emphasize a free economy, private initiative, and limited government. By focusing on public policy issues such as health care, welfare, education, and the environment, the Institute strives to foster a better understanding of the principles of a free society among leaders in government, academia, the media, and the business community.