http://www.care2.com/greenliving/ted-kennedys-5-greatest-contributions-to-environmental-health.html
Ted Kennedy’s 5 Greatest Contributions to Environmental Health
By Emily Main, Rodale News
The late senator may be best known for health care reform, but he also worked to clean up waterways, improve gas mileage, and protect natural resources.
There was no mistaking the primary goal of the late Senator Edward Kennedy. The Massachusetts Democrat called universal health coverage the focus of his career, and continued to fight for it even after he became incapacitated with a brain tumor in 2008. However, he cared about more than just health care. Kennedy was also a firm supporter of environmental issues, and although he wasn’t on any of the Senate’s environment committees, “he was such a powerful force that if he was behind a piece of legislation, it definitely made a difference,” says David Willett, national press secretary for the nonprofit Sierra Club. “He was an environmental champion and consistently voted for environmental protections whenever possible.”
From health care reform to cleaning up toxic waste, here are five of Senator Kennedy’s most notable contributions:
#1: Affordable health care for everyone. Senator Kennedy may be best known for his efforts to create an inclusive health care system, but his contributions to the health of the American public certainly don’t stop there. He led efforts in 1985 to establish the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), which gives laid-off workers temporary access to employer-provided insurance and, with Orrin Hatch, in 1997, he established the Children’s Health Insurance Program so uninsured children could have access to care. He was also a patient-safety advocate, sponsoring a bill that, if passed, would have provided legal protections for people willing to report medical errors; however, the bill stalled in committee.
#2: Environmental justice. In supporting efforts to establish and clean up Superfund sites, Kennedy helped protect the low-income communities disproportionately affected by polluting companies, says Willett. Taxing companies that abandoned their toxic messes allowed him to protect these areas from water and air pollution. In addition, he was a longtime supporter of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps needy families cut their energy bills through weatherization and more energy-efficient building materials.
#3: Better access to mass transit. Kennedy often fought to keep government funding flowing to Amtrak. “The advantages of Amtrak are really felt in the Northeast,” says Willett, “so there’s definitely a lot of support for it there. But it’s something that’s required strong defenders, because that’s not the case everywhere else.” At the local level, he garnered support for something called the North-South Rail Link, which would have linked Boston’s two separate Amtrak stations so commuters could travel from Washington to Maine without having to crisscross Boston to catch their trains.
#4: More fuel-efficient cars. In the 1970s, Ted Kennedy demanded that auto companies improve their fuel-economy standards in response to rising oil prices. “That was a tough lift to make happen at the time,” says Willett. “The auto industry was fighting it tooth and nail,” just as they were in 2007 when Kennedy again pushed the industry to improve fuel economy. “In terms of energy and the environment, this was one of the most significant contributions Kennedy made,” Willett adds, “because it reduces oil dependence and pollution.”
#5: Renewable-energy projects. Kennedy made no bones about his opposition to the Cape Wind Project, a proposed offshore wind farm in Nantucket Sound that would be the largest in the country, citing its potential damage to the ecology of the sound and to the state’s fishing and tourism industries. But he fought hard to support other efforts to promote renewable energy “He definitely was a strong supporter of investment in renewable energy all over the country,” says Willett, adding that as recently as this year, Kennedy was able to secure $25 million in funds from the 2009 stimulus package to build a wind-energy testing facility in Massachusetts.
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5 comments
add your comment »And I see he had YOU fooled, as well. Like I said, do some research on grassroot sites (where the truth is told) and find out about the REAL Kennedy. His push for this health care program is a prime example of how he was wanting to make this a socialized country!
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why is this inappropriate?
Hello A.J.M. You can not label another person as an alcoholic. It is a self diagnosed disease. Some of the greatest, most wonderful over achieving people in the world are alcoholics, by the way. Ted Kennedy was one of, if not the finest senator and statesman we have ever had.
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I am sick of people idolizing this man! He had the public fooled and had his greedy interests for any legislation for which he backed. He was an alcoholic and God only knows when he ever sobered up long enough to attend to our governmental needs.
Do some research on his evil career.
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Dos dias antes su muerte:
Thank you for your recent emailTerça-feira, 25 de Agosto de 2009 18:14
De: "senator@kennedy.senate.gov" Adicionar remetente à lista de contatosPara: lamiri_mustapha@yahoo.fr
Dear Dr. Lamiri:
Thank you for your recent correspondence on the Carbon Cap and Trade Policy. This is an important issue and I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts with you.
The challenges that the United States and the world face in reducing greenhouse gases and slowing the trend of global warming gives us an important opportunity to develop renewable energy sources. President Obama's initiative to promote green energy will benefit the economy by creating jobs and technologies that will produce environmentally-sound energy solutions for the nation.
I strongly support the Carbon Cap and Trade policy it creates a system in which businesses and energy companies can buy and sell credits that limit carbon emissions. The long-term goal of the current Cap and Trade legislation is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by the year 2050. Its enactment will put the country at last on the right to achieving energy independence using clean energy technology, and will stimulate the economy by creating new jobs. Reducing our dependence on foreign oil will also significantly strengthen our national security.
Thank you again for contacting me on this important issue.
Sincerely,
Edward M. Kennedy
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why is this inappropriate?
Tiene Usted razon y envio su mensaje sobre el medio ambiente dos dis antes de su muerte:
Thank you for your recent emailTerça-feira, 25 de Agosto de 2009 18:14
De: "senator@kennedy.senate.gov" Adicionar remetente à lista de contatosPara: lamiri_mustapha@yahoo.fr
Dear Dr. Lamiri:
Thank you for your recent correspondence on the Carbon Cap and Trade Policy. This is an important issue and I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts with you.
The challenges that the United States and the world face in reducing greenhouse gases and slowing the trend of global warming gives us an important opportunity to develop renewable energy sources. President Obama's initiative to promote green energy will benefit the economy by creating jobs and technologies that will produce environmentally-sound energy solutions for the nation.
I strongly support the Carbon Cap and Trade policy it creates a system in which businesses and energy companies can buy and sell credits that limit carbon emissions. The long-term goal of the current Cap and Trade legislation is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by the year 2050. Its enactment will put the country at last on the right to achieving energy independence using clean energy technology, and will stimulate the economy by creating new jobs. Reducing our dependence on foreign oil will also significantly strengthen our national security.
Thank you again for contacting me on this important issue.
Sincerel
send green star
why is this inappropriate?
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