[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1992, Book I)]
[July 14, 1992]
[Pages 1113-1115]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on Signing the Giant Sequoia in National Forests Proclamation in 
Sequoia National Forest

July 14, 1992
    Dale Robertson, thank you, sir. As all of you know, Mr. Robertson is 
the Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. But I would like to take this 
opportunity not simply to thank him but to thank the other dedicated 
professionals that work in the Forest Service. And I'm just delighted to 
be here today and delighted that Bill Reilly, the head of EPA, is with 
us; that Congressman Bill Thomas, who claims this as part of his own 
congressional district--proudly proclaims it, brags about it, 
understandably so--is with us today; Forest Supervisor Sandra Key; and 
also an old friend, Derrick Crandall, could join us.
    Let me begin by acknowledging the hard work and the valuable time 
being invested in our environment by the likes of Bruce Howard and the 
Save the Redwoods League, David Magney and the California Native Plant 
Society, the Audubon Society, the Nature Conservatory. They all do 
fantastic work in keeping this the way it ought to be.
    I understand we have some special guests here. I met one group of 
them, and these are the kids from R.M. Pyles Boys Camp. They come out 
here away from it all to learn how to hike and fish and pitch a tent. 
They learn how to respect themselves and respect the land. I believe 
Teddy Roosevelt had these kids in mind when he spoke of the ``beautiful 
gifts'' that we've received from nature, gifts that we ``ought to hand 
on as a precious heritage to our children and our children's children.''
    The fact is these forests, our lakes, and our lands, they are gifts, 
the commonwealth that we inherited from our parents, that we borrow from 
our kids. That's the spirit of this agreement that we'll salute here 
today. Different groups from Government agencies to private 
organizations have come together, bridging ideological divides in order 
to forge an agreement that protects our sequoia groves as part of our 
national legacy, our common heritage, if you will. Whatever name you put 
on it, our actions are going to speak louder than words. And when words 
are memories, when we are long gone, these trees will stand.
    America has one of the oldest National Forest Systems in the world, 
the best National Park System in the world, and the best Wildlife Refuge 
System in the world. And yet, as President, I have said that the best 
simply is not good enough.
    The Wallop-Breaux Trust Fund is a good example. It's helped us 
invest more than $200 million each year to improve our fish-

[[Page 1114]]

ing waters and open them up to fishermen. Think of the Potomac River; go 
all the way across the country and think of the Potomac River in our 
Nation's Capital. Twenty years ago you literally couldn't even touch 
that water without being advised to get an inoculation. Now, on warm 
summer days the Potomac belongs to the windsurfers and the bass 
fishermen. Around the country, signs rimmed our lakes with the warning: 
Don't Touch the Water. In two decades, we have spent over $100 billion 
to clean up our waters. Today, more and more of our rivers and lakes are 
safer for the people who swim and fish in them, for the animals that 
live in and around them.
    To help show off our clean rivers and lakes, last winter I signed 
ISTEA. Let me point out that is the Transportation Act, not the rap act. 
[Laughter] But that legislation will help bring America outdoors, 
revamping our scenic byways, blazing new trails, letting Americans 
become their own pioneers. That's what the pursuit of happiness is all 
about.
    Some will look at the record and say that it isn't enough. I have a 
surprise for them. I couldn't agree more. Take a look at what I've asked 
for from Congress, and then take a look at what we've got.
    We've proposed, lobbied, and signed the Clean Air Act, the most 
ambitious environmental law in history: Reduces acid rain by 50 percent, 
reduces air toxics by 90 percent, brings all cities into attainment with 
health standards. On this we had good congressional bipartisan 
cooperation, for which I'm grateful.
    We've assessed more fines and penalties for violations of 
environmental law in 3 years than in the entire previous 18-year history 
of EPA. I don't see that record advertised in the political process or 
written about in the press, yet enforcement is traditionally one of the 
principal measures of an administration's environmental performance. 
We've convicted more people of environmental crimes in 3 years than in 
the previous 18 years of EPA. Think about that. A lot of people doing 
jail time, and those tempted to evade these very sound environmental 
laws, they're now reconsidering their actions.
    We've doubled funding for national parks, wildlife, and outdoor 
recreation and tripled funds for States for parks and open spaces. We've 
proposed or added 20 new national parks. We've proposed or added 57 new 
national wildlife refuges. We've added 1.5 million new acres to national 
parks and then 6.4 million acres to the Wilderness System. We've added 
2,700 miles of rivers to the Wild and Scenic Rivers System. We've 
increased funds for wetlands protection from $295 million in 1989 to 
$812 million in 1993.
    Then we've also closed off the coastal oil development in 
California, in Oregon, in Washington, in Florida and New England until 
the year 2000. We've established three new national marine sanctuaries, 
including the largest ever, the one at Monterey Bay, that National 
Marine Sanctuary. We've increased funding for Federal fisheries 
management by $80 million and requested full funding for the Wallop-
Breaux that I mentioned earlier for sport fish restoration.
    Now, that is the record of our actions, of my actions. Now, let's 
turn our attention to Congress and its response to our proposals. In 
this year's budget, I requested increased funding for parks, recreation, 
and the outdoors. And here's what Congress said: Funding for parks, 
forests, and wildlife, $250 million cut; a Federal partnership with the 
States for parks and recreation, $32 million cut; park and forest 
acquisition, $73 million cut; resource recovery for Sequoia National 
Forest, cut; parks as classrooms, cut; tree planting, we've got a good 
new tree-planting initiative, cut. I could go on, but the very trees 
around us might get nervous. [Laughter]
    But I cite this because I'm not sure the American people really 
understand this commitment and what we are trying to do. The fact is not 
just the trees but all of us ought to be a little nervous. Congress has 
met a fork in the road now, and they have a choice. On one hand they can 
gut these proposals, they can stuff them with pork and perks, and then 
turn around and complain about the environment. Or they can choose 
another path; they can look out for the voices that don't have a vote: 
the land, the children, the future generations. I'm asking Congress to 
do the right thing: full

[[Page 1115]]

funding for our land, our trees, our waters, and our parks.
    You see, we need more seasonal park rangers, not fewer. We need to 
acquire more land upstream, not less. Send a message to Congress: We 
need less papers, less posturing, less promises. And we really do need 
more action.
    Now, we all want cleaner air and water. We all want a more beautiful 
America. Some flaunt their commitment with these sound bites, and I've 
proven mine through, I believe, sound policy proposals. Some have sent 
entire forests to their death to fill books with propaganda, short on 
facts and long on fiction. But our approach represents new thinking 
here, a new environmentalism that harnesses the power of the marketplace 
in the service of the environment.
    The fact is only a growing economy can generate the resources that 
we need to take care of our natural assets. And our environmental 
policies are designed to give businesses new incentives to prevent 
pollution, to innovate and create new environmental technologies, and to 
save money by becoming more efficient. Our objective is to reconcile 
America's deep desire to improve our economic well-being, to have secure 
jobs and homes, to be able to educate our kids, and to have water we can 
drink and air that we can breathe. I believe this Nation can achieve 
both of these objectives. No other country in the world has come so far 
along this road. None will go farther than the United States of America.
    The steps we take here today can blaze a trail for others to follow. 
And in case anyone should miss the forest for the trees, so to speak, 
here's a reminder: They were here first. These trees have watched 
history go by. Some of these sequoias, I was reminded by Dale as we 
walked through the grove, were already seedlings by the time Christ 
walked the Earth.
    I think back to Sequoyah himself. The first time he saw the Bible, 
he called it ``talking leaves.'' I think those leaves have something to 
teach us today. In Revelations we learn that ``the leaves of the tree 
were for the healing of the nations.'' We are healing our forests, our 
parks, and our lands. It's a beautiful country. And I want more and more 
of the American people to enjoy settings like we're in right here today. 
Let's remember to take time to come out, show our kids the land, to walk 
among the redwoods, to climb a mountain. Our land can heal us, too.
    It is a joy for me to be out here with you all today in this 
beautiful setting. Thank you very much for coming. And may God bless our 
great country, the United States of America. Thank you very, very much.

                    Note: The President spoke at 11:40 a.m. in the 
                        Sequoia Grove. In his remarks, he referred to 
                        Derrick Crandall, president of the American 
                        Recreation Coalition. The proclamation is listed 
                        in Appendix E at the end of this volume.