Environment

Our state and our city consistently rate poorly on a number of important environmental indicators. In fact, we’ve been rated 49th in the nation in environmental quality. We can and must do better!

The air we breathe is polluted by coal-fired power plants, exhaust from cars and trucks, and Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), resulting in air quality that is a serious threat to Hoosier health. Our water quality is also dramatically impacted by some of these same polluters, with equally grave health consequences.

It is a false choice to say that we have to decide between strengthening our economy and protecting our environment. By defending the status quo, we are missing out on opportunities for economic growth and creating more attractive and prosperous communities. We must create state-level policies that push Indiana toward a more environmentally responsible future without overly burdening consumers or business.

We need to invest in cleaner, greener energy alternatives; provide better support for energy conservation; implement stricter monitoring and remediation of soil and water quality; and encourage more efficient transportation systems. We must also continue to find new ways to reduce our waste and recycle more of the items we no longer use. Each of these initiatives has the potential to both improve our environment and our economy by creating new jobs, products, and systems that better position our state for the future.

In my first legislative session, I authored Indiana’s e-waste recycling bill, HB 1589, which requires manufacturers to take responsibility for the proper disposal of any hazardous electronics that they create. I hope that over time, producers will see the benefit of producing less toxic items in the first place. This type of manufacturer responsibility legislation is promising because it not only deals effectively with existing environmental challenges, but it also creates an incentive to avoid future problems.

The bad news is that Indiana has far to go to become an environmental leader. The good news is that there are many opportunities to make progress with policies that thoughtfully balance our environmental and economic concerns.