One Year Later: Obama's Most Defining Environmental Moments (PHOTOS)

As part of HuffPost's One Year Later series, we're looking back at many of the significant moments since Obama was elected. After 8 years of an administration that had a decidedly regressive take on the environment, many in the green movement had high hopes that Obama would be an environmental superhero. Obama's record thus far is a mix good news, some notable disappointments and his trademark nuance and pragmatism mixed in. Here is HuffPost Green's list of Obama's most defining environmental moments -- both good and bad. Pick the moments that you think are the most important in defining the Obama presidency so far.

Steven Chu, Secretary of Energy

Chu has a Nobel Prize in Physics and his nomination demonstrates Obama's commitment to bringing science back into government policy. Chu is an advocate for alternative energy and nuclear power research, and argues that we must move away from fossil fuels in order to combat global warming. Chu gave a jump-start to the geothermal industry in the US by granting Nevada $90 million from the DoE for geothermal technology projects. He's a big fan of energy efficiency, which he's blogged about for HuffPost, and white roofs, which he chatted about with Jon Stewart.

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Comments

[rtb61]

A step back from the Republican abyss, is just that a step back (technically quite a few actually), a long journey still needs to be traversed in order to achieve lasting change and any president can only achieve the change that the people, the senate and the congress allows. Want more change, then do more work to achieve it. Weirdly enough the biggest change is required with in the Republican party itself, with the corruption driven by lobbyists, corrupt corporate executives and Fox media needing to be tackled first, so that the Republicans are once again real conservatives rather than wild mavericks and rogues attempting to pillage the nation for endless corporate profits.

[ResidualSelfImage]

Obama is for more dirty coal plants dont trust "HIS MIX"

Fall of the Republic;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VebOTc-7shU

[VinJames]

If Obama is not our Green Superhero, we must find a new one. Pteropax.com is a good start...

[testuser5123 - Huffpost Blogger]

test comment

[mlavabre]

Obama alone cannot change the world. As the health care saga amply demonstrates, in order to get anything done, he must first navigate through the treacherous, meandering waters of congress and senate where entrenched interests are looming in every curve firmly intent on torpedoing any attempt at changing the status quo. Does it mean that we should give up and let "special interests" have their way? Hell NO!!!
While some are mostly moved by conviction and a sense of public good, the creatures that people these murky waters mostly live on fear and instinct of self-preservation. The special interests must be put in check and the only way to do so is through an activist citizenry. If you want things done, you must continually fight for what you believe in; you must keep the pressure on your elected officials and all the key members of senate and congress. There are many way to do so: email, phone, social networks, blogs, town hall meetings, ... Just keep the pressure and instill fear if needed.
At this most critical time in human history, only the absolute determination and fearlessness of all conscious people, people of goodwill, can defeat the deeply entrenched interests of the tenants of the status-quo. Stop winning and start acting!
Yes Obama should be more assertive, more audacious, more leader. But only if the citizens take things in their own hands will anything be accomplished; it might even clean up the toxic waters of our elected bodies.

[SamKnause]

I would like to see part of the stimulus money spent on putting solar panels or shingles, and wind turbines on homes. The unemployed could be trained to build and install the systems. The home owners would have lower energy cost and it would be great for the environment and the over burdened energy grid. I don't think anything is being done to get us off of our oil dependency or to stop mountain top removal for coal. Legalization of hemp would be a big help with providing bio fuel. It is environmentally friendly. I don't see our government doing anything.

[BettyMcDonalds]

Obama will be the hero when he turns vegetarian.

[watchTVgetSTUPID]

The Green super hero from the government is here to help
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1116088/Woman-91-dies-stressed-16-000-council-make-home-eco-friendly.html

[jsarets]

That's ridiculous, but while I'm not sure that mandates are the right way to promote home retrofitting for energy efficiency, the more grievous offense is the unscrupulous town council that issued this senior citizen a mortgage to buy her rental home. They knew she was living on government pension, so they should have known she wouldn't be able to pay for the mandatory improvement.

This is primarily a case study in the dark side of home ownership. In Britain, most working-class people rented homes from town councils until Thatcher came along and encouraged the privatization of everything, including programs to lure renters into home ownership.

[watchTVgetSTUPID]

Don't Count on 'Countless' Green Jobs
The evidence shows alternative energy is expensive.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB12350959...

http://www.wind-watch.org/news/2009/02/2...

Woman killed by green way of life
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...

7 Myths About Green Jobs
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?a...

Green Jobs Myths
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?a...

Democrats Admit That Their Cap and Trade Bill Is a Job Killer
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/peter-roff/2...

http://www.green-agenda.com/author.html

[deepintheheartoftejas]

No, he's not the green hero we were hoping for. He doesn't even have a lantern, or go around shouting "OBAMA SMASH".

[ChelseaC]

Obama is a corporate Dem--that about sizes things up.

[ChelseaC]

In a word--No.

[jdw1981]

He believes that the words "clean coal" belong together, so that makes him less a superhero and more of a fantasy fan.

[illinoisan]

Ahem, FDR himself was the "green FDR". If President Obama achieves anything on the order of the Civilian Conservation Corps, then he can be the green BHO.

[joevecchio]

Mr CHU I ride a bike to the fire house. So what.
Why doesn't Chu talk about oil facts?
Why is Chu against increasing domestic oil production when we will need the gas for the cars sold today through the cash for chunkers...??? If we displaced oil fron Angola with oil from the OCS then we would not have to ship oil in oil tankers that generate tons of unnecessary CO2 emissions. The fact is less co2 would be emitted if we drilled here at home. True or False. If Keith and Rachel would stop wasting time criticizing the, Glen Beck, API and Energy Citizen, we would know the answer to this... What's Chu think of MARIA SHRIVER driving a 3 ton 17mpg Cadillac Escalade and not a Geo Metro from GM that gets 45 mpg. Why didn't PROP 87 mandate that liberals drive smaller 1500 pound cars? This would have accomplished the same results with less bullshit.
Tell them about Neoglyium, Mr Chu.. perhaps I should work for you. E=s MC2 exaggerations equal mental confusion times two equals failure.

Sec. Chu agrees. Joe Vecchio, liberal democrat, u-tube......" LeavingThe­Democrats,­"
and joining alqaeda, an energy satire. 87min. pg17