Whose the Greenest of Them All?

With this Labor Day weekend serving as the bridge between two very presidential weeks — the Democratic National Convention this week and the Republican next week — I thought I would start the weekend with a recap of a post at The Daily Green that ranked our greenest presidents.

In first place, Teddy Roosevelt. I was not surprised, as President Roosevelt was an avid outdoorsman, championed the creation of the Forest Service and five National Parks and set aside 150 million acres of timberland as public domains.

Here is the list of the other high-rankers,  some of whom may surprise you: 2. Jimmy Carter: created Department of Energy and encouraged use of alternative fuels. 3. Thomas Jefferson: was a botanist, scientist and believed we should respect and work with nature. 4. Bill Clinton: preserved 4.5 million acres — more than any other president.  (He did have Al Gore as a VP) 5.  Richard Nixon: established Environmental Protection Agency and Clean Air Act. He was also involved with passing the Endangered Species Act. 6. Franklin D. Roosevelt: created Civilian Conservation Corps which was responsible for planting trees, building trails, and making public lands and parks more accessible. 7. Abraham Lincoln: established Yosemite Valley in a public trust laying the groundwork for the National Park System 8. Lyndon B. Johnson: passed the Wilderness Act which protected 9 million acres of Federal Land and his wife, Lady Bird, was instrumental in promoting parks and beautification projects around the U.S. 9. Woodrow Wilson: created the National Park Service we all know so well today. 10. John F. Kennedy: established the Environmental Protection Agency. You can read and learn more here.