In one respect President Carter was ahead of his times. He was the first global leader to recognize the problem of global warming. Carter’s White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued three reports contending with global warming. The reports urged “immediate action” on CO2 emissions in the next decades. The report encouraged industrialized nations to reach agreement on the safe maximum level of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. The CEQ report suggested trying to limit global average temperature to 2°C above pre-industrial levels — precisely the standard agreed to by the nations of the world 38 years later in the Paris climate accord.
Carter’s administration included funding of alternative energy and the first fuel economy standards. Carter also had a solar-powered water heater installed on the roof of the White House.
Russell Patterson
West Valley City