<P> In 1992, Bush opposed international efforts at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil by refusing to sign the biodiversity treaty and lobbying to remove all binding targets from the proposal on limiting global carbon dioxide emissions . </P> <P> The Clinton Administration promised a change in the direction of environmental policy . Al Gore, the vice president, and appointees such as Carol Browner in EPA and Bruce Babbitt were all encouraging from an environmental standpoint . Clinton eliminated the Council on Competitiveness, returning regulatory authority to agency heads, and Clinton and Gore argued that environmental protection and economic growth were not incompatible . </P> <P> Clinton's record as the governor of Arkansas however, suggested that Clinton would be willing to make compromises . Through a number of middle - of - the - road positions, on issues such as grazing fees in the West and clean - up of the Everglades, and through his support of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993 and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in 1994, Clinton dissatisfied some environmentalists . Specifically, the Green Party and its candidate Ralph Nader were outspoken in their criticism of Clinton's environmental record . </P> <P> Despite criticism from environmental purists, the Clinton administration had several notable environmental accomplishments . Clinton created the President's Council on Sustainable Development, signed the Kyoto Protocol (although he did not submit the treaty to the Senate), and stood firm against Republican attempts after the 1994 elections to roll back environmental laws and regulations through the appropriations process . During the Clinton administration, the EPA's budget was increased, and much of the country's natural resources were put under greater protection, such as the restoration of the Everglades and the increase in size of the Everglades National Park . Important U.S. Supreme Court cases from this period included United States v. Weitzenhoff, et al . </P>

History of environmental policy in the united states