"Henry
Brown's dismal record on the environment does not represent the interests
of the people who live here and care about the natural surroundings."
--
The Sierra Club
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As a legislator,
Henry Brown compiled a record of voting 87 percent of the time against
the environment – one of the worst environmental records in the S.C.
General Assembly, the Sierra Club said in a Sept. 29, 2000, news
conference.
"Henry Brown's
dismal record on the environment does not represent the interests of
the people who live here and care about the natural surroundings," said
Sandy Quick, political chair for the S.C. Chapter of the Sierra Club.
The chart below
provides concrete examples where Brown voted against protecting or improving
South Carolina's environment:
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1995:
Henry Brown voted in favor of smelly factory hog farms.
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Brown voted
to pass a bill giving extra rights to hog and chicken factory owners
at the expense of homeowners and the wider community. The bill was
designed to give an exemption to hog farms from public and private
nuisance laws. Many coastal landowners and local communities were
opposed to , against the wishes of nearby landowners are opposed
to factory hog farms because of health problems associated with
them. "Essentially, Brown voted against protecting clean water and
in favor of siting raw hog sewage lagoons right beside our creeks
and rivers," the Sierra Club reported Sept. 29, 2000.
Source: H3446,
5/3/95
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1997:
Brown supported the development of I-73 through natural areas.
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| Brown
served on the I-73 steering committee, which was charged with planning
to build a new interstate from Ohio to Charleston. Opponents to the
new Interstate said it would cause great damage to areas of historic
and natural beauty in South Carolina. During the debate around the
Interstate, Brown was accused of conflicts of interest because he
owned 1,500 acres of land near the proposed route. In a November 1997
story, Berkeley County residents called on Brown to resign from the
planning committee. "It's a conflict of interest," Alva Williams said.
"I'm his cousin, but I feel like he should step aside. It certainly
doesn't look good that he can decide where the road will go while
he owns land nearby."
Source: Sierra
Club, 9/29/00; The Post and Courier, 11/14/97
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1989:
Henry Brown opposed tougher safety laws for nuclear waste.
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| Brown
opposed a series of amendments in 1989 to a piece of legislation that
provided tougher standards for storing nuclear waste. These included
changes to regulations affecting site suitability, site permits, enlargement
of dumping grounds, and increasing the volume in a storage site.
Source: .3326,
Amendments #2, 8, 12, and 14, 5/31/89
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1991:
Henry Brown opposed tougher laws to protect clean air.
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| In
1991, Brown was one of only 34 state legislators to support an amendment
to a bill requiring public consultation prior to the issuing of permits
allowing air pollution. The amendment supported by Brown allowed polluters
to temporarily increase air pollution without public consultation.
Source: H3774,
Amendment #1, 5/22/91
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1990:
Henry Brown supported nuclear waste storage in South Carolina.
|
| In
1990, Mr. Brown voted to delay a Nuclear Waste Storage Bill and voted
against a number of amendments designed to decrease and eventually
end nuclear waste storage in South Carolina. In particular, Brown
voted against a measure that would have ended landfilling nuclear
waste in the state "at the earliest possible opportunity". He also
voted in 1992 against the closing of the Barnwell radioactive waste
facility.
Source: H1369,
Amendments #6, 7, and 12, 4/11/90
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1987:
Brown opposed improved safety measures for nuclear accidents.
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| In
1987, Brown opposed an amendment to the General Appropriations Bill
to set aside funds to cope with potential accidents at nuclear waste
storage facilities. The measure included funding for rapid-response
to accidents which may have occurred during the transportation of
nuclear waste.
Source: South
Carolina House Journal, Amendment 287, 3/20/87
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1999:
Brown opposed a measure to conserve wilderness and wildlife.
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| In
1999, Brown opposed an amendment to the General Appropriations Bill
that would have created a Conservation Grant Fund to help preserve
wilderness and wildlife throughout the State.
Source: H3696,
3/18/99
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