Politics & Power Quote by Jerry Costello

The line compresses a long arc of policy, technology, and public will into a single, confident claim. Coming from Jerry Costello, a longtime Illinois congressman with deep ties to transportation and industrial regions, it reflects a pragmatist’s view that steady regulation and investment can yield measurable gains without stalling economic life. The time span implied by “three decades” points back to the maturing of the environmental regime built in the 1970s and strengthened in the 1990s: the Clean Air Act and its acid rain program, the phaseout of leaded gasoline, ozone-protecting rules, cleanup of toxic sites, and the continued rebuilding of wastewater and drinking water systems. By almost any indicator, urban air became clearer, rivers once written off as dead returned to life, and public health improved as exposure to key pollutants fell.

Costello’s committee work on transportation and water policy offers a likely context. He often argued that infrastructure and environmental protection are not opposites but partners: modern transit reduces emissions, upgraded sewers curb overflows, and grants to localities translate federal standards into local benefits. The phrasing “has realized” credits deliberate action and shared effort, from federal agencies and state regulators to industry innovations and citizen pressure.

There is also a political purpose. Pointing to demonstrated progress answers critics who cast environmental rules as futile or ruinous. It reassures constituents in manufacturing regions that evidence, not ideology, guides policy. And it sets a baseline for ambition: if past reforms delivered cleaner air and water while the economy grew, then further steps are both possible and prudent.

Acknowledging advances does not deny remaining gaps. Climate change, persistent toxics like PFAS, habitat loss, and inequitable burdens on disadvantaged communities demand a broader, faster push than the end-of-pipe fixes of earlier eras. Still, the message stands as a reminder that sustained, bipartisan frameworks can and do improve the nation’s environmental health when backed by funding, enforcement, and a culture of compliance.