The Great Energy Shortage was born as a result of the unsustainable Waste Culture at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Now it has reached maturity and we're just in the last few decades beginning to feel its symptoms (not right now perhaps, but they'll be back). But the waste culture was necessary in order to use up the excess of production created by increased technological abilities and the need for full employment. The physics definition of work is "an expenditure of energy". Unnecessary work unnecessarily expends energy and materials and causes unnecessary pollution. Of course this means more jobs to supply the energy and materials and clean up the pollution - a vicious circle. We can't overcome our energy problems without major changes in some people's attitudes and lifestyles. To many, having status means being able to flaunt wasting of resources.
Real estate, building construction, logging, electrical energy, agribusiness, cars and of course "defense" and their related industries are all important parts of the "healthy" economy and create many jobs. Wilderness areas, rivers, beaches and parks, on the other hand, don't employ many people (for much money) so they have few people and dollars to lobby strongly for them. Environmental support groups often foresee no personal monetary gain from their efforts, while their opponents are usually well paid by the industry they support. "Nature", or at least long-term, wider ranging values, need to have a voice in the free market. Healthy governments survive longer than individuals, and have wider perspectives. Therefore it seems they should be this voice. Governments with this perspective also stay healthy longer.