Some environmentalists conceded that the boards, whose votes are advisory, may have little influence on city officials.

The environmentalists, while making clear that they have no intention of letting up on the electroplaters, concede that even for those people with good intentions, it has not been easy.

That legal victory, and the broad mandate it gave the Interior Department, makes the effort initiated today somewhat of an uphill battle, some environmentalists concede.

But even environmentalists concede it's far from clear if taking the dams out of service would revive the fish population.

Even the staunchest environmentalists concede that more must be done to help poor urban communities clean up and re-develop brownfields.

Some environmentalists readily concede that the law has long overemphasized the stick and provided fewer carrots for private interests than it might.

An ardent environmentalist, he concedes that the Excursion's fuel consumption (10 miles per gallon in the city, 13 on the highway) helps worsen global warming, and that its bulk (more than 7,500 pounds - three times as heavy as a Honda Civic) puts other motorists at risk.

Most environmentalists concede that consumers are unlikely to make radical changes.

Even the most ardent environmentalists concede that those rules are flawed, and have left power plant operators with little incentive to clean up their oldest, dirtiest facilities.