The New Environmental Regulation

by Daniel J. Fiorino

Environmental regulation in the United States has succeeded, to a certain extent, in solving the problems it was designed to address; air, water, and land, are indisputably cleaner and in better condition than they would be without the environmental controls put in place since 1970. But Daniel Fiorino argues in The New Environmental Regulation that—given recent environmental, economic, and social changes—it is time for a new, more effective model of environmental problem solving. Fiorino provides a comprehensive but concise overview of U.S. environmental regulation—its history, its rationale, and its application—and offers recommendations for a more collaborative, flexible, and performance-based alternative. Traditional environmental regulation was based on the increasingly outdated assumption that environmental protection and business are irreversibly at odds. The new environmental regulation Fiorino describes is based on performance rather than on a narrow definition of compliance and uses such policy instruments as market incentives and performance measurement. It takes into consideration differences in the willingness and capabilities of different firms to meet their environmental obligations, and it encourages innovation by allowing regulated industries, especially the better performers, more flexibility in how they achieve environmental goals. Fiorino points to specific programs—including the 33/50 Program, innovative permitting, and the use of covenants as environmental policy instruments in the Netherlands—that have successfully pioneered these new strategies. By bringing together such a wide range of research and real world examples, Fiorino has created an invaluable resource for practitioners and scholars and an engaging text for environmental policy courses.

304 pages, Paperback

First published August 11, 2006

About the author

Daniel J. Fiorino is Director of the Center for Environmental Policy in the School of Public Affairs at American University.

Reviews

[Joseph Allocca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides some interesting perspectives on the state of environmental regulation in the United States. It operates on the premise that more cooperative relationships between government and industry can foster "win-win" situations, as opposed to the combative relationship fostered by current regulatory practices. The theory seems promising, but I feel the book fails to draw on enough studies to adequately support the points it tries to make. It does draw on a number of sources for what it calls "lesson-drawing," but these sections seem to lack a certain "scientific detail" for lack of a better term. Despite the shortcomings, it works well as a review of some of the common criticisms of environmental regulation, and the potential solutions.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

didn't really need it for class except for a few times.