Environmental Regulation

1
Environmental Regulation
2
Many Different Areas

• Species/Habitat Protection
• Endangered Species Act
• Consequences of energy production
• nuclear power, strip mining, etc.
• Controlling pollution

3
Environmental Battle Lines

• Environmental Quality Coalition
• Economic Rationality Coalition
• Others -- state/local governments, other federal
  agencies, labor unions.

4
Introduction

• Major push late 1960s - early 1970s.
• Multitude of issues (e.g., clean air, hazardous
  waste disposal, etc.).
• No single statute governing env. prot.
• 17 major statutes by EPA
• Most significant effects felt by manufacturing
  facilities and local govt
• EPA created through a reorg. plan

5
EPA and Organization

• Wanted structure along functional units
  (abatement, monitoring, etc.) to facilitate
  coordinated environmental management.
• But...Division of program responsibilities (air,
  water, etc.),
• EPAs laws quite specific, little discretion.
• State governments also play a large role
  (primacy, monitoring, enforcement)

6
Early Legislative Efforts

• National Environmental Policy Act
• Environmental Protection Agency
• 1970 Clean Air Act Amendments
• 1972 Federal Water Pollution Control Act
  Amendments

7
Eras of Environmental Regulation

• Nondecisionmaking
• After WWII, deterioration w/ little federal
  involvement
• Federal Control
• events leading to federal role (Cuyahoga River)
• New legislation, creation of EPA
• Deregulation (see next slide)
• Maturation of system (to follow)

8
Pres. Reagan and Env. Regulation

• Deregulation
• Devolved policy authority to state govts
• Defunded areas dealing w/enval policy.
• Effects
• ON EPA activity and morale dropped dramatically
  agency fought back (leaks)
• ON STATES Regulatory innovation. Filled gaps
  left by the feds.
• ON GROUPS Swell in enval membership groups.

9
Maturation Competition/Compromise

• Events turned public back toward envir.
• e.g., Exxon Valdez, global warming
• Questions arose about the extent of econ. impact
• Election of Bush (Env. President)
• Backsliding?? Wetlands loss, Spotted Owl
• Election of Clinton -- balancing (favorable
  appointees/suport of NAFTA
• Republican Congress

10
Republicans in Control of Congress

• Risk assessments to determine how effectively
  rules reduce risk to public
• Cost-benefit analysis on other alternatives
• Opportunities provided to challenge programs if
  not meeting above stds.
• State authority in interpreting rules
  strengthened
• Cut of EPA monitoring, compliance budget

11
Reinventing Env. Regulation

• Offering flexibility for better results
• Building partnerships
• Facilitating compliance
• Cutting red tape
• Improving environmental information
• Examples Project XL and CSI

12
George W. and the Environment

• Reforming enforcement efforts
• Move from cops to consultants
• Voluntary compliance audits
• Clean Skies initiative
• Cap and trade
• Not supported in Congress move toward
  administrative changes

13
Policy Tools in Regulation

• Prohibitions (e.g., DDT)
• Command and Control
• Licensing and Use Restriction
• Market-Like Incentives (typically through
  permits)
• Fiscal Inducements (subsidize wastewater
  treatment plants)
• Information (Right-to-Know, Radon)

14
Implementation Air Pollution

• 1970 Act
• Auto Emissions -- 90 reductions
• Stationary Source Emissions
• NAAQS -- State Plans
• 1977 Amendments
• Prevent "significant deterioration of air quality
• Scrubbing requirements for all coal
• Relax stringency or rolled back dates
• Bubbles

15
Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990

• Urban air problems
• Reduce car emissions, reformulated gas. Ozone
  areas placed on strict attainment schedule.
• Control toxic air pollutants.
• Require permit to emit (subject to fines and
  criminal prosecution) citizen groups can sue.
• Address acid rain problems (50 reduction sulfur
  dioxide)
• Marketable permits

16
Implementation Water

• Clean Water Act (1972)
• Goal of zero pollution discharge
• interim fishable and swimmable waters by 1983.
• Criticism in that it does not deal with nonpoint
  sources (e.g. agriculture).
• Water Quality Act of 1987 attempted to deal with
  the shortcoming
• states are to assess seriousness of nonpoint and
  devise plans to control

17
Implementation Toxics and Waste

• Pesticides -- FIFRA
• Pesticides must be registered with EPA
• Hazardous Waste -- RCRA provided for the
  regulation of hazardous waste. cradle-to-grave
  regulations
• Comprehensive Environmental Response,
  Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or
  Superfund)

18
Evaluation of Policies

• Enforcement -- two types of compliance
  monitoring
• initial compliance monitoring
• continuous compliance monitoring
• Economic
• costs in hundreds of billions perhaps secondary
  effects on inflation, unemployment, productivity
• Analyses suggest benefits are much higher
• Environmental Quality -- mixed results

19
New Obstacles to Env. Regulation

• Property Rights
• takings clause
• Supreme Ct. supported in Lucas v. South Carolina
  Coastal Council
• Unfunded Mandates
• Risk Based Regulation
• use of risk assessment and risk mgt. to help make
  decisions
• certainty of science??

20
Concerns w/Command and Control

• Do not adapt well to changes in technology.
• Force all facilities to reduce pollution by the
  same amount
• Organized around a single pollutant or media and
  does not deal well with cross media concerns
• Time consuming

21
Newer Tools and/or Alternatives

• Economic Incentives
• provide incentives to reduce pollution instead of
  a disincentive not to reduce pollution.
• Integrated Environmental Management
• Geographic perspective
• Industry wide cross-media permit integration