Regulatory Realities

Gouldson, A. and Murphy, J. (1998) Regulatory Realities: The Implementation and Impact of Industrial Environmental Regulation, Earthscan, London. [224 pages]

Regulatory Realities critically assesses the environmental and economic performance of industrial environmental regulation. It analyses the nature of mandatory and voluntary policies introduced by the European Union, and compares the implementation and impact of these forms of regulation in the UK and The Netherlands. It considers the influence that different regulatory structures and styles have on the performance of policy in practice, and examines the influence that different technologies and techniques adopted by industry in response to environmental regulation have on the performance of regulated companies.

The authors explain how the effectiveness of regulation can be enhanced through combined action which, firstly, establishes and maintains appropriate imperatives for environmental improvement in companies and, secondly, stimulates the development and use of appropriate capacities for such improvement.

They stress the importance of a clear and comprehensive set of standards, targets and performance measures, both for regulators and regulated companies, and the significance of hands-on approaches to implementation that raise the capacity of regulated companies to respond in an effective and efficient way to the evolving demands of industrial environmental regulation.

This book provides clear, reliable information for all those with an interest in environmental policy and management.