Environmental Policy, Law, and Planning Chapter 10 Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Outline: Environmental Policy Cycle NEPA Environmental Law Statutory Case Administrative Regulatory Agencies International Treaties and Conventions Dispute Resolution and Planning Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY Environmental Policy - Official rules and regulations concerning the environment that are adopted, implemented, and enforced by a governmental agency. Also encompasses public opinion. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Environmental Policy Politics as Power Politics is a struggle among competing interest groups as they strive to shape public policy to suit their own agendas. Rational Choice In choosing between policy alternatives, preference should be given to those with the greatest cumulative welfare and the least negative impacts. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Environmental Policy Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Arguments Against Rational Choice Conflicting views are not comparable. Few agreed-upon broad social goals. Policymakers not motivated by societal goals. Large investments create path dependence. Uncertainty drives policy makers toward past. Costs and benefits difficult to calculate. Segmented nature of large bureaucracies. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. The Policy Cycle Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. NEPA National Environmental Policy Act (1970) Authorizes Council on Environmental Quality as the oversight board. Directs federal agencies to take environmental consequences into account during decision making. Requires an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for every federal project having significant environmental impact. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. ENVIRONMENTAL LAW Environmental Law - Body of rules, decisions, and actions concerning environmental quality, natural resources, and ecological sustainability. Statute Law - Formal documents enacted by legislative branch declaring, commanding, or prohibiting something. Case Law - Derived from court decisions in both civil and criminal cases. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Environmental Law Administrative Law - Rises from executive orders, administrative rules and regulations, and enforcement decisions in which statues passed by the legislature are interpreted in specific applications and individual cases. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Statutory Law: The Legislative Branch Federal laws (statutes) are enacted by Congress and must be signed by the President. After introduction, each bill is referred to a committee or sub-committee with jurisdiction over the issue for hearings and debate. Language is modified, multiple bills may be combined, and then the overall bill is passed on to the full committee. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Legislative Branch A bill succeeding in full committee is reported to full House or Senate for a floor debate. Amendments proposed at each stage. House and Senate versions are often different, and must be sent to conference committee to meld differences. Bill goes back to House and Senate for confirmation. Passed on to President for signature. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Legislative Riders Legislators who cannot gain enough votes to pass projects through regular channels, will often try to add authorizing amendments (riders) into un-related funding bills. Ideally, riders are added onto strongly-supported legislation. President now has line-item veto. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Case law: The Judicial Branch Establishes environmental law by ruling on constitutionality of statutes and interpreting their meaning. Court System US divided into 96 federal court districts. Over these are circuit court of appeals. US Supreme Court. First judge to hear a case arising from a particular situation has the greatest latitude to interpret the law and set a precedent. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. The Judicial Branch Criminal Law - Derives from federal and state statues that prohibit wrongs against the state or society. Charges always initiated by a government prosecutor. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. The Judicial Branch Civil Law - Defined by a body of laws regulating relations between individuals or corporations. Common Law - Customs and previous court decisions establish precedent. Tort Law - Civil action seeking damage compensation. Purpose of civil suit may be an injunction from the actions of an individual or corporation. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. SLAPP Strategic Lawsuits Against Political Participation - Practice of suing citizens who criticize businesses or government agencies over environmental issues. Legal defense costs can be exorbitant. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Administrative Law: The Executive Branch More than 100 federal agencies have environmental oversight. Federal agencies often delegate power to a matching state agency to decentralize authority. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. The Executive Branch Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Regulatory Agencies EPA - Primary agency with responsibility for protecting environmental quality. Cabinet-level department. Department of Interior (Natural Resources) National Park Service Bureau of Land Management US Fish and Wildlife Service Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Regulatory Agencies Department of Agriculture US Forest Service Department of Labor Occupational Health and Safety Agency (OSHA) Revolving door with workers moving back and forth between industry and government. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Administrative Courts Hear challenges to agency rules and regulations. Administrative judge can consider both the validity and the rule, and its application to a specific case. Parties can appeal to district court. Also hear enforcement cases. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

INTERNATIONAL TREATIES AND CONVENTIONS Over past 25 years, more than 170 environmental treaties and conventions have been negotiated. Unfortunately many of these are vague. Most nations unwilling to give up sovereignty. International court has no enforcement powers. Accords and sanctions World opinion Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND PLANNING Wicked Problems - Environmental problems tend to be intractable because they are nested within sets of interlocking issues. Often poor match between bearers of costs and bearers of benefits. Adaptive Management - A solutions approach designed to test clearly formulated hypotheses about the actions being taken. “Learning by Doing” Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Environmental Decision Making Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Resilience in Ecosystems and Institutions Most important characteristic of natural systems is their resilience, or ability to recover from disturbance. Ability to reorganize in creative and constructive ways. Researchers found trying to manage ecological variables one factor at a time leads to less resilient ecosystems. Focused on solving single problem. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Arbitration Arbitration is a formal dispute resolution, based in a trial-like setting. Arbitrator takes a more active role than a judge, and is not constrained by precedent. Useful when winning an entire case might be difficult. Does not create legally-binding precedent. Less opportunity to appeal. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Mediation Mediation is a process in which disputants are encouraged to come up with a solution on their own. Useful in complex issues with multiple stakeholders with different interests. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Collaborative Approaches to Planning Collaborative Approaches - Working with local communities to gain traditional knowledge and gain local acceptance of management plans. Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed. Summary: Environmental Policy Cycle NEPA Environmental Law Statutory Case Administrative Regulatory Agencies International Treaties and Conventions Dispute Resolution and Planning Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.

Cunningham - Cunningham - Saigo: Environmental Science 7th Ed.