Integrating Environmental and Economic Policy Making in China and Taiwan

Abstract

What, if anything, are two of East Asia's high-growth economies—China and Taiwan—doing to integrate environmental considerations into economic policy making? The two case studies developed here demonstrate that innovative officials in each have found ways to get powerful economic agencies to take environmental considerations into account. In China, national officials in the State Environmental Protection Administration and local officials in city-level environmental protection bureaus use a city-level environmental rating, ranking, and public disclosure program along with an environmental target responsibility system to get mayors to invest in environmental improvement. In Taiwan, the building of a tough and competent environmental regulatory agency that simply bypassed the government's premier industrial policy agency forced the latter to integrate environmental considerations into industrial policy making. In both instances, there is some evidence that these innovations are working. But in both, much more needs to be done.