Public Policy Frameworks in Environmental Settings: An Argument for New Policy Frameworks to Support New Policy Directions

Chad Mcguire

doi:10.5296/emsd.v1i1.1537

Abstract

Environmental policy is about solving problems, not creating them. Policy frameworks are meant to be supportive of policy initiatives. Most environmental initiatives are impacted by new information, and as such, policy frameworks should be responsive to new information. Often existing policy frameworks limit the ability of information that suggests a change in policy direction. This article discusses some of the causes for this phenomenon and suggests that new policy frameworks should be considered in supporting new policy directions, rather than relying on the manipulation of existing policy frameworks.

Highlights

Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater! Many can relate to this idiom that suggests we keep the good in things as we try to work on the bad
The fishery management example above is admittedly brief and only discusses a few aspects of how existing policy structures can impact the ability of institutions to meaningfully adapt to new information
One way to encourage the development of such policy frameworks is to differentiate between scenarios where incremental policy is distinguished from the need to move quickly in new policy directions

Summary

Introduction

Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater! Many can relate to this idiom that suggests we keep the good in things as we try to work on the bad. The purpose of this article is to identify, and recommend, that is it often better to approach policy questions by building entirely new frameworks, or by abandoning existing frameworks as the case may be. The reasons for this recommendation are outlined below, but they all follow a general premise that environmental problems are often impacted by rapidly evolving scientific discoveries. Environmental problems are benefitting from a strong advancement in the earth and natural sciences This new information should become the fodder from which policy instruments are designed, not something that must dogmatically be retrofitted into a previous policy instrument that may have developed bad habits towards the consideration of new information. Purposeful design can offer some insight into how we choose to approach problems within our human-bounded framework, allowing us to adopt policy frameworks that move us towards policy instruments resulting in a more directed advancement of our social goals

Policy Evolution

Differences in How Science and Policy Evolve

United States Fishery Management

Discussion