State Environmental Regulations Research Articles

Citizens united and state environmental policy, regulations, and outcomes

ABSTRACT The impact of corporate political spending on environmental policy has drawn numerous attention from researchers and policymakers. However, few studies have analyzed the empirical effect of corporate spending on environmental policy in aggregate. In this study, I analyze the impact of corporate independent spending bans on state environmental policy, utilizing the repeal of such bans in 23 states following the 2010 Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision as a research design. Through difference-in-differences tests, I find no evidence that the removal of independent expenditure bans influenced state environmental policy, regulations, or outcomes, or overall policy liberalism. I also find that corporate direct contributions did not increase in treated states, which may explain the lack of environmental policy effects. These results demonstrate that corporations did not utilize the new spending avenue after Citizens United to influence state environmental policy in aggregate and raise questions concerning corporate political spending and environmental preferences.

CEO Media Exposure and Green Technological Innovation Decision: Evidence from Chinese Polluting Firms

The upper echelons theory is utilized to establish how CEO’s attributes affect firm’s technological innovation decisions. The extant literature has largely ignored the impacts of CEO media exposure. An unbalanced panel data analysis is used to examine the effects of CEO media exposure on Chinese polluting firm’s green technological innovation. It is illustrated that CEO media exposure generally enhances Chinese polluting firms’ green technological innovation decisions. In addition, we find that firms with state ownership and environmental regulations all moderate positively the relationship between CEO media exposure and green technological innovation. The research suggests that CEO media exposure appears to be a stimulus to firm’s green technological innovation decisions.

The Green Masterplan: Crisis, State Transition and Urban Transformation in Post‐Genocide Rwanda

AbstractThis article connects nested narratives of change in post‐genocide Rwanda to examine how ideas of multi‐scaled crisis and programs of urban transformation take on greater developmental and distributional significance in a context of a complex political economy. Rwandan elites position the country as the ‘Singapore of Africa’ in their state developmental ambitions and environmental regulations, yet urban areas are reeling from the distributional impacts on services, land and affordable housing that these world‐class ambitions carry with them—particularly in the space of the capital, Kigali, and its peripheries. In this article I examine a concatenation of global development expertise, national programs for state transformation, and local planning consequences as urban areas in the country are remapped. What role do programs for urban transformation play in not only remapping the city, but in reconfiguring the political economy of the post‐conflict Rwandan nation‐state? I examine three themes that interconnect on state transformation through urbanization in Rwanda—international planning expertise, state greening and urban peripheralization—and argue for greater contextual attention to the implications of planning in post‐crisis geographies.

Environmental licensing and energy policy regulating utility-scale solar photovoltaic installations in Brazil: status and future perspectives

ABSTRACTProcurement auctions have been the main mechanism to ensure the deployment of utility-scale solar photovoltaic installations (USSPVI) in Brazil. To participate in the auction, investors must comply with all established requirements. In the solar case, the criteria incorporate State environmental licensing regulations (EL). The procurement auctions are a nationwide competition whereas the environmental licensing for those projects are under state jurisdiction. The lack of national guidance to licensing USSPVI might cause significant movement of projects to States whose EL procedures require fewer studies. This work examines the role of environmental licensing in the energy planning for USSPVI in Brazil. Analysing the 27 state regulations establishing the screening requirements that subject EIA to USSPVI, there are uneven threshold criteria to determine whether the plant will go through simplified licensing or regular process. There is also a need for studies tackling strategic environmental assessment for wind and solar expansion in Brazil. Specifically, incorporation of community concerns, public participation, and environmental constraints into the early stages of decision-making to prevent impacts and conflicts.

Evaluating Environmental Governance along Cross-Border Electricity Supply Chains with Policy-Informed Life Cycle Assessment: The California-Mexico Energy Exchange.

This paper presents a "policy-informed" life cycle assessment of a cross-border electricity supply chain that links the impact of each unit process to its governing policy framework. An assessment method is developed and applied to the California-Mexico energy exchange as a unique case study. CO2-equivalent emissions impacts, water withdrawals, and air quality impacts associated with California's imports of electricity from Mexican combined-cycle facilities fueled by natural gas from the U.S. Southwest are estimated, and U.S. and Mexican state and federal environmental regulations are examined to assess well-to-wire consistency of energy policies. Results indicate most of the water withdrawn per kWh exported to California occurs in Baja California, most of the air quality impacts accrue in the U.S. Southwest, and emissions of CO2-equivalents are more evenly divided between the two regions. California energy policy design addresses generation-phase CO2 emissions, but not upstream CO2-eq emissions of methane during the fuel cycle. Water and air quality impacts are not regulated consistently due to varying U.S. state policies and a lack of stringent federal regulation of unconventional gas development. Considering local impacts and the regulatory context where they occur provides essential qualitative information for functional-unit-based measures of life cycle impact and is necessary for a more complete environmental impact assessment.

Social cost of carbon pricing of power sector CO2: accounting for leakage and other social implications from subnational policies

In environments where climate policy has partial coverage or unequal participation, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions or economic activity may shift to locations and sectors where emissions are unregulated. This is referred to as leakage. Leakage can offset or augment emissions reductions associated with a policy, which has important environmental and economic implications. Although leakage has been studied at national levels, analysis of leakage for subnational policies is limited. This is despite greater market integration and many existing state and regional environmental regulations in the US. This study explores leakage potential, net emissions changes, and other social implications in the US energy system with regionally differentiated pricing of power sector CO2 emissions. We undertake an economic analysis using EPRI’s US-REGEN model, where power sector CO2 emissions are priced in individual US regions with a range of social cost of carbon (SCC) values. SCC estimates are being considered by policy-makers for valuing potential societal damages from CO2 emissions. In this study, we evaluate the emissions implications within the SCC pricing region, within the power sector outside the SCC region, and outside the power sector (i.e. in the rest of the energy system). Results indicate that CO2 leakage is possible within and outside the electric sector, ranging from negative 70% to over 80% in our scenarios, with primarily positive leakage outcomes. Typically ignored in policy analysis, leakage would affect CO2 reduction benefits. We also observe other potential societal effects within and across regions, such as higher electricity prices, changes in power sector investments, and overall consumption losses. Efforts to reduce leakage, such as constraining power imports into the SCC pricing region likely reduce leakage, but could also result in lower net emissions reductions, as well as larger price increases. Thus, it is important to look beyond leakage and consider a broader set of environmental and economic metrics. Leakage rates, net emissions outcomes, electricity price changes, fuel market effects, and macroeconomic costs vary by region of the country, time, policy stringency, policy design (e.g. leakage mitigation provisions), policy environment in neighboring regions, and price responsiveness of demand.

Russian Proposals on the Polar Code: Contributing to Common Rules or Furthering State Interests?

The mandatory Polar Code was finally adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in May 2015. The present article examines the role and contribution of the Russian Federation in the decision-making process of the Polar Code through its proposals, in the form of submissions, statements, and oral interventions. The purpose of these proposals is investigated with respect to the safety and environmental protection goals of the IMO and Russian interests in the Arctic, by looking at the reasoning used by Russia in its proposals. The major issue areas represented in the Russian proposals include, among others, the role of coastal State legislation, environmental regulations, and icebreaker assistance; however, the majority of these do not contribute to the IMO’s goals of creating globally uniform standards for maritime safety and protecting the marine environment. The Russian proposals served State interests through misrepresentation and reference to Russia’s experience in Arctic shipping. While the latter frames Russia as a leading user of Arctic waters, the role that Russia played in the Polar Code negotiations indicates that Russia has more than shipping interests to protect in the Arctic.(Published: November 2016)Citation: D. Bognar. ‘‘Russian Proposals on the Polar Code: Contributing to Common Rules or Furthering State Interests?’’ Arctic Review on Law and Politics, Vol. 7, No. 2, 2016, pp. 111–135. http://dx.doi.org/10.17585/arctic.v7.415

Mineralogical and anthropogenic controls of stream water chemistry in salted watersheds

The relatively stable concentrations of calcium (42.2–122.3mg/l) and magnesium (48.9–88.1mg/l) between 2012 and 2013 and their possible weathering paths identified by mass balance models for both soil solutions and stream water from a small salted (regular applications of winter road deicing salt) watershed in New Jersey, USA indicate that the weathering of feldspars and dissolution of carbonates are the primary sources for these cations. However, the relatively stable and lower concentrations of sodium and chloride in soil solutions (19.6–46.1mg/l for Na and 12.7–88.3mg/l for Cl) and their fluctuating and higher concentrations in stream water (14.6–103.1mg/l for Na and 15.2–260.4mg/l)) from the same watershed during the same period also indicate that road deicing salt is the primary source for sodium and chloride in stream water. Furthermore, positive correlations between calcium and sulfur concentrations (correlation coefficient r=0.77) and magnesium and sulfur concentrations (r=0.73) in stream water between 2009 and 2013, as well as positive correlations between sulfur and iron concentrations in soil compositions (r=0.27), indicate that both the dissolution of gypsum and the oxidation of pyrite into hematite might be the primary sources of sulfate in the watershed. Analyses of water chemistry from the related and much larger Delaware River Watershed (DRW) show that sodium and chloride concentrations have increased steadily (2.7 times for Na and 4.56 times for Cl for 10-year average) due to the regular application of winter deicing salt from 1944 to 2011 for which data are available. The greater increase of stream water chloride concentrations compared with sodium concentrations also results in the steady decline of Na+/Cl− molar ratios from 1.51 to 0.92 for the 10-year average during that time in the DRW and approximately 78% of the chloride in the DRW now being anthropogenic. In addition, the decline of sulfate concentration from 22.08 to 14.59mg/l (∼34%) for the 10-year average from 1980 to 2011 in the DRW stream water may be attributed to the decline of sulfate levels in atmospheric deposition resulting from enhanced national and state environmental regulations and a shift in local economic activities. There also are more periods of low silica stream water concentrations in the DRW than in the past, perhaps as a result of recent increases in summer stream temperatures combined with an increase of impervious surface area in the region. Warmer stream water might cause the temporary bloom of biota requiring silica, particularly plankton, increasing its uptake from stream water, while an expanded impervious surface area increases the contribution of low-silica runoff water to total stream discharge, thereby lowering the silica concentration in stream water. The combined results of this study illustrate the possible changing anthropogenic factors that can control stream water chemistry in salted watersheds and that these factors need to be taken into account when future water quality regulations and policy are considered.

A public-private partnership to enhance the voluntary approach to nutrient stewardship

D espite growing evidence acknowledging the benefits of voluntary, incentive-based approaches to encourage nutrient stewardship, some organizations and agencies continue to be skeptical. However, among the fertilizer industry, many conservation organizations, and other agricultural groups, there is general agreement that the voluntary approach provides a catalyst for nutrient stewardship on agricultural land and that strategic opportunities exist to increase its effectiveness. One of the ways to realize opportunities associated with voluntary measures is enhanced collaboration between agricultural retailers and conservation districts as they work with farmers to plan and implement nutrient management practices. To better understand the existing professional relationships between these groups, to evaluate the impact of their relationships on nutrient stewardship, and to identify strategies for improving their working relationships, agricultural retailer and conservation district employees were surveyed in 2013. BACKGROUND Among the many challenges facing agriculture is ensuring long-term, profitable production while also meeting society's additional economic and environmental priorities. The challenge for farmers (enhancing nutrient stewardship while producing food, fiber, and fuel) lies at the confluence of many powerful forces. These external forces include evolving commodity program policy; changing crop insurance rules; expanding federal, state, and local environmental regulations; uncertain commodity prices; rising production…

An analysis of factors leading to the establishment of a social licence to operate in the mining industry

Communities around the world have increasingly come to demand more involvement in decision making for local mining projects, a greater share of benefits from them if they are to proceed, and assurances that mineral development will be conducted safely and responsibly. At the same time, Bridge (2004) notes full legal compliance with state environmental regulations has become an increasingly insufficient means of satisfying society's expectations with regards to mining issues. There is now a recognised need for mineral developers to gain an additional ‘social licence to operate’ (SLO) in order to avoid potentially costly conflict and exposure to business risks. However, there is a correspondingly limited amount of scholarship specifically focused on SLO. More particularly, there is a need for research that uncovers those factors that lead to the issuance (or non-issuance) of a SLO in the complex and changeable environments that often characterise mineral development. In an effort to identify key determinants of SLO outcomes in the mining industry, this paper presents a comparative case study analysis of four international mining operations: Red Dog Mine in Alaska, USA; Minto Mine in Yukon, Canada; the proposed Tambogrande Mine in Peru; and the Ok Tedi Mine in Papua New Guinea. The analysis that is presented also makes use of insights from supplementary key informant interviews conducted by the author and the emerging literature on mining and communities. Five lessons for earning a SLO emerged from this analysis: (1) context is key; (2) a social licence to operate is built on relationships; (3) sustainability is a dominant concern for communities; (4) local benefits provision and public participation play a crucial role; and (5) adaptability is needed to confront complexity.

Green and Sustainable Remedial Strategy for Contaminated Site: Case Study

This study describes the development of a green and sustainable strategy for the remediation of a contaminated site located in Chicago (IL, USA) to comply with the applicable federal and state environmental regulations. According to the site investigation results, many of the contaminant concentrations have been found to exceed the applicable regulatory limits that are protective of public health and local ecology. Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides and heavy metals were found in the vadose zone soils throughout the site. Groundwater was found contaminated with lead or selenium in some locations. First, potential technologies to remediate the contaminated soils and groundwater at the site are identified. The most promising technologies are then systematically evaluated for sustainability based on qualitative and quantitative analyses. Sustainability considerations include greenhouse gases and other air pollutant emissions, water use, and personal injury, among others. Phytoremediation is selected to treat the majority of the site by utilizing existing and new plant species to reduce the concentrations of the contaminants. Solidification/stabilization is selected for “hot spot” treatment (high concentration area treatment) only at certain specific areas that have high concentrations of metals in the vadose zone. Monitored natural attenuation is selected for groundwater treatment.

New Insights into Electronic Waste Recycling in Metropolitan Areas

SummaryElectronic waste (e‐waste) recycling is a critical sector for sustainable urban industrial systems. U.S. residents and businesses generate an estimated 3.2 million tons of electronic waste each year; most is not recycled and is generated in urban areas. However, adoption of state environmental regulations for e‐waste recycling is increasing. Between 2003 and mid‐2011, 25 states passed e‐waste laws. There are a growing number of e‐waste collectors and certified processors in U.S. urban areas. While the landscape of e‐waste recycling is changing, there is little analysis on the economic impacts of this industry. The research presented here synthesizes e‐waste management policy developments and growth of the e‐waste recycling industry. We present an economic impact analysis at the metropolitan level through constructing an extended input‐output (IO) model that specifies an e‐waste recycling sector. In a case study, we examine changes in e‐waste recycling activities in the Seattle metropolitan area and provide simulation results of new regional economic impacts.

Upset events, regulatory drift, and the regulation of air emissions at industrial facilities in the United States

Upset events, emissions released to air due to accidental or unavoidable circumstances at industrial facilities, are often exempt from fines and enforcement actions by state regulators, even if state rules conflict with the Clean Air Act. State rules may allow upset events to become a substantial, yet little-studied source of emissions at large industrial complexes. Drawing from Jacob Hacker's theory of policy drift, upset events are framed theoretically as a problem of regulatory drift between state and federal environmental regulations. Supporting analysis is provided by a case study cataloguing the emissions generated during upset events at six petroleum refineries, 2003–2008. Findings demonstrate that upset events occurred routinely and released approximately 8.5 million pounds of air emissions. Future research should examine upset events at a variety of facilities in Texas. Regulators should enhance data accessibility to facilitate analysis in other states.

Unintended consequences from nested state and federal regulations: The case of the Pavley greenhouse-gas-per-mile limits

This paper reveals significant unintended consequences from recent 14-state efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through limits on greenhouse gases per mile from new cars. We show that while such efforts significantly reduce emissions from new cars sold in the adopting states, they cause substantial emissions increases from new cars sold in other (non-adopting) states and from used cars. The costs per avoided ton of emissions are approximately twice as high once such offsets are recognized.Such offsets (or “leakage”) reflect interactions between the state-level initiatives and the federal fuel-economy standard: the state-level efforts effectively loosen the national standard, giving automakers scope to profitably increase sales of high-emissions automobiles in non-adopting states. Although the state-level efforts spur invention of fuel- and emissions-saving technologies, interactions with the federal standard limit the nationwide emissions reductions from such advances.Our multi-period simulation model estimates that a recent state-federal agreement avoids what would have been 74% leakage in the first phase of the state-level effort, and that potential for 65% leakage remains for the second phase.This research confronts a general issue of policy significance—namely, problems from “nested” state and federal environmental regulations. Similar leakage difficulties would arise under several newly proposed state-level initiatives.

Institutional, geographic, and facility factors affecting differences in prices for wastewater services

The provision of wastewater services is an important infrastructure service that affects social welfare. It improves the quality of community life by promoting sanitary conditions and minimizing the negative impact of wastewater on ecosystems. The price for this important public service, however, varies considerably across regions and localities. In this paper, we examine the physical factors and institutional characteristics that affect wastewater service prices across regions and localities. Our major concerns are the following: (1) institutional arrangements and characteristics of a wastewater utility, (2) government regulations, (3) supply factors and characteristics, and (4) natural environments and local characteristics. To analyze the price differences, we employ the demand and price equations for wastewater services using a simultaneous equations framework. For empirical estimation, we utilize a seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) method to account for the correlations between the residuals in the four price equations for wastewater services. Our empirical results are that the institutional arrangement of services, including monthly charges (versus bi-monthly or quarterly charges), provision of other infrastructure services in addition to wastewater services, and long-term debt, explain much of the price difference. In addition, the wastewater prices are influenced by state environmental regulations as well as supply factors, such as the number of wastewater treatment plants and infiltration and inflow into the sewer system. Interestingly, local geographic and meteorologic factors that were hypothesized to affect the selection of treatment processes were not found to be associated with price. These findings suggest ways wastewater services might be offered at lower prices for users.

Sustainable Production Practices Adopted by Greenhouse and Nursery Plant Growers

Given recent consumer and market interest in more sustainable products and business practices, researchers conducted a nationwide survey of greenhouse and nursery crop growers to determine the current state of the industry in terms of sustainability. Growers were asked about the importance of sustainability, their views of state environmental regulations, sustainable practices in place and ones they would like to implement in the next 1 to 3 years, and interest in sustainable certification. None of the grower respondents in this survey were certified sustainable, but at least one fourth (25.8%) were interested in certification. More than half of the respondents currently recycle plastic pots, use controlled-release fertilizers, and composted plant waste. However, only 12% of growers want to use biodegradable plant containers or implement water conservation measures into their production system within the next 1 to 3 years. Grower respondents felt the biggest obstacle toward implementation was the sustainable production practice would not be compatible with their existing system of production.

Review: Environmentality: Technologies of Government and the Making of Subjects by Arun Agrawal

EGJ Issue 26 Spring 2008 ISSN 1076-7975 Review: Environmentality: Technologies of Government and the Making of Subjects By Arun Agrawal Reviewed by Jeff Shantz Kwantlen University College, Vancouver, B.C. Arun Agrawal. Environmentality: Technologies of Government and the Making of Subjects. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2005. 325 pp. ISBN: 0-8223-3492-5. US $22.95 paper. Acid-free paper. In the early 1920s the villagers of Kumaon in northern India set hundreds of forest fires to protest the colonial British state's environmental regulations. By the 1990s these village communities had become careful and persistent conservators of the forests. This transformation in thinking and practice provides the starting point for Arun Agarwal's compelling and theoretically challenging analysis of environmental agency. Agrawal's study identifies a key aspect in the development of environmental identities and behaviors in the shift from centralized to decentralized decision-making with the communities in Kumaon and between the communities and the government. The author demonstrates the rich analytical possibilities that might be developed through an engagement of thinking on political ecology with scholarship on common property and feminist environmentalism. The approach that emerges from such an engagement, what Agarwal calls environmentality, can help to contribute to a fuller understanding of transformations in environmental thought and practices of conservation. Bringing together a concern with power/knowledge, institutional arrangements and human subjectivities, the approach to environmentality calls upon Foucault's post-structuralist work to explain the development of environmental subjects and practices that govern their activities. As Agarwal demonstrates, changes in the relationships between states, community decision makers and non-elite residents contribute to the emergence of new technologies of government, in terms of environmental regulation, the implementation of which is in turn variously contested. What is perhaps most striking about Agrawal's work is the extensive character of his research. The author spent time in almost forty villages in Kumaon, interviewing hundreds of residents and personally examining the condition of village forests. His fieldwork was supplemented with archival research into local records to obtain a clear sense of changes in the relations between states and localities over time. The most significant conclusion is the importance of decentralization and the dispersal of decision-making power and its impacts on relations between states and local communities, community leaders and non-elite residents. Of particular note is the Electronic Green Journal , Issue 26, Spring 2008 ISSN: 1076-7975

Auditing and Assessing Nutrient Management for Water Quality on Animal Feeding Operations

Concentrated animal feeding operations (AFO) and many AFO are required to comply with state and federal environmental regulations specifically related to the protection of water quality. Most regulations are based on the need to account for and control nutrient flow on-farm to minimize buildup, leaching, and runoff of nutrients that may pose a risk to surface and ground water quality. Attempts to encourage the control of nutrient flow include the requirements for comprehensive nutrient management plans (CNMP), conservation practice plans, storm water pollution prevention plans, animal mortality management, and emergency action plans. The overall goal of the CNMP on a livestock and poultry farm is to sustain a whole farm nutrient mass balance. An extensive auditing and assessment program evaluates the status of nutrient management on-farm and develops an action plan to minimize water pollution. An annual audit and review checks the performance of the concentrated AFO and AFO on environmental stewardship and identifies areas needing improvement. Critical control points that need to be audited and assessed are 1) nutrients imported on-farm, 2) nutrients exported off-farm, 3) nutrient status of soils and water, 4) manure handling and storage facilities, 5) conservation practices, 6) runoff waste water control, 7) land application practices, 8) animal mortality practices, 9) record keeping system, 10) operation and maintenance plan, and 11) alternative treatment systems, if applicable. Professional animal scientists can contribute significantly to livestock and poultry producers by providing assessments and audits of nutrient management along with other qualified professionals in the development of CNMP.

Explaining Geographical Differences in Water Prices: Do Institutional Factors Really Matter?

The availability, price, and quality of infrastructure services vary considerably across regions. This paper analyzes which elements significantly contribute to geographical differences in water prices. For empirical analysis, it employs water supply price and demand equations under a system of simultaneous structural equations. Several institutional factors explain geographical differences in water prices, such as prior appropriation water rights versus riparian rights, pricing structures, combining water bills with other bills, and other infrastructure. Water rate regulations by public utility commission also have some negative effects on water prices. State environmental regulations and commitments contribute to higher water prices, especially for non-residential water users.

An Interactive Online Case Study to Improve Problem-solving Skills of Landscape Horticulture Students

Horticulture graduates entering the landscape industry will be faced with a multitude of complicated management decisions where they will need to integrate their understanding of plant science, site constraints, state and federal environmental regulations, and the human impact on the built landscape. To help students develop and refine their problem-solving skills, an interactive online case study was created. The case study was used in two different landscape horticulture courses at Iowa State University and Oregon State University. The case study centers on a residential backyard with eight landscape problem scenarios. Each scenario is identified on the clickable landscape map of the area and contains links to audio files, PDF documents, images, and Internet links. After investigating each scenario, students submit an analysis, diagnosis, and recommendation about the landscape problem via WebCT or Blackboard, depending on the institution. Student evaluation of the case study as a teaching tool was positive (3.5, where 1 = poor; 5 = excellent). Students answered additional questions using a scale where 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree. As a result of using this teaching tool, students felt that they were able to summarize the data (3.9), diagnose the landscape problem (3.9), and make a recommendation to the homeowner (3.6). Further, they felt this teaching tool was an effective way to deliver information (3.9); the interactive format aided their learning (3.7); that they were comfortable using a web-based format (4.2); and they liked learning using case studies (4.1). Our goal is to make the case-study framework available to other teaching colleagues who can then add their own data.