Globalization, Information Technology, and Environmental Regulation: An Initial Inquiry
By Dennis D. Hirsch
INTRODUCTION
The main function of our environmental laws is to reduce the harmful effects that economic activity has on human health and the environment. In seeking to predict the future of this field it makes sense to look at changes in our nation's economy and how they might influence environmental regulation.
Two revolutionary developments have recently been transforming the American economy to such a profound extent that some claim they are creating a new economy. These developments are the increasing globalization of trade and the rapid advances in information and communication technology. In the environmental field, much of the discussion about these new developments has focused on the effect that they will have on the environment in Third World countries. Few have asked how these two developments will affect environmental regulation here in the United States. This question will likely impact the future of American environmental law and policy to a greater extent than many have realized.
This essay attempts a preliminary inquiry into this question. It will begin by describing the effects of advances in trade and information technology on the American economy. It will then examine the relationship between the new economy and the existing environmental regulatory framework designed during the 1970s for the old, mass-production economy. This exploration will yield four predictions. First, the advent of the new economy, which is characterized by innovation and flexibility, will exacerbate the weaknesses in our current, rigid system of environmental regulation. Second, environmental policy will respond to the new economy by becoming increasingly flexible so as to better regulate a changing, dynamic economy. Third, this increasing regulatory flexibility, coupled with the dynamism of the new economy, will provide exciting opportunities for environmental gains. Fourth, new forms of regulation will raise important issues of accountability, but certain features of the new economy will help to address these concerns. Finally, this essay will suggest that we may already be seeing evidence of these developments in a bill that was before the U.S. House of Representatives last term: the Second Generation of Environmental Improvement Act of 1999.
The main function of our environmental laws is to reduce the harmful effects that economic activity has on human health and the environment. In seeking to predict the future of this field it makes sense to look at changes in our nation's economy and how they might influence environmental regulation.
Two revolutionary developments have recently been transforming the American economy to such a profound extent that some claim they are creating a new economy. These developments are the increasing globalization of trade and the rapid advances in information and communication technology. In the environmental field, much of the discussion about these new developments has focused on the effect that they will have on the environment in Third World countries. Few have asked how these two developments will affect environmental regulation here in the United States. This question will likely impact the future of American environmental law and policy to a greater extent than many have realized.
This essay attempts a preliminary inquiry into this question. It will begin by describing the effects of advances in trade and information technology on the American economy. It will then examine the relationship between the new economy and the existing environmental regulatory framework designed during the 1970s for the old, mass-production economy. This exploration will yield four predictions. First, the advent of the new economy, which is characterized by innovation and flexibility, will exacerbate the weaknesses in our current, rigid system of environmental regulation. Second, environmental policy will respond to the new economy by becoming increasingly flexible so as to better regulate a changing, dynamic economy. Third, this increasing regulatory flexibility, coupled with the dynamism of the new economy, will provide exciting opportunities for environmental gains. Fourth, new forms of regulation will raise important issues of accountability, but certain features of the new economy will help to address these concerns. Finally, this essay will suggest that we may already be seeing evidence of these developments in a bill that was before the U.S. House of Representatives last term: the Second Generation of Environmental Improvement Act of 1999.