Fishing from the same pool: the influence of environmental governance on local climate change actions in Scotland and the us pacific northwest

TY - JOUR

T1 - Fishing from the same pool

T2 - the influence of environmental governance on local climate change actions in Scotland and the us pacific northwest

AU - Jackson, Anthony

AU - Illsley, Barbara

AU - Lynch, William

N1 - Copyright 2012 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

PY - 2012

Y1 - 2012

N2 - The impact of environmental governance on the delivery of local climate change plans is examined by comparing two transatlantic sub-national jurisdictions which have adopted stringent targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions: Scotland and the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The former relies on dirigiste top-down environmental governance, through which central government sets targets and imposes statutory duties that apply equally to all local councils. In the latter, a bottom-up multilevel form of environmental governance has emerged to compensate for the absence of a federal mandate. Specific action plans from a climate change pioneer in each location are assessed to test the strengths and limitations of these alternative modes of environmental governance: Portland in Oregon and Fife in Scotland. The Scottish dirigiste approach offers its local councils a consistent policy framework, allowing them to focus on specific measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while avoiding concerns about free-rider effects from non-participating councils. The asymmetrical uptake of climate change measures by United States municipalities exposes their domestic market to the risks of carbon leakage that America sought to avoid in global markets during negotiations over the Kyoto Protocol.

AB - The impact of environmental governance on the delivery of local climate change plans is examined by comparing two transatlantic sub-national jurisdictions which have adopted stringent targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions: Scotland and the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The former relies on dirigiste top-down environmental governance, through which central government sets targets and imposes statutory duties that apply equally to all local councils. In the latter, a bottom-up multilevel form of environmental governance has emerged to compensate for the absence of a federal mandate. Specific action plans from a climate change pioneer in each location are assessed to test the strengths and limitations of these alternative modes of environmental governance: Portland in Oregon and Fife in Scotland. The Scottish dirigiste approach offers its local councils a consistent policy framework, allowing them to focus on specific measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while avoiding concerns about free-rider effects from non-participating councils. The asymmetrical uptake of climate change measures by United States municipalities exposes their domestic market to the risks of carbon leakage that America sought to avoid in global markets during negotiations over the Kyoto Protocol.

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/84864655419

U2 - 10.1142/S1464333212500111

DO - 10.1142/S1464333212500111

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:84864655419

SN - 1464-3332

VL - 14

JO - Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management

JF - Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management

IS - 2

M1 - 1250011

ER -