Can local environmental regulation of
companies deal with a broader
environmental view?
Kasper Dirckinck-Holmfeld, AAU Copenhagen
and Carla Smink, AAU
GIN 2012, Linköbing
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A broader environmental view
• Traditional focus was on diluting or reducing
emissions of plants in respect to the local
environmental concerns
• Increased focus on global environmental
concerns such as Climate change, resource
scarcity and suppliers pollution in third
country by addressing input related aspect and
whole lifecycle perspectives
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New Modes of Governances
• Critique of Command-and-Control regimes
for being static and costly
• Advocates for new regime based on
participation, dialogue, devolved decisionmaking, flexibility, inclusiveness, consensusbuilding
• Also in the environmental field
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Ecological Modernisation - Converging of business and regulatory
approaches towards environment?
Companies approach towards Environment
•Traditional see environment as external to core business
with implementation of end-of-pipe as means to comply
regulation and thus causing extra cost
•Increasingly “some” companies are seeing environmental as
providing competitive advantages
• Directly in terms of resource efficiency gains (Eco-efficiency,
Pollution prevention strategies etc)
• Also as being more efficient in fulfilling environmental
requirement
• Include environment in strategic positioning and in product
development
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Ecological Modernisation – Converging of business and regulatory
approaches towards environment?
Change in Governance approach
• From enforcing Norms based on carrying
capacity of surroundings and/or End-of-pipe
technologies
• Towards promoting the use of BAT, Pollution
Prevention and Cleaner Technologies through
both norms and especial dialogue and focus on
win-win sollutions
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Remmen and Nielsen (1994)
Characteristics
1. Inactive
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“We have no problems”
Environmental management is unnecessary
No reactions to new environmental standards
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Reactive
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Pro-active
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Interactive
”We obey the law”
Environmental management should be addressed if necessary
Compliance position driven by legislation
”We are ahead”
Environmental management is a worthwhile function
Willingness of senior management to use management systems
and policies to encourage organisational change
”We define the agenda”
Strive to be environmental leaders in their industries
Environmental management is a priority item
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Differentiated Approach towards Companies
Not all Companies are alike
Calls for differentiated regulatory approach!
- approaching companies differently in terms of either regulator or
facilitator
- Regulatory relief for best performer by extended use of selfregulation
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Agenda of this Paper
• In Denmark several attempts to address a broader
environmental perspective as part of the permitting and
monitoring process was carried out during the late 1980s
and 1990s though e.g. promotion of Cleaner Technologies
and Environmental Management System
• This paper looks at status for local governments capabilities
to do so here 10-20 years after Pollution Prevention was
included as prime principles in the Environmental
Protection law
• Specifically it addresses the local authorities perceptions of
options to include GHG reductions and energy efficiency
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Empirical data
• Review of several political documents including
both prime legal texts (acts and orders), political
agreements and different evaluations reports
• Conduction of interviews with case workers in 7
Danish municipalities participating in a EU funded
project “Carbon 20” about how to engage local
business in CO2 reductions, and
• Interview with a employed in the central
administration Danish Environmental Protection
Agency
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Findings
• Define findings in respect to:
1. Legal base for addressing broader environmental
concern as part of requirements in either
permits or injunctions
2. Facilitation of companies to implement
environmental improvement beyond compliance
as part of Monitoring/surveillance activities
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Legal base 1
• There (seems to be) legal base for addressing
broader environmental concern including
GHG reduction and energy.
• Its even stated that there is actual an
obligation to address at least waste prevention
• However the Local authorities considered the
legal base as unclear, if even existing!
• They do therefore not formulating
requirements
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Legal Base II
• Furthermore, the legal base is strictly related to
formulation requirement based on BAT
• A competence that are no longer necessarily present:
• Several of those companies subject for full permits and full
assessment of BAT, are under the jurisdiction of the state,
• the majority of rest is subject for centrally defined
requirement in relation to BAT with no options to add
additional requirement related to BAT
• These central requirement do (currently) only relates to
traditional environmental concerns
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Facilitation beyond compliance I
• While the legal base for formulating requirements are
weak, there is amble room to address broader
environmental concern as a facilitation beyond
compliance
• The Guidance document for Monitoring/Surveillance calls
for a catalytic role in prolongation of the authority role
• Opposite, another guidance document calls for a
prioritisation of monitoring activities toward the
reactive, while providing those with establish self
regulative procedure such as e.g. EMS a regulatory
relief
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Facilitation beyond compliance II
• Furthermore, the catalytic role is solely perceived as an
option, and not obligation, and thus depending on local
political prioritising
• In the Latest 10-15 years, the direct regulation of
companies have experiences severe resource restrains
and current economic crisis is putting further pressure
on public finances in Denmark
• Even caseworkers from municipalities belonging to a
forum called “Green Cities” doubted that they can
continue to be able to prioritise something that is not
strictly required
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Conclusions
• Can local environmental regulation of companies deal with
a broader environmental view?
• In theory: Yes, as there is both amble legal room and
established competences to at least address and facilitate a
stronger focus on broader environmental concerns as part
of dialog to go beyond compliance.
• However, in practise, the direct regulation of companies is
still dominated by a traditional authority role focused on
the traditional environmental parameters
• and possible even more now than in the 90’ties.
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Perspectives
• A renewed focus on climate and discussions about green
growth might trigger a renewed focus on the need for
addressing broader environmental concerns as well as
reintroducing the more facilitative role.
• Several municipalities are starting to carry out EU financed
projects on this and are lobbying that Climate and energy is
a matter to be addressed by municipalities
• Furthermore different state agencies seems interested in
reopen the discussions.
• However, the public finances are still under pressure ,
which puts severe restraints on any new initiatives,
including the continuing of the current EU projects.
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