PART 3
Environmental policy:
achieving a sustainable society
The discussion of environmental policy in Part III is in many respects a long way
away from some of the abstract debates covered in Part , or even the ambitious
aspirations of some forms of environmental activism examined in Part. It
focuses on the practical challenges facing governments today. The
interdependence of environmental issues poses a distinctive set of problems
for policymakers. Few other policy areas can match it for sheer complexity. Nor
are failures in most other policy areas likely to be as catastrophic or
irredeemable as those affecting the environment, especially if the more
pessimistic harbingers of environmental doom are correct.
The belief that economic growth must be given priority over environmental
protection continues to govern the way many policymakers approach
environmental issues. This traditional policy paradigm has proved inadequate
for resolving the intractable problems posed by contemporary environmental
issues. Consequently, since the late 1980s, the alternative policy paradigm of
sustainable development has gradually come to dominate thinking about
environmental policy. The central premise of sustainable development is that
there need not be a trade-off between economic growth and environment; no
longer need policymakers think in terms of the environmentversusthe
economy. This message has made sustainable development politically
appealing, with most governments, international institutions, political parties,
business organisations and environmental NGOs now keen to proclaim their
commitment to sustainable development. The broad aim of Part III is to examine
the difficulties facing governments seeking to make the transition to sustainable
development.
The two opening chapters analyse the competing policy paradigms that
shape the way governments are responding to contemporary environmental