Policy instruments and implementationencouraged further flouting of the law. Although Vogel’s work is now very
dated, the continuing troubles besetting the EPA, the widespread criticism
of the inflexibile US regulatory style and the repeated attempts to reform it,
suggest that these observations remain pertinent (Fiorino 2004 : 399). Observ-
ing that the more co-operative relations between regulator and regulated in
Britain ensured that the lower standards were at least implemented effec-
tively, Vogel concluded that different national regulatory styles have little
impact on policy outcomes. An alternative lesson might be that some kind
of halfway house is desirable between these two flawed regulatory systems.
Thus membership of the EU, with its high volume of environmental regula-
tion, may have produced some limited convergence of national regulatory
styles among member states (Jordan and Liefferink2004a). Britain, for exam-
ple, has adopted stricter standards, uniform targets, explicit monitoring and
review mechanisms and reduced discretion for local officials across a wide
range of environmental matters (Jordan 2002 ).
Although contextual factors, such as differing regulatory styles, may
influence the effectiveness of regulations, the wide-ranging criticism of
command-and-control methods has encouraged policymakers to cast around
foralternative policy instruments to achieve environmental policy goals.
The following sections first provide brief accounts of voluntary action and
government expenditure, and then a more detailed examination of market-
based instruments.
Critical question 2
To what extent does the effectiveness of ‘command-and-control’ instruments
depend on the national regulatory style?
◗ Voluntary action
Voluntary action involves individuals or organisations doing things to pro-
tect the environment that are neither required by law nor encouraged by
financial incentive. Voluntary action is the main way in which individuals,
bychanging their lifestyles and acting as ecological citizens, can contribute
totheachievement of a more sustainable society. Individuals can engage in
awide range of voluntary activities, including green consumerism, ethical
investment (see Chapter8), recycling and voluntary conservation work. The
government can encourage voluntary action through a range of communica-
tive strategies such as information campaigns setting out the environmen-
tal benefits of recycling drink containers or newspapers, extending citizen
rights to environmental information and making it easier for individuals
and organisations to take polluters to court.
Businesses may also choose to consider the environmental impact of
their activities, although the incentive is often to increase profits. Many
firms, encouraged by governments, have adopted Eco-Management and Audit