Environmental Law from the Policy Perspective : Understanding How Legal Frameworks Influence Environmental Problem Solving

Government at the federal, state, and local levels is currently moving holistically in a direction where officials are taking on a more direct (regulatory) role in environmental issues. Responding to this trend, this text presents an overview of the environment focused on practical regulation and management, who the players are, and how the law factors in. It details types of law (common, statutory, regulatory) and frameworks (legislative, executive, and judicial) relevant to environmental issues. The book concludes with coverage of policies and acts by application type (pollution, land use, waste, energy).

Most books on environment law focus on the law first, and then look at how environmental problems are dealt with in relation to the law. Taking a fresh approach, Environmental Law from the Policy Perspective: Understanding How Legal Frameworks Influence Environmental Problem Solving examines environmental problems first, followed by an examination of legal frameworks and how they impact environmental issues. This approach provides a clearer understanding of the relationship between the law and environment by examining environmental issues from an applied perspective.

By first focusing on environmental problems without constraining the analysis to a particular legal framework, this book fosters a more holistic discussion of environmental issues that include scientific, social, economic, and political contexts. It examines how laws affect the adaptation of policy, how policy is legitimized into statutory law, and how the law is impacted in practice. The text then underscores how interpretation of the law affects its application to different factual settings.

Written by an environmental law expert who teaches environmental law to those not trained in legal theory, the book provides insights into the way environmental issues are "ingested" into a legal process. The author demystifies environmental law as a concept by applying it through the lens of environmental problem solving. Once you have a clear picture of the role legal frameworks have in managing environmental issues, you will be able to take a deeper policy-oriented approach to environmental problems.