Environmental Regulation in China: Institutions, Enforcement, and Compliance

by Xiaoying Ma, Leonard Ortolano

Overview

Even though China has created an administrative structure and regulatory programs to curb pollution, environmental quality has continued to deteriorate. Are polluters following the rules? How do regulators and polluters alike respond to China's environmental controls? This thoroughly documented study examines these central questions by analyzing compliance with programs involving wastewater discharge standards, fees, and permits. The successes and failures of these programs are tracked in comprehensive case studies and remarkably candid surveys of factory managers in six Chinese cities. The authors' final chapter adds an international dimension by comparing Chinese water pollution control programs with their counterparts in the United States.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780847693993
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/26/2000
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.48(d)

About the Author

Xiaoying Ma is an environmental specialist with the Asian Development Bank in Manila. Leonard Ortolano is the UPS Foundation Professor of Civil Engineering at Stanford University.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Environmental Costs of China’s Economic Growth
Chapter 2 Programs Regulating Industrial Pollution
Chapter 3 Administrative Structures and Post-1978 Economic Reforms
Chapter 4 Organizations Influencing Industrial Pollution Control
Chapter 5 Informal Rules of Behavior Affecting Compliance
Chapter 6 Program Design and Compliance
Chapter 7 Enforcing Environmental Regulations
Chapter 8 Effects of Profit, Cost, and Ownership Form on Enterprises’ Response to Regulations
Chapter 9 Comparing China and the United States

Editorial Reviews

An excellent introduction into the use of various regulatory and economic instruments at the disposal of local Environment Protection Bureaus for regulating enterprise behavior.

China Information

The popular perception of China in the West is of rapid industrial growth with scant regard for the environment. Ma and Ortolano's timely book dispels this myth and reveals a complex system of environmental regulations albeit in a very different institutional setting to most western or, for that matter, developing countries. The book explores a wide field. One of its strengths is that it is equaly relevant for the China specialist as for the informed generalist impact assessment professional. This clearly written and easily read book is a must for anyone interested in environmental protection in China or indeed with China's evolving system of governance.

Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal

A reliable guide to the current state of environmental regulation. The book offers insights and cogent analysis. It will prove useful to those who wish to explore what kinds of environmental policies should be adopted in a country like China that is experiencing rapid economic and social change.

The China Journal

A worthy addition to the literature on public policy and environmental protection.

The China Quarterly

An excellent book. Ma and Ortolano have done a first-rate job covering the range of issues—from the evolution of SOEs and TVEs to the nature of Chinese negotiation and the importance of Confucian tradition. There is nothing in the literature to date that covers the same range of material in such a thorough and clearly articulated fashion. Moreover, the interdisciplinary nature of the research makes it unique and especially useful. Scholars, environmental scientists, and businesspeople will all find the book of importance.

Elizabeth Economy

A reliable guide to the current state of environmental regulation. The book offers insights and cogent analysis. It will prove useful to those who wish to explore what kinds of environmental policies should be adopted in a country like China that is experiencing rapid economic and social change.

China Journal

A worthy addition to the literature on public policy and environmental protection.

China Quarterly