Criteria for Successful Environmental Science Policies
Abstract
I. Disputes over values usually lie at the heart of environmental policy dilemmas. Under conditions of contested values, science is most likely to contribute to effective environmental policy making if: 1) the needs and capabilities of decision makers are well-understood, and research agendas respond directly to these needs and capabilities; 2) research agendas aim at expanding, rather than reducing, the range of options available to decision makers; and 3) research agendas support policy actions that are incremental, small-scale, and low-risk. II. High-profile environmental controversies (e.g., climate change, acid rain, radioactive waste disposal, endangered species, airborne particulate matter) are typically mischaracterized as disputes over facts that demand research agendas aimed at: 1) increased fundamental scientific understanding driven by basic research; 2) scientific identification of optimal decision pathways; and 3) scientific validation of grand, large-scale solutions. III. It is therefore unsurprising that the contribution of science to environmental policy making has often been disappointing.
- Publication:
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AGU Spring Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- May 2002
- Bibcode:
- 2002AGUSM.A42C..07S
- Keywords:
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- 6300 POLICY SCIENCES;
- 6309 Decision making under uncertainty;
- 6620 Science policy