ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book suggests that Although the environmental policy paradox concept is useful for understanding problems in environmental policy, it does not apply to all situations equally well. The paradox of environmental policy is very useful, however, for understanding some aspects of the policy-making process, such as informal incentive systems that operate on policy makers. Students of the environmental policy process often question the ability of democratic political systems to cope with environmental problems. Some of the best-known observers of the environmental policy-making process and of environmental problems have concluded that existing governmental arrangements will fail. The extremism that polarizes blocks of people within a society can force those people into choosing between anarchy and repression. Polarizing forces such as terrorism, racism, or a rapidly deteriorating environment that disrupt society and accepted standards of living could force the choice.
