ABSTRACT
Environmental policy in the United States is largely seen as the domain of the national government, but there are good reasons to consider devolving some responsibilities for environmental policy to lower levels of government and even to private stewards. Especially when resource management issues do not involve large areas and when knowledge about the resource is localized, devolution can make sense. For example, depending on the permeability of aquifers, groundwater management could be more or less localized; in cases where aquifers are impermeable, one user’s actions might only affect immediate neighbors, making devolution more viable. On the other hand, with air quality management, especially with emissions that travel long distances in the atmosphere, higher levels of governmental regulation may be necessary.
