ABSTRACT
An understanding of the process of environmental health policymaking requires knowledge of how government functions, since government is the primary source of environmental health policies, and also an appreciation of the influences that can impact policymaking. Described in this chapter is a summary of key steps in environmental policymaking, commencing with a description of factors that can influence the establishment of environmental health policies, followed by a simplified model of policymaking, a pressure-action-change-monitoring model. A particular kind of regulatory policy for controlling environmental hazards, called command and control, is discussed along with nonregulatory alternatives to command and control. The alternatives discussed are: litigation, market power, performance incentives, and the precautionary approach, along with the history and application of sustainable development as a consideration in environmental policymaking. A brief discussion of environmental ethics concludes the chapter, since a framework of ethical behavior should undergird any policy of environmental protection and public health practice.
