Steve Cohen, Director of the MPA ESP Program, co-authors a new book

The Strategic Planning in Environmental Regulation: A Policy Approach that Works is a new book co-authored by Steven Cohen, Director of the Masters in Public Administration program in Environmental Science and Policy, which provides an innovative model for the design of effective environmental regulation. Cohen and co-authors Sheldon Kamieniecki, Professor of Political Science at the University of Southern California, and Matthew A. Cahn, Professor of Public Policy in the Department of Political Science at California State University, Northridge, propose a strategic regulatory model to ensure a correspondence between private behavior and public aims.

The proposed strategic model relies on a strong, interactive relationship between business and government, and considers a regulation’s objectives, target audience, and the nature of the regulatory agency in creating an effective plan. The authors consider two case studies—the use of the gasoline additive MTBE and the cleanup of underground storage tanks—to illustrate the application of their model. While the introduction of the additive MTBE was meant to produce cleaner-burning gas, it instead added to groundwater and air pollution. This case study demonstrates the weaknesses of a top-down, fragmented regulatory approach. On the other hand, the cleanup of underground storage tanks was a successful venture, because of its strategic, results-oriented method. Aware that regulation works better in some cases than others, the authors provide alternative approaches as well. The authors’ main goal is to lay an innovative groundwork to better environmental quality-control.

Cohen, Director of the Office of Educational Programs at the Earth Institute, has authored a number of books on public management and strategic planning. Recent books include The Effective Public Manager: Managing Public Policy in the Government, Non-Profit and For-Profit Sectors, and Tools for Innovators: Creative Strategies for Managing Public Sector Organizations, both co-authored with William Eimicke. Cohen’s next book, Understanding Environmental Policy, is forthcoming from
Columbia University Press. Cohen also teaches public management and earth systems management workshops at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, which train future environmental and public policy leaders in these effective regulatory and public policy approaches.