The Blame Game: Rethinking Ireland's Sustainable Development and Environmental PerformanceIrish Academic Press, 2007 - 278 pages Dr Flynn covers all of the above questions and more in his new book The Blame Game. A must-read for anyone interested in environmental issues in Ireland. Ireland's record in the field of environmental protection is one of the worst in Europe, and this book explores the reasons why. It examines the evolution of Irish environmental policy over the so-called 'Celtic Tiger' years of Ireland's economic boom while looking to the future as well. It considers why Ireland's environmental performance has been so lacklustre during this period, and what scope exists for improvement. The emphasis is placed primarily on institutional aspects of Irish environmental policy. In particular, this book offers a strong critique of the current Irish style of reaching environmental decisions, an excessive dependence on legal instruments, and a weak Irish local government system. The author further argues that Ireland has developed an institutional style of policy-making that urgently needs reform. He suggest a number of discreet but related problems that need to be understood and addressed. These include an excessive adversarial style of interaction between environmentalists, the Irish state, and business - the 'blame game' described in the title. Also fatal, is a complacency among the Irish policy elite, who have chosen to downplay environmental problems and continue to think of environmental policy as merely about corrective regulation, rather than adopting the wider and more ambitious vision of sustainable development. Individual chapters cover a range of topics, and the book will appeal to readers interested in comparative environmental policy and politics, the role of institutions in environmental policy-making, or indeed anyone keen to understand the post 'Celtic Tiger' politics and society of an Ireland in transition.Ã?Â?Ã?Â? |
From inside the book
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Page 16
... environmentalists displayed towards theirs . However , her soothing and virtuous Scandinavian advice to calm the conflict down and invite environmentalists into the policy process was largely treated with a mix of incomprehension and ...
... environmentalists displayed towards theirs . However , her soothing and virtuous Scandinavian advice to calm the conflict down and invite environmentalists into the policy process was largely treated with a mix of incomprehension and ...
Page 113
... environmentalists who see in it a synonym for ' sell - out ' and for government or businesses who interpret it as meaning ' time - delay ' . Litigation has emerged as the chief symptom of this visceral antipathy between environmentalists ...
... environmentalists who see in it a synonym for ' sell - out ' and for government or businesses who interpret it as meaning ' time - delay ' . Litigation has emerged as the chief symptom of this visceral antipathy between environmentalists ...
Page 178
... Environmentalists are a notable omission from existing social partnership . No environmentalists are members of the National Economic and Social Council ( NESC ) , a ' think tank ' which undertakes research and stimulates debate on ...
... Environmentalists are a notable omission from existing social partnership . No environmentalists are members of the National Economic and Social Council ( NESC ) , a ' think tank ' which undertakes research and stimulates debate on ...
Contents
A Comparative Critique | 40 |
A Brief History of Irish | 85 |
A Reform Agenda | 176 |
Copyright | |
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April argued Askeaton Available average blame game Bord Pleanála capita carbon tax CEC/Commission Celtic Tiger cent chapter CHART climate change CO₂ Commission controversial countries County Council Court debate DELG/Department Denmark Dublin Dúchas ecological modernization ecological modernization approach economic EEA/European Environment Agency emissions trading enforcement environmental issues environmental laws Environmental Performance environmental problems Environmental Protection environmentalists EPA/Environmental Protection Agency European Communities European Environment example Forfás funding Government Stationery Office Greece greenhouse gas greenhouse gas emissions Heritage Council IBEC implementation incineration increase industrial infrastructure institutional Ireland's environmental Irish authorities Irish environmental policy Irish environmentalists Irish government Kyoto landfill Luxembourg measures Minister monitoring motorway O'Brien OECD Office for Official Official Publications packaging waste political pollution Portugal Press Release public transport recycling reduce reform regulation regulatory renewable energy REPAK sector serious simply strategy sustainable development Taisce tonnes trends waste management Wexford