Public Representation in Environmental Policymaking: The Case of Water Quality Management by Sheldon Kamieniecki

Author:Sheldon Kamieniecki [Kamieniecki, Sheldon]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780891588498
Google: NFjbAAAAMAAJ
Goodreads: 2937726
Publisher: Westview Press
Published: 1980-04-02T00:00:00+00:00

Summary and Conclusion

This chapter has sought to determine whether, and if so to what extent, there is a need for a wider range of public input into environmental planning. This was done by analyzing leaders' and citizens' responses, and leaders' predictions of citizens' responses to several related environmental planning questions. It was shown that a considerable number of leaders misjudged public opinion on two questions on which they were asked to predict the public's response (freedom versus planning and whether water quality problems should be turned over to a regional governmental body or should local governments make their own decisions). Except on the two questions concerning property rights, leaders and citizens tended to share similar views on planning issues. This suggests that on these issues, officials can better represent if they assume their own beliefs are the same as those held by the public. As an overall strategy for achieving representation, however, it is not foolproof. There is always the chance that their own beliefs will be different from those the public holds (as they are on the issues regarding property rights).

Group comparisons revealed that even if officials precisely discern public opinion, they can still misperceive the views of a specific public sector. Leaders cannot always assume that the opinion of the public at large is generalizable to various segments of the population. Since it is probable that different groups of people will hold different beliefs, a wider range of public input into planning is needed. Perhaps traditional mechanisms of political linkage are not enough to guarantee adequate representation in planning. This is not only a question of satisfying traditional principles of democratic theory which require fair representation for all, but also one of minimizing the chance that a certain segment of the population (such as blacks or rural residents) will find the final plan unacceptable.

The data also suggest that opposition to local "208" officials' efforts to improve water quality on a regional basis is most likely to come from those with little education. These individuals favor preserving their local autonomy and property rights rather than supporting attempts to further the common good. If they also desire cleaner water, they are experiencing (perhaps unknowingly) a value conflict. If this is true officials could minimize this conflict by providing additional information to those with little education. Otherwise, in order to develop an effective water quality plan for the region, it may be necessary for leaders to misrepresent the less educated.

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