Pollution control and the rule of law.

The thesis is an attempt to apply the rule of law to pollution control, the aim being to
discover whether one form of environmental regulation can be regarded as more
constitutionally legitimate than another. The thesis begins with a detailed discussion of the
rule of law. In the first chapter, I suggest that the rule of law cannot simply be 'intuitively
realised', but rather that the values associated with it must be accounted for through
theoretical analysis. Immanent critique is rejected as a theoretical technique in favour of
Dworkin's 'constructive interpretation'. The latter approach yields the rule of law values of
equity, accountability, efficiency, certainty and effectiveness. Future chapters involve the
application of these values to specific modes of pollution control. In chapter two, the
'command-and-control' regulatory systems operated by HMIP, the NRA, local authorities
(air pollution control and waste regulation) and water and sewerage companies are analysed
in terms of rule of law values - except for accountability which is discussed separately and in
much greater depth in chapters 3 to 6. In these four chapters, I begin by examining general
accountability mechanisms before exploring accountability for specific decisions such as the
setting of ambient standards, the setting of emission/process standards and finally,
monitoring and enforcement. Having discussed command-and-control approaches to
pollution control, chapter 7 proceeds to examine market mechanisms of environmental
regulation in terms of the rule of law values. The values are first applied to pollution taxes
and tradeable permits at an abstract level; they are then applied to the existing cost-recovery
charging schemes operated by the various regulatory bodies. Finally, in chapter eight I
attempt to apply the rule of law values to 'market approaches' to pollution control such as
environmental management and audit, green consumerism and investment, government industry contracts and civil liability. The conclusion of the thesis then assesses the success
or otherwise of the practical application of the rule of law that has been attempted in
previous chapters. It considers whether one can use the rule of law as a benchmark of
legitimacy to conclude that one form of pollution control is more constitutionally legitimate
than another.