Democracy, Dialogue and Environmental Disputes The Contested Languages of Social Regulation Bruce A. Williams, Albert R. Matheny

This book addresses the conundrum of environmental regulation by tracing its source to the competing characterizations of regulatory legitimacy that have accompanied the growth of the American state. The authors propose a dialogic model for analyzing regulatory policymaking and apply their analysis to case studies of actual environmental disputes.

"An excellent book ... An impressive contribution to the study of social regulation, democratic theory, and hazardous waste politics and policy. It delivers one of the few sophisticated treatments of the conundrum involving the relationship between environment and democracy". -- Daniel Press, American Political Science Review

"Ambitious and broad-ranging ... a well written and documented overview both theoretical and applied, of one aspect of social regulation, hazardous waste regulation.... The work represents a valuable addition to the understanding of the policy process". -- Martin King, Journal of Economic Issues

"The focus on dialogue and the role of language provides an interesting contribution". -- Douglas J. Crawford-Brown, American Scientist