This work develops a framework for cross-national comparisons on laws and regulations regarding contaminated land and polluted properties, their clean-up and re-use, and the assignment of costs and responsibilities for reclamation.
Contents:
Part 1 Introduction - the contaminated land problem: what is the problem?; contaminated land politics, policy and planning; comparative analysis and our logic of argument; the extent of the contaminated land problem; who is hurt by contaminated and clean-up costs and delays?; costs associated with contaminated land clean-up efforts.
Part 2 Dimensions of national contaminated land policy contexts: past environmental experiences - accidents, exposures and ""disasters""; the state politico-legal context; the locus of control over the use of land; approaches to liability for damages and clean-ups; access to capital and liability insurance; current policy and political pressures.
Part 3 The emergence of environmental concern and toxics policy in the United States: the emergence of US environmentalism; the Environmental Protection Agency; the regulation of hazardous substances and wastes - the 1970's development of concern over toxics, the coming of Superfund, the initial implementation of CERCLA, the coming of SARA.
Part 4 The CERCLA experience and debates over change: national priority list clean-ups - costs of NPL remediation projects, prioritizing clean-ups, clean-up standards, need for greater community involvement; financing the fund; liability provisions under CERCLA - equity issues - de minimis contributors, future (prospective liability, problems of lender liability, other unanticipated CERCLA liability; the impact of CERCLA on Brownfield Redevelopment - CERCLA impacts on access to capital, lender transaction costs, perceived potential losses attributable to contamination; state legislation to ""solve"" the redevelopment problem - property transfer laws and covenants not to sue, financial assistance programmes, permitting variation in standards of cleanliness depending on future use; recent CERCLA re-authorization and change proposals; examples of CERCLA success.
Part 5 The European context and European Union environmental policy: which ""Europe""? - the European Union, the new European architecture; European Union environmental control powers - principles of EU environment policy, why an EU environment policy?, responsbility for EU environmental policy-making; implementation of the EU environmental programme - modes of EU policy implementation, trans-national urban competition and networking, planning and land policies in the member-states; the rationale for an EU contaminated land policy.
Part 6 Contaminated land policy in the European Union and its member-states.
Part 7 Comparisons and contrasts - integrated comparative analysis.
Part 8 Lessons for future contaminated land policy - prospects and pitfalls. (Part contents)
