Thesis (M.M. (Public and Development Management))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, Wits School of Governance, 2017 / This thesis was greatly motivated by the desire to understand and explain the foreign policy decision making process of the South African government on climate change. The study deploys Allison and Zelikow’s triple model from their famous analysis of the Cuban Missile Crisis as lenses in unmasking the complexities associated with processes of foreign policy decision making, on climate decisions in South Africa. In spite of the multi-sectoral interventions of government, business, NGO’s, civil society and academics in mitigating the impact of climate change, the decision making process excluded participation of other stakeholders at the political level. This was evident in 2009 at Copenhagen when the president announced that South Africa had committed itself to reduce carbon emissions by 34% in 2020 and 42% in 2025. A possible explanation why the multi-stakeholders participation was excluded in setting these numerical targets in the climate change decision making process, lies with the failure of the incumbent government to uphold the democratic principles of inclusive participation. Drawing from the work of Allison and Zelikow (1999), that state that it is not adequate to explain government’s events on decision making through the Rational Actor Model only, it is more useful to also consider the organisational processes and government politics from which the decision emerged. In this regard, interviews and documentary analysis were deployed within a qualitative case study design to gain an indepth understanding of South African foreign policy decision making processes on climate change targets. Overwhelmingly, the study established that there was a gross exclusion of multi-stakeholders participation in foreign policy decision making on setting the climate targets, ignoring the effects of the outcome of those decisions on socio-economic issues. This study therefore concluded that, although efforts are being put into place to ensure maximum participation by both government and other actors, there is still a need for South African government to allow participation of external actors. Premised in the forgoing conclusion, it is recommended that South African government foreign policy decisions on climate change can work better if entrenched on other multi-stakeholders’ decisions and following inclusive participation at the political level. / GR2018

Thesis (MBA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / The objective of this study was to determine the environmental impact of agricultural inputs, to know if the environmental impacts of agricultural inputs have environmental costs, and to know who bears the environmental costs of agricultural inputs. Using a purposive sampling method, the researcher studied six farms from Chief Albert Luthuli Municipal area, Mpumalanga. The research design for the study was a mix of qualitative and quantitative research approaches. Data collection was from primary and secondary sources. Data was collected from the six farmers in Albert Lithulu, in addition secondary data was collected from the archives of Index Mundi, the University of Pretoria, the US EPA and the World Bank. Using a mix of correlation and regression analysis, findings from the study provided an answer to the three research objectives. Findings from the analysis of correlation and regression indicated that agricultural input (fertilizer, used in this study) does affect the environment; it causes an agricultural induced emission of greenhouse gases (nitrous oxide and methane). Furthermore, findings from analysis of potential environmental costs of environmental impacts (methane and nitrous oxide) showed that agricultural inputs have social costs for South Africa. Furthermore, the final findings in this study showed that the environmental costs from agricultural inputs are born by the victims. Consequently the study recommends additional environmental regulation to enable farmers internalise some of the environmental costs of agricultural inputs that are born by victims. Further research is suggested to determine the model that may be used to internalise environmental costs of agricultural inputs back to the farms. Key Words: farms, environmental costs, agricultural inputs, externalities

Providing energy security and diversifying the energy production in India align with the country’s rising power ambitions and policy goals to industrialize. Renewable energy provides a useful tool for the state to meet these policy goals without producing more air pollution and additional environmental degradation. The Central Government has international ambitions of with becoming a rising responsible power; these aspirations have created new resources, incentives, and policy ideas for the subnational states in India. The purpose of this thesis is to map out the motivations, interests, and incentives of subnational elites in devising policies to promote renewable energy development in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Gujarat, and Rajasthan. I develop an analytical framework based on four variables: 1) state-level party politics, 2) financial space/ indebtedness of state distribution companies, 3) institutional knowledge in state-level nodal renewable energy agencies, and 4) state-level linkages with the private sector to examine different modes of vertical alignment that subnational actors employ to develop renewable energy policies. I find that environmental concerns weren’t the primary driver of renewable energy development; instead, environmental benefits were an unintended outcome of private sector actors and state elites coordinating with the Central Government to address the pressing needs of ensuring reliable energy for industry leaders. In particular, Kerala demonstrates that even when active environmental movements and popular support exists for renewable energy, unless there are active private sector linkages, renewable energy development will remain slow. These findings may be very helpful for central government officials in India and state-level bureaucrats trying to devise climate change mitigation policies on the subnational level. Moreover, international climate change negotiators could use these findings to engage with India more to accelerate renewable energy development to slow anthropogenic climate change.

Waste generation in the United States is at an all time high. Over half of the country’s waste goes to landfill, yet 70 percent of this waste can be recycled or composted. Since landfills pose one of the largest manmade threats to the environment, sustainable waste management strategies should focus on landfill diversion. A successful waste recovery program needs to engage the public, and ensure individuals participate correctly in available waste management systems. This paper sheds light on effective education and awareness strategies used to encourage participation in local waste management systems and promote landfill diversion. By highlighting successful programs employed in San Francisco, a city with the nation’s highest landfill diversion rate, and other communities around the nation, I synthesize a list of measures that can change community behavior surrounding waste management.

To mitigate flood hazard, which affects millions of people every year, increasing numbers of communities are developing green infrastructure policies to not only mitigate the hazard, but to meet other community policy objectives, as green infrastructure is often cited for the multiple benefits it confers. To support the implementation of policies that help communities meet their policy objectives, however, it is imperative to understand how policy is innovated and adopted. To do so, I applied the internal determinants and regional diffusion models, what I refer to as the lone wolf and copycat models. In policy, a lone wolf innovates a policy to meet a specific, internal objective; this objective may include economic, environmental, or social needs. A copycat evaluates the efficacy of a policy in other municipalities before adopting it for its own use. Because infrastructure is one of the primary routes of implementing flood hazard and floodplain management policies, I developed a framework that describes the relationship between these two models. In this framework, a community may rely more heavily on either gray or green infrastructure, while also being more of a lone wolf or copycat in the ways in which it adopts policy. Based on this framework, I analyzed four Oregon communities -- Eugene, Milton-Freewater, Prineville, and Sherwood -- that exemplify these different infrastructure and policy approaches. From this case study analysis, I developed several propositions to explain why each community pursued certain policies. I then expanded this research to floodplain administrators across the state, using a key informant questionnaire to capture the managerial and demographic characteristics that correlate with the adoption of green infrastructure in over 100 Oregon communities. I found that urbanization strongly correlated with the use of green infrastructure, as did a floodplain administrator having professional experience with flooding, being knowledgeable about flood mitigation infrastructure, and talking more frequently to other floodplain administrators. Finally, I use my research framework for an in-depth case study of the internal determinants model. I focus on a community in the Portland metropolitan area, Sherwood, and a program the community developed in the early 1990s to protect extensive areas of open space, greenways, and floodplains to preserve a unique community identity. In pursuing these objectives, Sherwood spearheaded the creation of the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, the first urban wildlife refuge in the country.

The diffuse runoff of agricultural nutrients, also called agricultural nonpoint source pollution (NPS), is a widespread threat to freshwater resources. Despite decades of research into the processes of eutrophication and agricultural nutrient management, social, economic, and political barriers have slowed progress towards improving water quality. A critical challenge to managing agricultural NPS pollution is motivating landowners to act against their individual farm production incentives in response to distant ecological impacts. The complexity of governing the social-ecological system requires improved understanding of how policy shapes farmer behavior to improve the state of water quality. This dissertation contributes both theoretically and empirically to NPS pollution governance by examining the impacts of water quality policy design on farmer nutrient management decision making and behavior. In the first study, I theoretically contextualize the issue of agricultural NPS pollution in the broader discussion of environmental public goods dilemmas to suggest that an increased focus on the link between policy and behavior can improve sustainable resource management. I propose two empirical approaches to study the policy-behavior link in environmental public goods dilemmas: 1) explicit incorporation of social psychological and behavioral variables and 2) utilization of actor mental models, or perceptions of the world that guide decision making, to identify behavioral drivers and outcomes. In the second and third studies, I then use these approaches to examine how water quality policies for agricultural NPS collectively change farmer behavior to reduce nutrient emissions. The second chapter uses a quantitative, survey-based approach to examine the relationship between mandatory policy design and behavior change in New Zealand. I find that a shift to mandatory policy is not immediately associated with increased adoption of nutrient management practices, but the mandatory policy design is important for potential future behavior change and long-term policy support. In the third study, I combine qualitative methodology with network analysis of qualitative data to examine a spectrum of agricultural NPS pollution policies in Vermont, USA and Taupo and Rotorua, New Zealand. I use farmer mental models to examine behavior change within each of the regions, the perceived drivers of behavior change and perceived outcomes of the policy. In this study, farmers across all three regions cite mandatory water policy as a key behavioral driver, but in each region, policy design interacts with the social-ecological context to produce distinct patterns of behaviors and perceived outcomes. Taken together, this dissertation demonstrates that agricultural NPS pollution policy design must consider the interactions between policy and other social-ecological behavioral drivers in order to achieve long term water quality improvements.

Ineffective environmental policies pose a problem for municipalities as they strive to create sustainable communities. Improving these policies may establish standard practices that assist municipalities in meeting related environmental goals. Statistics show the municipalities within this study operate at different levels of goal achievement. Little is known, however, about the influences that directly affect the development of environmental policies. The purpose of this study was to determine the ways in which public officials address environmental issues and the factors considered in policy discussions that lead to their decisions. The theoretical framework comprised Sabatier and Jenkins-Smith's advocacy coalition and Arrow's rational choice theory. This phenomenological study explored the experiences of city council members within a region of 10 cities in southern California. Interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of 5 city council members from 4 adjoining cities, 1 city staff member, and 1 agency representative with knowledge of all 10 cities. Data were analyzed with 3 cycles of coding to identify themes and patterns. Emergent themes included meeting community needs, educating the public, being fiscally responsible, and "doing the right thing." Participants recognized the effect of their personal influences and biases, particularly religious beliefs, on environmental policy decisions, although political affiliation appeared to be unrelated to these biases. The implications for positive social change include informing and educating both public officials and community members about regional environmental issues and their related community needs and goals.

While communities in the United States are already experiencing the effects of climate change, scientists project that sea level rise, increased precipitation, and record-breaking extreme weather events will devastate vulnerable regions in the following decades. The absence of federal strategies for climate change adaptation leaves state and city governments with broad discretion to undertake climate change adaptation measures. Yet cities may be unable to adapt to climate change without external assistance, particularly in states where the state leadership has not recognized the need to provide political and financial support to local governments. Collaboration allows cities to pool resources and work across boundaries to ameliorate significant problems such as climate change. Scholars of public administration have extensively researched collaboration. However, we still know little about what factors facilitate horizontal collaboration and why and how collaborative governance may lead to improved policy outputs and outcomes. Using the case of sea level rise preparedness in US cities, this dissertation contributes to better understanding of horizontal collaboration and its effects on public service provision. The analysis draws on quantitative data from surveys, administered to US municipal governments, and qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with city officials. This research has several principal findings. First, organizational propensity to collaborate on sea level rise preparedness is driven by leadership that recognizes the value and need for collaboration, and internal organizational characteristics. Second, horizontal collaboration helps cities advance plans for sea level rise adaptation, particularly when partnering with institutions of higher learning and businesses. Third, the findings show that collaboration with other municipalities and businesses is a positive contributing factor toward better preparedness for sea level rise in US cities. By shedding more light on horizontal collaboration as a tool to help cities adapt to changes in climate, the study contributes to two bodies of literature, including research on climate change policy and collaborative governance. The study also provides a number of recommendations to local policy makers and public administrators on how to facilitate horizontal collaboration to utilize local resources in public problem-solving.

Although water is considered a renewable resource, there is only a fixed amount of water available. No additional water can be made, and we cannot easily control how fast water is recycled or in what form it will appear and where. With expected growth in the world’s population and economy, the same amount of water must supply more needs. Taking into account climate change projections and water-related environmental stresses, even less water might be available for human uses. People will need to decide how to serve a multitude of water needs. This dissertation uses the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s (SNWA) Groundwater Development Project to investigate how water policy designs handle the challenges of meeting urban and rural as well as human and ecological water needs when allocating scarce water supplies. The Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) plans to build a pipeline to transfer groundwater from five rural basins in northeastern Nevada 300 miles south to the Las Vegas metropolitan area in Southern Nevada. SNWA has asked the Nevada State Engineer to approve its water right applications to develop and use groundwater from these rural basins. One of the basins, Snake Valley, straddles the border between Nevada and Utah. An interstate agreement allocating the groundwater between the two states is required before the State Engineer can approve water rights that would be diverted from Snake Valley. We found that policy debates and people’s rationales for how water should be allocated revolved around disagreements over beneficial use. In addition, water agreements need to be designed so that the risks from hydrologic uncertainties and impacts from other users are also apportioned clearly and equitably. Policy designs are purposefully crafted and have enormous impact, yet analysis of the actual contents of policies and their societal impacts has not received adequate attention within the policy sciences. The significance of this research is that it focuses on the foundational principles and rules for the allocation of scarce water resources that must necessarily balance urban and rural interests as well as human and environmental needs.

For the past 50 years, Americans have turned to the federal government to solve pressing environmental problems like air and water pollution and climate change. Major environmental policies have helped improve environmental quality to varying degrees, but these policies also have resulted in negative consequences, such as high costs, inefficiency, violations of property rights, or environmental degradation. By applying public choice theory to the evolution of federal environmental policies, we can understand how negative consequences have arisen from seemingly good intentions. Public choice theory rejects the romantic notion that government officials work solely for the public good. Legislators and bureaucrats are rationally self-interested individuals who try to make themselves better off, like all people. Because legislators are interested in reelection and maximizing their power, they respond to special interest groups and lobbyists who can benefit them. Legislators often codify special benefits for certain companies or industries within environmental legislation and choose winners and losers, regardless of the economic or environmental outcomes. Environmental policies distort markets, altering the price signals that communicate what people value and imposing higher costs on taxpayers and consumers. Legislators often write environmental laws vaguely, giving bureaucrats wide discretion on how to implement the laws. Bureaucrats often write environmental regulations quickly and without scientific evidence or limited economic considerations, making many of the regulations costly and ineffective in many cases. The number of regulations also grows each year, raising compliance costs while the marginal benefit of these regulations continues to decline. Major federal environmental policies have had negative consequences, but experts have debated whether these outcomes were or were not intentional. Key politicians and bureaucrats may want to keep the current flawed laws in place because either they or their friends benefit from the status quo. Regardless of the intentionality or unintentionality of these negative consequences, large-scale federal environmental policies have provided decades of evidence that even the most nobly intended laws have significant drawbacks of which the public should be aware.