Chapter 3 How the study of Congress and the environment can help us understand vexing problems of representation
Article Category:
Handbook Chapter
Publication Date:
15 Apr 2020
Page Range:
25–38
Collections:
Social and Political Science 2020
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4337/9781788972840.00009
Restricted access

Environmental problems are very often collective action problems that involve uneven spatial distributions of costs and benefits. These two attributes of environmental problems intersect with features of Congress – uneven representation and minority veto points – to produce four problems of representation: non-majoritarian policy; gridlock; environmental justice problems; and cross-cutting cleavages. This chapter examines how the study of environmental politics can advance our understanding of these fundamental problems of representation, illustrating each with an example and organizing existing literature to help to identify productive areas for future research.

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Cover Handbook of U.S. Environmental Policy
Handbook of U.S. Environmental Policy
Handbook
Publication Date:
15 Apr 2020
Print ISBN:
9781788972833
eISBN:
9781788972840
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4337/9781788972840
Page Count:
512
Collections:
Social and Political Science 2020
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