Abstract:
This is the first (A) in a set of five cases that examine the origins and implementation of the federal Environmental Protection Agency's Data Management Program, designed to use information about the sources and nature of pollution in ways the agency hoped would help provide a more complete picture of contamination, and thereby help prevent and reduce environmental hazards. From its origin in Georgia, the case series examines the route by which this enhanced data management concept was taken up by EPA headquarters in Washington and ultimately by a variety of states with varying enforcement mechanisms and relationships to the federal EPA. These include Maine, where technical and resource difficulties hamper implementation; New Hampshire, where the new program seems sharply circumscribed; Missouri, where the state's emphasis on long-range planning leads to tension with the EPA; and New Jersey, which had not traditionally looked to the federal agency for guidance or help. The A Case describes the origins of the data sharing approach pioneered in the state of Georgia.
