Implementing general environmental duties: challenges and opportunities

Joel Edwards, Eric Windholz, Nicholas Faulkner, Lara Werbeloff

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A general environmental duty is being implemented in Victoria as part of an overhaul of the jurisdiction's environmental protection regime. This is part of a growing international trend to replace or supplement prescriptive regulatory regimes with more general, principle-based standards. However, implementing a general environmental duty poses numerous challenges to regulators responsible for its implementation. This study systematically reviews the growing literature on general duties and their implementation to identify these challenges. Through a thematic synthesis of the published literature, we identify nine challenges relevant to the implementation of a general environmental duty. The article concludes by identifying four opportunities for regulators to address these challenges.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)474-492
Number of pages19
JournalAustralian Journal of Public Administration
Volume80
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2021

Keywords

  • general duty
  • general environmental duty
  • implementation
  • regulation
  • systematic review

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