Details zur Publikation

Kategorie Textpublikation
Referenztyp Zeitschriften
DOI 10.1007/s10657-009-9099-5
Volltext Shareable Link
Titel (primär) Explaining differences in EMAS participation rates across Europe: the importance of institutions, incomplete information and path dependence
Autor Wätzold, F.
Quelle European Journal of Law and Economics
Erscheinungsjahr 2009
Department OEKON
Band/Volume 28
Heft 1
Seite von 67
Seite bis 82
Sprache englisch
Keywords European environmental policy; Institutions; Incomplete information; Path dependence; Environmental management systems; Political economy; New institutional economics
Abstract What factors shape environmental policies across Europe? In order to answer this question most economists would probably adopt a Public Choice approach. This approach has convincingly explained some aspects of environmental policies that exist in a similar fashion across Europe. But why do many environmental policies differ across European countries? This article argues that in order to understand differences in environmental policies in Europe North's analysis of institutional change focusing on formal and informal institutions, incomplete information and path dependence is useful. North's approach is applied to explain differences in a particular field of European environmental policy: The implementation of the EU's Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) in Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK. The starting point of the analysis is the observation that participation of companies in EMAS markedly differs between countries. It is shown that these differences can be explained with differences in formal and informal institutions in the three Member States, incomplete information of relevant actors, and path dependence.
dauerhafte UFZ-Verlinkung https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=697
Wätzold, F. (2009):
Explaining differences in EMAS participation rates across Europe: the importance of institutions, incomplete information and path dependence
Eur. J. Law Econ. 28 (1), 67 - 82 10.1007/s10657-009-9099-5