Re-engineering the Legal and Policy Regimes on Environment

Environment impact assessment was supposed to be a critical tool in environmental decision making. But it has been re-engineered to severely reduce its usefulness as an instrument for public participation in decision-making. This article, written against the backdrop of proposals for a new coastal regulation zone notification, analyses the different characteristics of environmental regulations and the new environment policy, and shows how a new perspective facilitates speedy clearance of projects that affect people’s livelihoods and the environment.b