Democratic Freedoms and the Provision of Environmental Protection: The Role of the State.

Do political freedoms and other institutional variables within the control of government affect the provision of environmental protection, or is environmental protection a function of variables mostly outside the immediate control of the government? Previous research investigating the relationship between environmental protection and democratic freedoms has overestimated the significance of their impact mostly due to model specification bias. This paper evaluates the ability of the state to provide substantive environmental protection given its institutional constraints and external pressures. When seen in aggregate, environmental protection is a function of per capita income, the level of technology present in a nation, and the level of involvement of international environmental organizations. These findings provide qualified support for the I=PAT model of understanding environmental impact. Because these variables are mostly outside the control of the state, the state is limited in how it can provide environmental protection across a broad range of media and regulatory contexts. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]