Political scientists have long been concerned about the tension between institutional fragmentation and policy coordination in the U.S. bureaucracy. The literature is rife with examples of agencies competing with each other or asserting their independence, while cooperation is relatively rare. This is of particular importance in policy areas such as biodiversity, where species, habitats, and ecosystems cross various agency jurisdictions.Bureaucratic Landscapes explores the reasons for the success and failure of interagency cooperation, focusing on several case studies of efforts to preserve biodiversity in California. The book examines why public officials tried to cooperate and the obstacles they faced, providing indirect evidence of policy impacts as well. Among other topics, it examines the role of courts in prompting agency action, the role of scientific knowledge in organizational learning, and the emergence of new institutions to resolve collective-action problems. Notable findings include the crucial role of environmental lawsuits in prompting agency action and the surprisingly active role of the Bureau of Land Management in resource preservation.
Author(s): Craig W. Thomas
Year: 2003
Language: English
Pages: 368
0262201410......Page 1
Contents......Page 8
Series Foreword......Page 10
Preface......Page 12
List of Abbreviations......Page 22
1 Fragmented Jurisdictions, Fragmented Habitat......Page 24
2 What Cooperation Means to Agency Officials......Page 50
3 The Emergence of Cooperation among Agency Directors......Page 90
4 Institutionalizing Cooperation......Page 130
5 The Klamath Bioregion: Local Cooperation and the Demise of the Bioregional Ideal......Page 176
6 The South Coast Bioregion: Making Cooperation Work through Regulation......Page 216
7 The San Joaquin Valley Bioregion: BLM’s Co-optation Strategy Fails at the Bioregional Level......Page 250
8 Explaining Interagency Cooperation: Or, Why the BLM Cooperates More Than the NPS......Page 280
Appendix A: Research Methodology......Page 304
Appendix B: Memorandum of Understanding on Biological Diversity......Page 310
Appendix C: Statement of Intent to Support the Agreement on Biological Diversity......Page 318
Notes......Page 322
References......Page 350
C......Page 370
E......Page 371
I......Page 372
L......Page 373
P......Page 374
T......Page 375
W......Page 376
