An evaluation of environmental interest groups and their effort to influence environmental policy in Delaware
Date
2011
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Environmental interest groups are critical to the conservation and protection of environmental resources. They play an essential role in the public policy process by bringing attention to environmental issues, building support for change, and lobbying for new laws. These organizations have been studied extensively at the national scale, but our understanding of them at the state level is incomplete. This thesis is the first comprehensive description of the environmental interest groups active in Delaware. The research provides an inventory and characterization of Delaware's environmental interest group community. Seventy-two environmental organizations comprised of local, statewide, regional, and national groups with activity in Delaware were identified and surveyed. Analysis shows this community is comprised of a diverse group of formal and informal organizations with varying missions, funding, and staffing resources. The existing core of Delaware organizations has shown considerable resiliency, with an average age of 22 years. The network of environmental interest organizations does have a substantial base of resources, including funding, staffing, and volunteers. Collectively they utilize an estimated $8-10 Million in annual operating funds, 115 paid professional staff, and volunteer services from a reported 2,380 to 4,485 volunteers with an estimated value of $4.3 to $8.5 million for work in Delaware. Delaware's environmental organizations have broad issue agendas with significant implications for collective action. They use a limited range of traditional tactics to influence policy. When attempting to influence environmental policy, the groups work in a challenging social and political context of insider politics where environmental interest groups are usually outsiders. In Delaware, there may be negative consequences for environmental advocacy, with 45% of the organizations reporting they had experienced or suspected retribution for advocacy efforts. This study demonstrates that environmental interest groups are well-established in Delaware, have diverse interests and capacity, and have interest in public policy advocacy. While they likely have some impact on environmental resources through a wide range of programs, they have limited resource capacity to influence environmental policy. Despite this finding, they have a solid base of bench strength upon which to build and opportunities to be more effective in the future.