Focus: Public environmental information: Access or excess?

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Mike Sharpe


Abstract

Amongst the mass of academic papers and policy reports it is easy to forget that scientists and regulators are not the only ones concerned about the environment. The public has an interest too. Aided by modern technology and increasing legal rights, the man inb the street has access to environmental information as never before. In this article we review recent developments in public assess and what these mean for ‘the experts’.


References

  1. Public Access to Environmental Information, Ralph E. Hallo, European Environment Agency, Expcorerts Corner Number 1, 1997. Available at: www.eea.eu.int Search PubMed.
  2. Information Needs Assessment: Summary of Survey Results, Foundation Project, Minnesota Planning, St Paul, Minnesota, April 1998 Search PubMed.
  3. For a review of national policies and trends in the EU see Doors to Democracy: Current Trends and Practices in Public Participation in Environmental Decisionmaking in Western Europe, Regional Environmental Centre, Budapest, June 1998. Available at: www.rec.org Search PubMed.
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  5. ENDS Daily, 25th June 1998. See: www.ends.co.uk.
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  7. TRI data is available online at: www.epa.gov/opptintr/tri.
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  9. The UK National Air Quality Information Archive: www.aeat.co.uk/netcen/airqual/.
  10. No date available for launch of E2RC at time of going to press. For latest news see EEA website at: www.eea.eu.int.
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  12. For details of ChemRTK see: www.epa.gov/oppintr/chemrtk.
  13. Friends of the Earth Press Release 30th May 1999. Available at: www.foe.co.uk.
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