Regulation from above or below: Port greening measures in the European Union and the United States

• Published in: Regulation & governance 2024-01, Vol.18 (1), p.33-52
• Main Authors: DeSombre, Elizabeth R., Knudsen, Jette Steen, Elder, Molly
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: environmental regulation; European Union (EU); Policy making; ports; Regions; Regulation; shipping; United States (US)
• ISSN: 1748-5983; 1748-5991
• DOI: 10.1111/rego.12510

Focusing on 23 greening measures, this paper systematically compares the greening efforts of the busiest container and cargo ports in the United States (US) and the European Union (EU). We move beyond accounts for general environmental differences between the EU and the US to examine how specific environmental decisions are shaped by the effects of regulatory characteristics in each region. We identify systematic variation in number and type of port greening measures adopted in the two regions. We demonstrate that differences in the number and type of measures adopted reflect the level of policy making with local policy making playing a more important role in the US compared to the EU, thus proposing a pathway through which the form of regulatory approach could influence content and extent of regulation. The EU adopts regulation that is broader in scope while US ports are more likely to address problems affecting local populations.