Nanotechnology and the Future of Federal Environmental Regulation

Davies, J. Clarence. (2010) Nanotechnology and the Future of Federal Environmental Regulation. [Video] (Unpublished)

Video (QuickTime) J_Clarence_Davies.mov Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (91MB)

Abstract

The problems of regulatory oversight for nanotechnology are primarily problems with the U.S. regulatory system as a whole, not problems unique to nano. Also, nanotechnology is a harbinger of the environmental agenda of the future. The existing federal environmental regulatory system has become so weak as to be almost irrelevant. The four major regulatory agencies (EPA, FDA, OSHA, and CPSC) are starved for resources. The laws under which they operate are outdated and full of gaps and loopholes. The whole system is fragmented and unfocused, and the technological developments of the coming decades will widen the gap between what the government can do and the protection needed by the environment and the American public. The changes that need to be made are not incremental. A basic overhaul of the regulatory system is required. We need new institutions, new regulatory approaches, and new tools. The presentation will describe these needs in more detail as a way of stimulating the discussion about what the regulatory system of the future should be.

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