Print this pageRegulation and Science: Marriage or Divorce?
SCHMITT, HARRISON H.
Few models exist in our federal government's history that support the bureaucratic marriage of regulation and science in government. Indeed, several examples exist that would argue for clear separation and, conversely, several exist that would indicate that separation works remarkably well. In general, it appears that separation of topical scientific research from regulatory functions enables the affected private and public sectors of society to work together in an atmosphere of cooperation rather than distrust and prevents the politically dominant regulators from forcing "science to support their political inclinations.
One option in the field of environment and natural resources research and regulation would be the consolidation of all research related to environment and natural resources in a single, independent agency. Existing entities that would be included in such an agency include those of the USGS, Biological Survey, Bureau of Mines, and NOAA as well as the environment and natural resource research activities in EPA, DOE, DOD, NASA, and DOI.