Environmental Policy and Environment-oriented Technology Policy in the Netherlands

This chapter presents an overview of the Dutch environmental policy (EP) and environment-oriented technology policy (ETP). The main aim is to give insights into some of the recent modifications and innovations in both EP and ETP systems, and to trace some of these changes back to the historical roots of EP and ETP in the Netherlands. The paper starts with an overview of environmental policy in the Netherlands, and a description of the standard EP system. This is followed by an introduction to recent developments in Dutch environmental policy. These involve the system of environmental planning, the focussing on target groups, the use of negotiated agreements, and stimulating the introduction of environmental management systems in companies. The next section focuses on environment-oriented technology policy. An overview of the development of ETP is provided by evaluating the main policy documents. Following this, the standard ETP system, the technology subsidy scheme, is reviewed. The main institutions and instruments are described in section 5.2 and the implementation of technology policy at the national and regional levels is explained. A number of new developments are then presented. The paper concludes with a review of the inter-policy co-ordination between EP and ETP in the Netherlands