changing production processes to avoid using substances that ultimately
become pollution. However, the advantage of this additional reporting is
unclear, because firms' use of chemicals does not affect the environment
unless it results in releases (which are already reported). The affected firms
oppose this expansion because they believe it will make the TRI disclose
information that is much more sensitive than the information it currently
provides.

Policies for hazardous wastes and toxic substances in the United States rely
on various strategies. A few of the programs discussed in this chapter--
RCRA, TSCA, and FIFRA--have traditional regulatory structures. Under
these programs, EPA has the authority to choose the appropriate behavior
and enforce industry compliance. However, the economic and environmental
effects of these programs extend beyond the direct restrictions in the policies.
For example, by raising waste management costs, RCRA may create desirable
incentives for reduced waste generation as well as detrimental incentives for
increased illegal disposal. Similarly, both TSCA and FIFRA could affect the
characteristics of the products that manufacturers decide to bring to market,
as well as the innovative activity in which they engage.

In addition to these indirect influences, some of these public policies
intentionally provide incentives to polluters. Legal liability plays an impor-
tant role, especially in the control of hazardous wastes. Superfund and RCRA
(through its Corrective Action program and financial responsibility require-
ments) create incentives for firms to manage wastes in ways that avoid future
cleanup costs.

Several policies also provide information as an incentive device. The TRI
is the purest application of this approach, but other policies have similar
intentions. For example, TSCA aims to gather information about the toxicity
characteristics of chemicals and to make this information available to the
public.

This hybrid of direct regulations and indirect incentives heightens the
need to focus on the environmental impacts of these public policies. Greater
attention to the precise damages caused by the regulated pollutants would
help in designing programs. Setting policy targets that differ from the true
environmental goal can result in unintended effects and unnecessary costs.
Focusing on the environmental ends can help us choose policies that success-
fully achieve environmental benefits but are consistent with other social
goals.

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