Increasing the Transparency of Environmental Regulation in India

A large body of evidence shows that particulate matter air pollution is harmful to human health and shortens life spans.¹ According to the World Health Organization, it affects more people than any other pollutant. There is no threshold below which no harm to health occurs and it is particularly harmful to children and infants. From 1990 to 1995 (most recent comparable data), India’s average particulate matter concentration was about five times larger than in the United States, and more than three times the Indian national standard.

Researchers are examining whether increased transparency about industrial plants’ particulate matter emissions can improve the enforcement of environmental laws and reduce pollution in India. Theory suggests that releasing actionable and understandable information to the public could improve regulatory accountability. Releasing information about government or firms’ activities could give citizens the means to monitor them, and give these actors, in turn, an incentive to act in the public interest. On the other hand, information alone may not change behavior if citizens do not have a clear mechanism to hold these actors accountable. It is also unclear which mechanisms for information collection and dissemination may be most effective.