Policy Study No. 265 Environmental Flexibility in Action: A Minnesota Case Study By David W. Riggs and Christopher A. Hartwell Executive Summary ver the past few decades, Minnesota has generally followed a command-and-control approach to managing and protecting its environment. Once an environmental problem was identified, regulators prescribed uniform pollution-control remedies and environmental standards across the state. This approach to managing the environment commanded a growing share of resources. But the advent of differing and varied environmental problems, coupled with the shortcomings of command- and-control regulations, prompted Minnesota’s environmental authority⎯the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA)⎯to begin adopting a new vision of environmental policy. State regulators and others are exploring new ways to utilize environmental protection dollars more effectively and efficiently. Three case studies highlight the MPCA’s move toward flexibility in protecting the environment. These programs emphasize attaining environmental performance goals instead of relying solely on traditional punitive measures and compliance with prescribed standards: A voluntary program to remediate brownfields is helping companies avoid the cumbersome Superfund process while ensuring the clean-up of unused industrial sites; A breakthrough pollution-trading program by the Rahr Malting Company has applied market mechanisms to water pollution control; achieving cleaner water than under the old system, and Experimentation with multimedia, facilitywide standards is underway at the Andersen Window Corpor- ation, reducing regulatory burden while protecting the environment. Besides demonstrating an effective alternative to traditional command-and-control regulation, the Minnesota experience also illustrates some of the challenges faced by those orchestrating a shift to more flexible, results-focused policy. Other states that are interested in moving away from command-and-control methods can profit from the lessons that Minnesota learned: O