Policies on Exportation of Hazardous Substances in Western Developed Countries: A Public-Health Problem

A characteristic of the 1970s in many Western developed industrialized countries, including the United States, was the expansion of government intervention and regulation in the areas of occupational and environmental health and of consumer protection. This expansion was an outcome of a demand by the majority of their populations for better protection of the health and safety of workers and consumers and of the environment. This demand has remained undiminished in the 1980s. Although some governments (including that of the United States) have recently tried to weaken their regulations, these attempts have not been popular and have not responded to.