Abbott, Kenneth W.; Sylvester, Douglas J.; Marchant, Gary E. --- "Transnational Regulation of Nanotechnology: Reality or Romanticism?" [2010] ELECD 732; in Hodge, A. Graeme; Bowman, M. Diana; Maynard, D. Andrew (eds), "International Handbook on Regulating Nanotechnologies" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2010)

Book Title: International Handbook on Regulating Nanotechnologies

Editor(s): Hodge, A. Graeme; Bowman, M. Diana; Maynard, D. Andrew

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781848446731

Section: Chapter 24

Section Title: Transnational Regulation of Nanotechnology: Reality or Romanticism?

Author(s): Abbott, Kenneth W.; Sylvester, Douglas J.; Marchant, Gary E.

Number of pages: 20

Extract:

24 Transnational regulation of
nanotechnology: reality or romanticism?
Kenneth W. Abbott, Douglas J. Sylvester and
Gary E. Marchant


In less than a decade, nanotechnology has exploded from a relatively
obscure and narrow technical field to a scientific, economic and public
phenomenon. The precipitous emergence of such a broad and signifi-
cant technology has created an unprecedented opportunity to craft new
regulatory or oversight approaches on a clean slate. Indeed, discussions
of appropriate forms of regulatory oversight for nanotechnology have
shadowed the exponential growth of the technology itself, with a rapid
proliferation in calls and proposals for regulation. The actual adoption
of nanotechnology-specific regulations, however, has increasingly lagged
both the technology and the academic and policy debate: `while govern-
ments have invested heavily in R&D programs they have been noticeably
unenthusiastic about implementing new regulatory frameworks' (Bowman
and Hodge, 2006: 1065; see also Renn and Roco, 2006).
Of the many impediments to the enactment of regulations, one that is of
particular interest is the international scope of nanotechnology develop-
ment (Roco, 2006; Kostoff et al., 2006). Every major industrial country is
actively pursuing nanotechnology (Roco, 2006), and none wishes to put
its scientists and companies at a competitive disadvantage by unilater-
ally imposing restrictive regulations. Moreover, the international trade
wars which continue to rage over inconsistent regulation in other areas
of innovation, such as biotechnology, further caution national govern-
ments against attempting to `go it alone' (Pollack and Shaffer, 2009).
It is therefore not surprising, even if largely unprecedented, ...