| Abstract: | Objectives. Using an urban regime theory approach, the article aims to investigate the degree to which environmental policy in England is devolved to the local level of the state and integrates with local economic governance. Methods. Intensive case study research was undertaken in two local areas of the eastern region of England having divergent economic growth trajectories. Methods included analysis of local media and documentation from local and regional organizations, and 30 primary interviews with strategic local actors. Results. The Cambridge Subregion area is experiencing pressures of economic development, creating conflict around the Green Belt and contested meanings of sustainable development. In Waveney—a declining area in search of growth—local groups have struggled to manage local economic regeneration in an environmentally sustainable manner. Both areas have witnessed new territorial‐institutional developments in relation to environmental policy making, with limited evidence of policy integration at the subregional scale. Conclusion. Despite the emphasis on local policy integration through sustainable development, the relationship between the economy and the environment in England is a focus of conflict and new territorial‐institutional developments. Urban regime theory needs to broaden its focus to include the full variety of interests in local environmental policy and the mechanisms producing new territorial scales of economic and environmental governance. |
