Title: Environment, Health and Safety of Privatized Firms

The goal of this research was to assess the performance of the environmental, health an d safety system (EH&S) in Poland with respect to privatized manufacturing firms . Specifically, we sought to determine through a cross-sectional questionnaire survey whether the EH&S system was being implemented in practice, and whether it was achieving the objectives of improved EH& S performance. Following the collapse of communism, the Polish government implemented a serie s of incremental reforms in the EH&S system, including a substantial strengthening of th e enforcement regime . Have these reforms been successful ? Our findings are positive . In general, our survey data identify an operational system o f EH&S protection that is well suited to the political and economic conditions of Poland and i s yielding measurable improvements in EH&S performance by manufacturing firms . A comprehensive system of EH&S permitting is in place which involves technical evaluation of suc h environmental impacts as air, waste and water emissions, and worker health and safety . The system involves fines and fees for noncompliance that are of sufficient scale to motivate changes i n operating procedures by some manufacturing firms . Importantly, the system has legitimacy amon g industrial firms and demonstrates flexibility in balancing EH&S interests with other concerns .