| Accelerating the commercialization of environmental technology in the US holds out the three-fold promise of increasing US global competitiveness, diversifying the nation's industrial base, and improving environmental quality. Consequently, the smooth flow of environmental technology from idea to market is an important part of the quest for sustainable development.; Entrepreneur John Preston has asserted that the flow of innovation is interrupted by a gap in the process of technology development following government's involvement in the research and development stage but prior to the tune risk-averse private actors will invest in early stage ideas. This study probes the issue of the gap by developing it as theory and testing it with case studies. It sees the gap as a discontinuity stemming from an unresolved aspect of US science and technology policy, namely, determining just how far government ought to go toward the private marketplace in supporting the public knowledge base.; Principally, this study: (1) determines under which conditions the gap applies, analyzes its explanations and predictions at different organizational levels, and develops its three dimensions—funding, personnel/organization, and information. (2) builds a compelling case for the gap in environmental technology owing to the role of {09}regulation, the nature of R&D, and the level of capital availability. Six of eleven {09}indicators of the gap are found to apply to environmental technology. (3) tests the hypothesis that receiving public support in the demonstration (gap) stage of an innovation leads to more and/or faster commercialization. Six innovations receiving funding from a publicly-funded not-for-profit group, as well as six that did not, were examined over five years.; The study concludes that there is a systematic gap in environmental technology, and that intervention through publicly-supported groups can be successful in accelerating commercialization. The mechanism most associated with these results is that such public support fulfills the vital functions of a bridge between the stages of technology development, mobilizing stakeholders and resources. Whether publicly or privately supported, these bridges are vital to advancing new environmental technology. |
