Environmental management typically involves multiple levels of government. Yet the intergovernmental context of environmental management in developing countries is seldom explored in the literature. This paper examines this issue by comparing the experiences in Guangzhou, Delhi, and Taipei, in which various types of unfavourable conditions create different problems for local regulatory enforcement. The study shows that, as commitment from the national government to local regulatory enforcement remains weak, the presence of local democratic institutions, legal remedies, and local environmental activism are key ingredients for checking against local enforcement slack. As legal remedies have various limitations, a bottom-up approach based on local flexibility, democratic processes, and environmental awareness and activism are more likely to bear fruit in the fight against pollution in developing countries.