NIMBY doesn't need exporting—it crops up due in no small part to economics. For a lot of people, their home is far and away the most valuable thing they own and, as areas get more built up, property values rise. This creates a hyper-sensitivity to anything that might decrease property values—for a lot of people, a loss of the value of their home is basically the loss of their entire financial future (and if if falls too much, they might be completely stuck because selling it won't earn enough to move to a comparable area). Rules end up imposed locally because the people who live somewhere elect the city officials that draw up the by-laws.