Managing Indirect Environmental Impact within Local Authorities' Standardized Environmental Management Systems

Many local authorities use standardized environmental management systems (EMSs) to improve their environmental management. These authorities often find it difficult to manage environmental impact caused by their exercise of authority i.e. indirect environmental impact (IEI) within their EMSs. Since this is connected to their core activities, it is important to understand how IEI could be more efficiently managed with respect to EMS work. The purpose for this paper is to study if and how IEI could be managed within the framework of EMS. In this study we have identified two different approaches to managing IEI. Because managing IEI is complex, it is often ignored when initiating EMSs or managed by explicitly avoid mentioning the concept. Managing IEI is seen as a matter of maturity within the organization. The paper concludes with a discussion regarding a developed definition of IEI and how management of IEI could be facilitated.     

Maintenance of Forest Biodiversity in a Post-Soviet Governance Model: Perceptions by Local Actors in Lithuania

Successful biodiversity conservation does not depend on ecologic knowledge alone. Good conservation policies and policy implementation tools are equally important. Moreover, the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of local actors, directly in charge of operations in the field, are a key to successful policy implementation. The connections between policy objectives and their implementation as well as the involvement of local actors’ efforts in implementing policy objectives largely depend on the governance model in use. This article assesses the knowledge of local actors in relation to the biodiversity conservation objectives and tools in Lithuanian forest management. As a main framework for this study, the needs assessment approach was applied. The study used both in-depth open-ended interviews and follow-up telephone interviews. Two state forest enterprises in Lithuania were selected as the study sites. The findings indicate that policy objectives in the field of forest biodiversity conservation and the related tools are well known but not well understood by those in charge of forest biodiversity policy implementation. To improve the situation, a transition toward adaptive learning and participatory governance as a means of facilitating conservation efforts is proposed.     

Community Capacity for Adaptation to Climate-Induced Water Shortages: Linking Institutional Complexity and Local Actors

There is growing concern for the capacity of urban and rural communities to manage current water shortages and to prepare for shortages that may accompany predicted changes in climate. In this paper, concepts relating to the notion of climate adaptation and particularly capacity building are used to elucidate several determinants of community-level capacity for water management. These concepts and criteria are then used to interpret empirically derived insights relating to local management of water shortages in Ontario, Canada. General determinants of water-related community capacity relate to upper tier political and institutional arrangements; the characteristics of, and relationships among, pertinent agencies, groups, or individuals involved in water management; and the adequacy of financial, human, information, and technical resources. The case analysis illustrates how general factors play out in local experience. The findings point to geographically specific factors that influence the effectiveness of management. Key factors include collaboration between water managers, clarification of agency roles and responsibilities, integration of water management and land-use planning, and recognition and participation of both urban and rural stakeholders, whose sensitivities to water shortages are spatially and temporally variable.     

An Exploration of Dynamical Systems Modelling as a Decision Tool for Environmental Policy

A weakness often found in conventional environmental management tools is that of treating the dynamics of environmental effects and the underlying dynamics of structural change as external factors, precluding their ability to capture the evolutionary behaviour which characterizes economic systems. This article suggests a spatial dynamic modelling framework which addresses explicitly complex sectorial linkages and their environmental effects. The economic dynamics of the model are given spatial reference by means of a set of sector-based suitabilities, which allows us to explore both local environmental degradation effects as they unfold, and how these impacts then affect the economic productivity of the system as a whole. The approach is illustrated by calibrating the model with 1971-1981 data for the island of Crete, and then running it to explore how the economic dynamics of the island might evolve to the year 2001. This article presents a means through which to endogenize the environment and its explicit linkages with sectorial economic dynamics which can be of considerable use to environmental management in all its dimensions.     

Local Energy Policy and Smart Growth

The concluding document of the Rio conference in 1992, Agenda 21 for sustainable development, is implemented mainly at the local level in Germany. 'Sustainable development' is a model for the socially fair, economically competitive and ecologically viable development of the world. Local Agenda 21 (LA21) is a new municipal urban development process in which cities and their inhabitants orientate themselves to the model of sustainable development. Analysis of the LA21 process in Germany, and in particular that of the city of Osnabrück, shows deficits between the requirement of achieving sustainability and its practical realisation. Only a marginal development in the direction of sustainability has taken place. Concepts are lacking and the LA21 process is insufficiently integrated into conventional urban planning. Suggestions for the improvement of the LA21 process include the development of a concrete concept, together with the continuation of practical examples, the integration of four main areas (the environment, the social, the economy and the less developed world) and the strengthening of the popular themes in the LA21 process (such as climate protection and less developed countries' politics). El documento final de la conferencia de Rio en 1992 "La Agenda 21 para el desarrollo sostenible", es inplementado principalmente a nivel local en Alemania. "Desarrollo Sostenible" es una modelo para el desarrollo del mundo socialmente justo, ecónomicamente competitivo y ecológicamente viable. La "Agenda Local 21" es un nuevo proceso de desarrollo urbano municipal, en el cual las ciudades y sus habitantes se orientan hacia el modelo de desarrollo sostenible. El análisis del proceso de la Agenda Local 21 en Alemania y en particular el de la ciudad de Osnabrück muestra deficits entre el requerimiento de logro de sostenibilidad y su realización práctica. Solo un desarrollo marginal en la dirección de sostenibilidad ha sido llevado a cabo. Hay carencia de conceptos y el proceso de la Agenda Local 21 es insuficientemente integrado en la planeacio´n urbana convencional. Sugerencias para un mejoramiento del proceso de la AL 21 incluyen el desarrollo de un concepto concreto junto con la continuación de ejemplos practicos, integración de cuatro áreas principales (ambiental, social, económica, y el mundo menos desarrollado) y fortalecimiento de temas populares en el proceso de la AL 21 (tales como protección del clima y políticas de paises menos desarrollados).     

Environmental Monitoring in Urban Areas: Political Contexts and Policy Problems

Environmental monitoring activities are examined from a perspective which focuses on the political, economic and social factors which shape what we know and do not know about local environments. A UK urban case study is used to examine the range of influences that can operate on local level monitoring and comparisons are then made with the situation in three other European cities. Conclusions are drawn which debate the appropriate balance between local discretion and national and international direction in the collection of environmental information. It is argued that scrutiny of and revisions to the quality of current environmental monitoring in the UK and wider debate over questions of purpose, scope and resource commitment are needed.     

Environmental Management Systems and Co-operation in Municipalities

Due to the complex character of environmental issues there has been a call for change towards integration and co-operation on the development and environmental management scene. This holds true at all levels of society, from the global to the local. Due to cultural differences between different professions in municipalities, it may be hard to reach co-operation between different actors in municipal environmental management (MEM). Based on the present situation in Sweden in general and the municipality of Västera § s in particular, this paper discusses how co-operation in MEM may be promoted by the adoption of an environmental management system (EMS) in an entire municipality. Results from the study suggest that municipality-wide implementation of EMSs may help to bridge professional culture and language gaps. An EMS may provide the basis of a formal network that functions as a common platform and structure for environment-related discussion and work in different municipal authorities and companies, and thereby facilitate communication and co-operation among the actors in MEM.     

完善环境政策体系 控制环境污染形势

目前,我国总体环境形势可概括为：局部地区和行业的部分环境指标有所改善,环境恶化状况未得到根本遏制,环境形势依然十分严峻,未来的环境压力将继续加大。要想从根本上解决问题,就必须从实际出发,加强应对污染事故的机制建设,建立环境保护长效机制。其中,极为重要的一环是完善环境政策、法规、标准、制度体系。     

Local Authority/AcademicCollaboration and Local Agenda 21 Policy Processes

This paper looks at a recent example of local authority/academiccollaboration over a protracted period of time from the different perspectives of those people who were directly involved in the process as key role players. The arena within which this collaboration took place (Local Agenda 21 policy-making in Manchester) has some particular characteristics of its own which influenced this process, and these are identified alongside some of the theoretical issues which affect the way collaborations of this kind are perceived and (much more rarely) are written about. The perspectivesof the client and of the contractor, as the authors reflect on their experiences in these roles, show that in practice processes of adjustment and of learning were taking place, because both sides for various reasons found that the dynamics of this situation meant that their preconceptions both of each other and of the contractual relationship they had thought they were entering had to be modified as the process unfolded. The paper concludes with both specific observations about this collaboration, and more general and more tentative comments about issues that might be experienced in future collaborations of this kind.     

Environmental Policy in Russia: Economic,Legal, and Organizational Issues

/ Despite the suspension and closing down of many pollutingindustrial facilities and corresponding expectations of positive change inthat field, it is argued that the environmental situation in Russia in thefirst half of the 1990s has not improved. To corroborate this point, thelatest available data are presented and the deep roots and complexities ofthe current socioeconomic and political situation in the country areanalyzed. Using analogies and "component accounting" approaches,the original economic assessments of environmental damage in the recent pastand current period in Russia are offered for comparison with similar datafrom a selection of developed countries. A model of a new environmentalstrategy and policy is developed and its economic, legal, and organizationaldimensions are examined.KEY WORDS: Damage; Environmental costs; Policy; Pollution; Publicparticipation; Risk; Strategy     

From Environmental Auditing to Integrated Environmental Management: Local Government Experience in the United Kingdom and Japan

Local authority experien ce with state of the environment reporting in the UK is discussed and com pared with the Japanese approach to integrated environmental management. Two case studies are presented, Lancashire County Council and Osaka Prefectural Government, and the progress made by each authority is examined. The paper argues that two very different approaches to local environm ental m anagement have evolved in the UK and Japan. The Japanese approach is essentially technocratic and pre-occupied with pollution control issues. In contrast, the UK approach has evolved out of the town planning tradition with its emphasis on conservation and am enity issues. Local authorities in Japan have greater jurisdictional powers, financial and technical resources to devote to environmental management. This allows them more direct control over the policy-making process. Constraints on local authority financial resources in the UK, and fragmentation of environmental responsibilities between various organizations, have resulted in a form of environm ental management which is based on interorganizational co-operation.     

Procedural Integration in Support of Environmental Policy Objectives: Implementing Sustainability

Translating sustainability policy goals into concrete action has proven to be a complex challenge for government agencies, municipalities and businesses. Existing planning and decision-making methods, such as Comprehensive Planning, Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Management Systems, are being used to address this focus on sustainability. United States Army policy requires the use of these three procedures by installation planners and managers, providing a unique opportunity for innovation. This paper examines the applicability of these procedures for implementing the Army's sustainable operations policy goals, and explores how the current independent and disconnected implementation can be improved through integration. Included in this analysis is a review of organizational barriers to integrated planning and management. The analysis is applicable outside the Army as these three decision-making procedures are used in many contexts, and installation management shares many characteristics with local government land use planning, federal land management, and corporate business operations.     

Problems and Prospects in Local Environmental Assessment: Lessons from the United States

Local environmental assessment (EA), mandated by five US states, has introduced complex management issues for practitioners and policy makers. Based on a review of statutes, case law, and prior EA evaluations,this paper outlines three key issue areas for local EA: linking comprehensive planning and EA; making the threshold determination process more certain; and balancing mitigation with public participation. The paper argues that all the issues reflect a central tension in environmentalassessment between procedural consistency and the need for contingent responses to conditions that differ among the projects to be reviewed.     

Development of Environmental Indicator Systems: Experiences from Germany

ABSTACT / Environmental indicator systems aim to improve both the information and communication on the state of the environment and the environmental policy making. They have to fulfill scientific, functional and pragmatic requirements, e.g., consideration of ecological context, transparency and reproducibility, comprehensibility, policy relevance, international comparability, and justifiable expenditure. This paper analyzes the experiences made with the development of the German environmental indicator system and draws general conclusions toward further improvements. For Germany, an indicator system has been developed that uses the pressure-state-response approach proposed by the OECD, together with a classification in 14 environmental themes. According to the general requirements, the main criteria used for selecting the indicators are the ecological significance of the indicator, its quantifiability and data availability, and its comprehensibility and policy relevance. Altogether, about 140 indicators are selected. This high number stresses the need for further high-level aggregation, e.g., using methods developed for the valuation process in LCA. Further improvement is also needed, especially for the development of response indicators and in the area of data systematization.     

环境税政策改革与我国环保产业发展的探讨

2008年,在我国实行全面节能减排的形势下,开征环境税将会成为政府重点推进的税收政策之一,国家有关部门目前正在研究出台环境税的征收管理办法.环境税政策的改革必将对企业的生产经营活动产生巨大影响,也将使我国税费征收逐渐走向"绿色化".本文对环境税的开征对环保产业发展产生的影响进行了初步探讨.