COMPUTER ASSISTED NEGOTIATION OF MULTIOBJECTIVE WATER RESOURCES CONFLICTS1

ABSTRACT: Since the early 1970s, a large volume of literature has accumulated related to multiobjective water resources management problems. A relatively small portion of this specifically addresses the negotiation process required when there are multiple decision makers with conflicting objectives. This paper focuses on that process and describes a computer program designed to assist such negotiation processes. This interactive computer assisted negotiation support system is called ICANS. ICANS is designed for dynamic, multi-issue, multi-party negotiation problems. Based on information provided in confidence by each party via an interactive graphical interface, the program can help determine if there exist any possible alternatives that are equivalent or even preferred to each party's decision in the absence of a negotiated agreement. If such alternatives exist, through a series of iterations in which each party's input data, assumptions, and preferences may change, ICANS can assist the parties in their search for a mutually acceptable and preferred agreement. A simple example illustrates the data requirements and the use of ICANS in negotiation experiments.     

Game theory and environmental disputes

The courts have provided the traditional battleground for conflicts between environmental interest groups and those whose actions in some way have an adverse impact on the environment The judicial process is a time-consuming one in which all sides usually must concede to some points. Environmental disputes involve complex scientific issues which the court system is not set up to comprehend, so that the process gives the parties to a dispute the sense of having lost control of their own destinies. An increasing number of parties to environmental disputes are turning to negotiation, or mediation, as an alternative in which they can be active parties in the settlement-making process rather than the victims of a court-imposed solution When do the parties to a dispute choose a negotiated settlement over a court battle? To what extent does each party make the concessions necessary to reach an agreement? These questions can be answered by the game theory that provides a model for analyzing the negotiation process. This paper will apply game theory to two environmental conflict cases A series of questions pertinent to the analysis of all environmental disputes will be raised     

Green gains? planning by agreement and nature conservation

Current planning policy places increased emphasis on the protection of the natural environment. The negotiation of planning agreements between local authorities and developers has emerged as one route through which the private sector has sought to compensate for the loss of environmental resources arising from development. We argue that the utilization of conservation gain mirrors the valuation procedures for public goods found within cost — benefit techniques, which may be inappropriate for the treatment of natural environmental systems. The paper examines the negotiation of these gains from the perspective of different actors in the land development process. Both quantitative and interview material from four local planning authorities are used. The paper concludes by considering the scope for a broader use of conservation gain.     

COST SHARING IN TRANSITION: THE CASE OF PLAN 6, CENTRAL ARIZONA PROJECT1

ABSTRACT: In the past, development of Federal water resource projects depended heavily or exclusively on Federal financing of construction costs. However, pressures on the Federal budget, environmental issues, and the notion that there are economic efficiency gains when beneficiaries of Federal water resource projects increase their cost share are causing changes. The case of the Central Arizona Project Plan 6 is a noteworthy example of the transition to more non-Federal participation in water resource development. This is because the non-Federal financing is to be provided for a project already under construction. The negotiation and terms of the Plan 6 financing agreement between the Department of the Interior and multiple interests in Arizona are used as an example of how Federal water project cost sharing is in a state of transition. The negotiation process is described, a financial analysis is provided, and the terms of the agreement and policy issues that were deliberated in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government are discussed.     

LIFTING THE VEIL FROM TRANSNATIONAL MINERAL CONTRACTS: A REVIEW OF RECENT LITERATURE

The author reviews the recent literature on mineral contracts focusing on Smith and Wells' Negotiating Third World Mineral Agreements. He uses the outline of that book to offer a critique of some aspects of the negotiation process and of the position of the negotiating parties, with particular emphasis on most recent forms of agreement.     

Result-oriented approaches to the management of drinking water catchments in agricultural landscapes

Management of water quality in drinking water catchments is of ongoing, high importance as nitrate concentrations are often still very high. We analysed the Augsburg catchment in Germany, a unique example where a result-oriented approach has been implemented. We investigated the historical evolution of the water protection programme, the result-oriented payment contracts with farmers, and farmer satisfaction with the contracts, based on interviews with the water utility and farmers as well as an analysis of the literature. Today, the water protection programme has been successfully implemented, and a significant reduction of nitrate concentration was achieved due to the following factors: (1) investment of non-negligible amounts of money for high compensation and remuneration payments, (2) different contract options, (3) farmers’ participation in the negotiation process for result-oriented payment contracts, (4) involvement of “outside” people and institutions in negotiation processes, (5) anticipation of starting a programme when nitrate levels were still far below legislative thresholds, and (6) a political and legislative framework allowing direct decisions by a water supplier.     

Environmental considerations in Swedish Forestry: A study of the administrative process

This report briefly describes the implementation process involving nature conservation considerations in forestry, according to a recently passed law in Sweden. Described are the forestry and political systems in Sweden regarding nature conservation in forestry, as well as of the administrative process involved when a forest is going to be clearcut. Conclusions are based upon the conditions and outcome of two clearcutting cases outlined in this report, and are focused on the interactions and control functions among various agencies and levels of government. The policy on the consideration of nature in forestry is, to a large extent, formed at a very low level in the bureaucracy and is subject to negotiation from case to case. Checkups between different agencies as a form of concurrent government become important means of implementing environmental considerations in forestry, having the split roles and interests of the authorities in mind.     

Troubles on the way: An analysis of the challenges faced by multi-stakeholder platforms

Multi‐stakeholder platforms (MSPs) have been widely promoted as a promising means of resolving conflicts over natural resources, first in developed countries and, more recently, as a global good practice. However, many MSPs have been implemented in an unfavourable context — primarily of social inequities — and have not met initial high expectations. The article analyzes the challenges MSPs face in an unfavourable context, and identifies five main issues:

• ? Power relationships;
• ? Platform composition;
• ? Stakeholder representation and capacity to participate meaningfully in the debates;
• ? Decision‐making power and mechanisms; and finally
• ? Cost of setting up an MSP.

The analysis is mainly based on two case studies of MSPs set up under inauspicious conditions. The first focuses on water user associations in South Africa, the second on a negotiation platform set up to resolve conflicts over a water and sanitation project in Bolivia. It is argued that MSPs should be seen less as an ideal communication process, and more as a negotiation process — always imperfect — but where positive outcomes may nevertheless outweigh negative ones, if and when the above‐mentioned issues are adequately taken into account.     

Climate negotiations at a crucial stage: the Hague meeting of contracting Parties in November 2000 and its follow-up

The author discusses the central issues of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol in the general context of the Rio process. The nexus of issues under negotiation in relation to climate change are viewed in the context of multilateral diplomacy for sustainable development. The article outlines the background to the important Sixth Conference of the Parties, held in the Hague in November 2000, and highlights the relationship between the main actors in the negotiations. Finally, the main results of the Hague negotiations are presented, followed by comments on follow-up procedures and perspectives.     

新型自贸协定的环保议题谈判及我国的对策简

自由贸易协定中纳入环境保护规定是提高自由贸易中的正环境效应,同时避免或减轻负面环境影响的保障,已经逐渐成为新型国际自由贸易谈判中的重要内容。以跨太平洋战略经济伙伴关系协定为代表的新型自由贸易谈判,试图在协定中丰富环境条款,例如环保原则、国际环境公约、环境标准、争端解决机制、环境产业和服务、环境合作和能力建设等。我国也开始在自贸谈判中纳入环保要求,基于最新的政策要求,我国应积极赶上国际自由贸易谈判中环境保护的新要求,推动贸易与环保政策的深度融合。     

Examining hard coking coal price differentials A hedonic pricing approach

Hedonic pricing models were developed and estimated econometrically to investigate the impact of quality variables on hard coking coal prices in the Japanese market. The results show that the hedonic pricing approach can provide a useful method for evaluating price-quality relations for non-homogeneous products such as hard coking coal. Based on coking coal contract data, the analysis shows that while quality differentials account for a large part of the price variation in hard coking coal, there is a major difference in the way Australian and Canadian hard coking coals are priced. However, this result does not necessarily imply the existence of discriminatory pricing. This is because the current analysis is limited by its ability to account for the complexity of price negotiation process and the difficulty in quantifying non-quality related variables.     

浅议生态环境损害赔偿的理论基础与实施保障

本文立足于环境资源公共物品的属性,探讨构建生态环境损害赔偿制度的理论基础,提出行政主管部门应在生态环境损害赔偿中发挥主导作用。从落实《生态环境损害赔偿制度改革试点方案》的角度出发,从明确责任主体、细化磋商与诉讼程序、健全生态环境损害评估制度、加强资金保障、强化法律与公众监督等方面提出关于改革方案配套制度的八条具体建议。     

Market structure and bargaining power: A study of three international mineral markets

This paper considers how differences in the structure and arrangements between the international markets for bauxite, iron ore and copper affect the bargaining strength and division of benefits between buyers and sellers. After describing the characteristic features of each market, and noting the absence of appropriate economic theory to disentangle the issue at hand, an attempt is made to clarify the problem by considering the difference between the markets in terms of five factors - degree of concentration, ability of the parties to inflict losses on each other, varying shares of the raw material in final product prices, structure of the market in which the final products are sold, and the process of trade negotiation.     

生态环境损害赔偿磋商第三人的角色失调与定位——基于15省份磋商办法与十大典型案例的分析

要发挥生态环境损害公私法协同治理的效应，在公法救济上需要明确第三人在磋商中的定位。从15省份磋商办法以及十大典型案例看，磋商第三人存在着法律性质不明、参与方式失灵、参与效力不足三方面问题。在法治化轨道路径上，可以将磋商第三人类型分为技术专家、其他机关、利益相关者，其法律性质应分别确定为“智囊团”、协助者或监督者、监督者。参与方式上应将技术专家和利益相关者规定为应当参与人、其他机关规定为可以参与人，以此细化参与方式和参与环节。参与效力上应在区别三者功能和作用的基础上，分别规定其意见表达对于磋商结果的约束力。     

The concept of participatory local sustainability projects in seven Chinese villages

SUCCESS was a scientific, multi-disciplinary case study of seven selected villages in China, coordinated by the Viennese research institute Oikodrom in which I have been a team member for 6 years. We assembled an international team of researchers to work together with local team leaders with the aim of involving village dwellers in a sustainability negotiation process. The project had a strong bottom-up approach, combined with top-down elements. Using participatory research methods, village teams discussed and developed ideas for concrete sustainability-oriented projects in their villages. By the end of the 3-year study of SUCCESS, equipped with the seeds of a multiple-scenario building process and the appropriate funding, each of the seven case study villages had generated ideas for local sustainability-oriented projects and put them into practice. The outcome of this participatory process is manifold. One major impact of the implementation of local projects was their visibility which was crucial for the village dwellers' confidence and their motivation to become engaged in a decision making process. The experience of their successful participation in a decision making process empowered them for self-organisation processes or a civil society process. The small projects offered interesting theoretical insights into how local contexts impact upon village dweller's decision on appropriate sustainability interventions. How they are as well in line with characteristics of different types of villages that were carried out within the study will be shown in this article.     

COORDINATION OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AC A CASE STUDY OF LAKE RESTORATION1

ABSTRACT: The potential for joint public and private action for lake restoration is examined using Lake Apopka, Florida, as a case study. Initial calculations indicate that private incentives alone are inadequate to attract investment in a facility to grow and harvest water hyacinths for conversion to methane gas. However, the private externality of water quality improvement associated with harvesting water hyacinths provides a key linkage between the public's water quality objectives and the private gas producer's actions. In order to establish the potential basis for negotiation, the public's willingness-to-pay for environmental services associated with improved water quality is estimated and compared with the estimated subsidy required to induce private action. A conceptual framework is then presented for coordinating actions between private firms and public water management agencies in order to internalize the private externality of water quality improvement while simultaneously achieving the public and private objectives. Results indicate that the subsidization of water hyacinth production and harvesting compares favorably with alternative means of enhancing the water quality of Lake Apopka.     

Solving the United States National Park overflight controversy

By mid-1990 the National Park Service (NPS) must present to Congress recommendations for managing overflights of at least ten national parks. The authors examine the potential role of formal negotiation in setting overflight policy in these parks by reviewing the overflight controversy at Grand Canyon National Park (GCNP). Regulations controlling overflights of the GCNP are only now being implemented after a 17-year conflict that culminated in a congressionally mandated solution. The authors review this controversy and find that, contrary to common perception, the number of park visitors bothered by overflights is not small but roughly equals the number of airborne visitors (up to 450,000 per year). On the basis of this investigation, the authors determine that formal negotiation would have been an appropriate policy-making process because of the clearly defined and limited number of parties and issues involved. Considering the number of park visitors that will continue to be affected by this issue, the authors conclude that formal negotiations should be considered for overflight problems involving other parks. Such negotiations should be park-specific. Differences in park size, extent of the problem, and parties involved would prohibit park-wide negotiations.This article has been adapted from Tourist Flights over the Grand Canyon: The Potential for Negotiated Solutions to Similar Problems, Analysis and Management, October 30, 1987. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors; they are not meant to represent the views of the organizations with which the authors are associated.     

Chinese villages and their sustainable future: the European Union-China-Research Project "SUCCESS"

China has 800,000 villages—one person out of seven on the globe is living in a Chinese rural settlement. Yet the global discussions about the situation in China is currently characterised by a disproportionate focus on the development of towns and until now circumstances have generally been neglected in the rural areas, where 70% of the Chinese population is still living. Within the 5 years of the SUCCESS project research, this set of actual problems has been considered and analysed under the principle of sustainability: “What to maintain?” “What to change?” were the overall research questions asked in the SUCCESS project; the researchers were looking for answers under a sustainability regime, respecting the need to raise the quality of life in the villages. Several interweaving processes were used to achieve results: the inter-disciplinary research process between many areas of expertise, the trans-disciplinary process between the researchers and the Chinese villagers, and a negotiation process that made the connection between these two processes.     

Legitimation Struggles in National Park Spaces: The Banff Bow Valley Round Table

This paper presents an in-depth analysis of a multi-stakeholder process, the Banff Bow Valley Round Table (BBVRT) convened by a federally appointed task force in 1995 to provide public input and participation in the Banff Bow Valley Study (BBVS). The purpose of this initiative was to address environmental concerns and conflict over governance, development and growth in Banff National Park, Canada. A key finding from the analysis discussed in this paper is how various participants struggled for legitimation at the negotiation table, and how the discourses of science and instrumental reason served to empower certain interests and agendas in the process. While the discursive appropriation of ecological science enabled some interests to dominate and to legitimize their concerns, this strategy may have intangible and costly consequences for consensus-based processes and for society overall. Analysis of these discursive struggles demonstrates the challenge of bringing ecology and the general public to the same negotiating table in a meaningful way. It shows the conflicting roles and identities of environmental groups who aspire to re-present nature (as a stakeholder) at the negotiating table. Recommendations for multi-stakeholder processes in planning and governance of national parks are presented, along with social implications in the context of historic human-environment dualism and conflict.     

INTERBASIN TRANSFER-THE INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION1

ABSTRACT. A number of interbasin transfers are technically possible on an international scale but extremely few have been developed or are in prospect of early development. The institutional constraints are strong and nationalistic reactions to proposals which strongly favor either one of the nations involved have contributed to delays in development. Many of the more striking illustrations of the problems and opportunities relating to international transfers are present in the proposals for Canadian water export to the United States. Some have antagonized Canadians and made further negotiation difficult but phased and sequential transfers are possible and some could complement Canadian development. An important early phase might be the provision of guarantees for replacement supplies in option agreements that would free current surpluses within the United States for more intensive use. It should no longer be assumed that engineering development will provide adequate benefits for the source region. Allowances for opportunity costs, environmental improvements and some profit on sales appear to be needed for upstream areas if transfers are to be made. Many hazards are present but these can be more than offset by the opportunities if both countries strive for mutual benefit through rational study and continuing negotiation.