The environmental situation in Ghana is characterized by desertification, land degradation, deforestation, soil erosion, and
inadequate water supply in the northern regions of the country. The population as a whole is growing at a rate of 3% per annum,
with even greater urban growth rates, due to rural out-migration. Large parts of the coastal zone in the south are rapidly
developing to become one large suburbanized area. Water quality is particularly threatened in the urban and industrialized
areas, which are mainly located in the southern part of the country. The coastal lagoons and coastal waters are moderately
to heavily polluted. Erosion extends along the whole Ghanaian coast with excesses, for example, in the Keta area, where during
the last century over 90% of the original buildings have been washed awayby the sea. The obvious environmental consequences
of the mining sector are illustrative of the environmental threats caused by a fast growing industry and industrializing agriculture,
in a country where environmental policy is only in its formative years. Desertification, food insecurity and coastal erosion
all contribute to an increasing number of environmental refugees.
Environmental policy in Ghana is a post-Rio phenomenon. Environmental laws, a Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology,
an advisory National Committee for the Implementation of Agenda 21, and a fully mandated environmental administration have
been established. This administration advocates a progressive attitude towards environmental legislation and points out the
specific utility of economic and legal instruments in environmental management in this relatively fast developing country.
The choice of instruments for environmental management is increasingly influenced by the specific state of African environmental
and technological capacity and by a call for the recognition of the role of traditional customs in nature conservation. This
African perspective on environmental management is further intensified by an unmet need for regional, transboundary cooperation
in the West African subcontinent. This specific West African context calls for an elaboration of an effective capacity-building
program for environmental management in the area. 相似文献
Abstract: In January 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers exceeded its statutory authority by asserting Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction over non‐navigable, isolated, intrastate waters based solely on their use by migratory birds. The Supreme Court’s majority opinion addressed broader issues of CWA jurisdiction by implying that the CWA intended some “connection” to navigability and that isolated waters need a “significant nexus” to navigable waters to be jurisdictional. Subsequent to this decision (SWANCC), there have been many lawsuits challenging CWA jurisdiction, many of which are focused on headwater, intermittent, and ephemeral streams. To inform the legal and policy debate surrounding this issue, we present information on the geographic distribution of headwater streams and intermittent and ephemeral streams throughout the U.S., summarize major findings from the scientific literature in considering hydrological connectivity between headwater streams and downstream waters, and relate the scientific information presented to policy issues surrounding the scope of waters protected under the CWA. Headwater streams comprise approximately 53% (2,900,000 km) of the total stream length in the U.S., excluding Alaska, and intermittent and ephemeral streams comprise approximately 59% (3,200,000 km) of the total stream length and approximately 50% (1,460,000 km) of the headwater stream length in the U.S., excluding Alaska. Hillslopes, headwater streams, and downstream waters are best described as individual elements of integrated hydrological systems. Hydrological connectivity allows for the exchange of mass, momentum, energy, and organisms longitudinally, laterally, vertically, and temporally between headwater streams and downstream waters. Via hydrological connectivity, headwater, intermittent and ephemeral streams cumulatively contribute to the functional integrity of downstream waters; hydrologically and ecologically, they are a part of the tributary system. As this debate continues, scientific input from multiple fields will be important for policymaking at the federal, state, and local levels and to inform water resource management regardless of the level at which those decisions are being made. Strengthening the interface between science, policy, and public participation is critical if we are going to achieve effective water resource management. 相似文献