Compliance with EU environmental law. The iceberg is melting

ABSTRACT

The European Union (EU) has become the main driver for environmental policy output for its member states whose number has more than tripled over the past four decades. The EU’s deepening and widening has led researchers to expect more non-compliance with EU environmental legislation. In fact, however, the implementation gap has narrowed over the past 25 years. Except for Southern enlargement, taking on new member states has not exacerbated the EU’s compliance problem in the field of environmental policy. Nor has the expansion of the environmental acquis. This is explained by the European Commission’s strategies of managing and enforcing compliance. EU environmental policy has become less demanding on member states since it increasingly tends to amend existing rather than set new legislation. Simultaneously, the Commission has developed new instruments to strengthen member state capacities to implement EU environmental legislation.     

Discourses on sustainable forest management and effects of Natura 2000: a case study of Catalonia,NE Spain

This study analyzed discourses influencing the meaning of Sustainable Forest Management in Catalonia (Spain) and the effects of the European Natura 2000 policy on these discourses. It focused on the Montseny area and on the Administration and Practitioner stakeholder groups. Based on literature review and interviews, we found six discourses influencing the meanings of Sustainable Forest Management. Two of these discourses underwent changes due to the effects of Natura 2000 implementation while the others did not, showing the substantial role played by local elements and actors in shaping the discursive framework of Sustainable Forest Management. Based on empirical findings, the study provided conclusions valid at European level: (1) implementing Natura 2000 does not mean revolutionizing local nature conservation systems, but rather adapting them to European requirements; (2) in order to increase local policy impact, the implementation of European environmental policies needs to be backed up by economic compensation of local actors.     

Use of Ammophila arenaria for Dune Stabilization in South Africa and Its Current Distribution—Perceptions and Problems

Ammophila arenaria (marram or European beach grass) for dune stabilization in South Africa in the past and present, its present distribution in South Africa, and the perceptions of coastal management agencies and the public about its further use. The planting of A. arenaria became the most important means of dune stabilization, by human intervention, along the South African Cape coast in this century. Its modern distribution from the semiarid west coast to the subtropical shores of the Eastern Cape extends through various climatic zones. Although historical data are missing for some areas, there is no indication of its unaided spread. A. arenaria occurs at most sites because of its prior planting. The South African climate appears to affect its vigor. However, concern about the use of the alien grass has been raised since it has proved to be a highly invasive species in other parts of the world, particularly along the North American west coast and in Tasmania. While the CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) promotes its use, CNC (Cape Nature Conservation) follows a policy that restricts the use of any alien plant, including A. arenaria, and requests further research on its invasive properties. Although a questionnaire survey shows that stabilization sites featuring large areas of A. arenaria are accepted by the South African public, current coastal management practices need to be analyzed critically. A thorough investigation of the potential invasiveness of A. arenaria on South African coastal dunes will be essential and shed new light on the American A. arenaria problem.     

Fish consumption reduces transfer of BDE47 from dam to murine offspring

Fish and seafood are important contributions to a healthy diet, but also contain persistent organic pollutants (POPs) like polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Discrepancies have been found between intake and accumulated levels of POPs, where fish consumers have had similar levels of POPs to the general population. Similarly fish oil consumption has been found to reduce accumulation of POPs. This study examined the accumulation of BDE47 or PCB153 in mice fed diets with different nutritional composition, using female mice with pre-weanling pups exposed through gestation and lactation. A fish-based diet was compared to a standard casein-based rodent diet. All diets had low background levels of environmental contaminants and were spiked with BDE47 or PCB153 to levels representing a realistic (∼0.004 μmol kgbw⁻¹ d) or a high dietary exposure (∼1.3 μmol kgbw⁻¹ d). Accumulation of BDE47 or PCB153 in offspring tissues after 18 d lactation reflected the maternal exposure levels. However, the pups of dams fed a fish-based diet had consistently lower BDE47 accumulation in liver, fat and stomach than pups from casein-fed dams. Similarly the pups of dams fed a high dose of PCB153 in a fish diet also accumulated less PCB153 than pups of the dams fed a casein diet, although not significant. In conclusion, the fish based diets seemed to reduce transfer of BDE47 and PCB153 from dams to pups. The study highlights that in-depth knowledge about nutritional impact on toxicokinetics is of great interest to vulnerable consumers.     

Climate Warming and the Recent Treeline Shift in the European Alps: The Role of Geomorphological Factors in High-Altitude Sites

Global warming and the stronger regional temperature trends recently recorded over the European Alps have triggered several biological and physical dynamics in high-altitude environments. We defined the present treeline altitude in three valleys of a region in the western Italian Alps and reconstructed the past treeline position for the last three centuries in a nearly undisturbed site by means of a dendrochronological approach. We found that the treeline altitude in this region is mainly controlled by human impacts and geomorphological factors. The reconstruction of the altitudinal dynamics at the study site reveals that the treeline shifted upwards of 115 m over the period 1901–2000, reaching the altitude of 2505 m in 2000 and 2515 m in 2008. The recent treeline shift and the acceleration of tree colonization rates in the alpine belt can be mainly ascribed to the climatic input. However, we point out the increasing role of geomorphological factors in controlling the future treeline position and colonization patterns in high mountains.     

Parameters affecting the stability of the digestate from a two-stage anaerobic process treating the organic fraction of municipal solid waste

This paper focused on the factors affecting the respiration rate of the digestate taken from a continuous anaerobic two-stage process treating the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW). The process involved a hydrolytic reactor (HR) that produced a leachate fed to a submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactor (SAMBR). It was found that a volatile solids (VS) removal in the range 40-75% and an operating temperature in the HR between 21 and 35 °C resulted in digestates with similar respiration rates, with all digestates requiring 17 days of aeration before satisfying the British Standard Institution stability threshold of 16 mg CO₂ g VS⁻¹ day⁻¹. Sanitization of the digestate at 65 °C for 7 days allowed a mature digestate to be obtained. At 4 g VS L⁻¹ d⁻¹ and Solid Retention Times (SRT) greater than 70 days, all the digestates emitted CO₂ at a rate lower than 25 mg CO₂ g VS⁻¹ d⁻¹ after 3 days of aeration, while at SRT lower than 20 days all the digestates displayed a respiration rate greater than 25 mg CO₂ g VS⁻¹ d⁻¹. The compliance criteria for Class I digestate set by the European Commission (EC) and British Standard Institution (BSI) could not be met because of nickel and chromium contamination, which was probably due to attrition of the stainless steel stirrer in the HR.     

Assessing the impact of Cross Compliance measures on nitrogen fluxes from European farmlands with DNDC-EUROPE

We investigated the effects of the agricultural Cross Compliance measures for European cultivated lands, focusing on nitrogen (N) fluxes from corn fields. Four scenarios have been designed according to some conservation farming practices, namely no-till, max manure, catch crop and N splitting. Results indicated that (1) in the no-till scenario the N₂O fluxes are decreased during the first simulated years, with a return to default fluxes in following years; no-till particularly decreased N₂O emission in the dryer and colder simulation spatial units (HSMUs); (2) the no-till and the N splitting scenarios slightly increased the N surplus because of a decrease in plant uptake; (3) introducing a rotation with alfalfa decreased the N leaching in the corn crops following the catch crops; and (4) the application of fertilizer and manure during the cold and wet seasons led to an increase of N leaching.     

Pragmatics of Policy: The Compliance of Dutch Environmental Policy Instruments to European Union Standards

Despite a general decrease in Dutch environmental emission trends, it remains difficult to comply with European Union (EU) environmental policy targets. Furthermore, environmental issues have become increasingly complex and entangled with society. Therefore, Dutch environmental policy follows a pragmatic line by adopting a flexible approach for compliance, rather than aiming at further reduction at the source of emission. This may be politically useful in order to adequately reach EU targets, but restoration of environmental conditions may be delayed. However, due to the complexity of today’s environmental issues, the restoration of environmental conditions might not be the only standard for a proper policy approach. Consequently this raises the question how the Dutch pragmatic approach to compliance qualifies in a broader policy assessment. In order to answer this question, we adapt a policy assessment framework, developed by Hemerijck and Hazeu (Bestuurskunde 13(2), 2004), based on the dimensions of legitimacy and policy logic. We apply this framework for three environmental policy assessments: flexible instruments in climate policy, fine-tuning of national and local measures to meet air quality standards, and derogation for the Nitrate Directive. We conclude with general assessment notes on the appliance of flexible instruments in environmental policy, showing that a broad and comprehensive perspective can help to understand the arguments to put such policy instruments into place and to identify trade-offs between assessment criteria.     

Crown condition dynamics of oak in southern Sweden 1988’999

Crown defoliation of oak (Quercus robur and Q. petraea) was analysed in 808 trees during three forest condition surveys (1988, 1993, and 1999) in the southern Sweden. From 1988 to 1999 crown defoliation increased by more than 20%. Changes in crown defoliation were related to the pH in the upper 20–30 cm of the mineral soils, which was closely connected to other measures of soil fertility (cation exchange capacity, CEC and C/N ratio). Trees growing on soils with a high pH (≥4.00, in BaCl₂ filtrate), high CEC and low C/N ratio had significantly lower crown defoliation than trees growing on more acid soils (pH <4.00), indicating that less favourable soil conditions may further enhance oak decline. Age did not differentiate trees with respect to crown defoliation, indicating that decline in crown condition was not due to an age-related increase in crown transparency. Considering only trees younger than 100 years, a significant interaction was observed between changes in crown defoliation and soil pH. Trees younger than 100 years old growing on more acidic soils had a greater increase in crown transparency than trees on more basic soils between 1988 and 1999. Trees ≥100 years old had significantly higher defoliation on more acidic than on more basic soils, however defoliation dynamics of these trees over 1988–99 was not related to soil acidity. Two biotic agents (insect and fungal leaf infections) evaluated in this study did not prove to be important drivers of defoliation dynamics.