Narrow Results

The case deals with the issue of environmental dumping in the poorer nations by more advanced nations. The trigger for the case is the sending back of the French naval ship Clemenceau from Indian coasts on the grounds that it contained prohibited environmentally hazardous materials like asbestos. The issue raised intense debates both in the public domain and the legal courts. Environmentalists, who brought the news in the public domain, sought legal intervention and argued in the public media. While the ship was sent back to France following the decision by France's highest administrative court, it raised questions about the entire ship breaking business. Alang, where the ship was initially supposed to be broken down, had seen an increase in business owing to the relatively cheap labour and less stringent environmental legislations compared to the established ship breaking centres in Europe and China. As poorer countries with even less regulated ship breaking centres, such as Bangladesh and Pakistan entered the fray, Alang had seen a decline in business. Ship breaking in Alang contributes to employment and the sending away of Clemenceau was seen by many supporters of ship breaking at Alang as lost opportunity for reviving the stagnating business at Alang. Others, however, saw it as an opportunity for Alang to improve environmental compliance and to introduce new technologies in ship breaking so that it can be sustainable in the long run. The case presents these different perspectives and tries to demonstrate the decision dilemma faced by a policy maker or regulator.

Sri Lanka is an island republic situated off the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent. It has a long and continuous recorded history dating back approximately 2,500 years, and claims to have one of the oldest nature reserves in the world.

However, Environmental Assessment (EA) in the country has a much shorter history. This can be traced back to the early eighties and the dramatic change in economic policies when initial legislation was enacted. The final three amendments to this legislation making EAs mandatory came into force in 1993, although there were some EIAs predating this legislation that were voluntary and prepared for large infrastructure projects. Since then, a number of EAs and Initial Environmental Examinations (IEEs) have been prepared for a wide variety of projects with varying degrees of success. Despite this, the natural environment is still undergoing rapid deterioration, while proper implementation of good EIA practice is still needed.

The research presented in this paper, which is part of a larger study on implementation of EA and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in Asia, discusses the current status of environmental assessment in Sri Lanka based on information collected from field visits and interviews, as well as published and unpublished data. EA practices are discussed in the context of investigating the potential for introducing the process of SEA in Sri Lanka.

Two case studies demonstrate the consideration of environmental issues in the development of strategic sectoral policies programmes and plans. These case studies highlight the potential benefits of an effective SEA strategy in Sri Lanka, as well as identifying some of the weaknesses in the current EA system within the country.

Findings from the study suggest that rapid industrialisation combined with poor monitoring, a dearth of technically skilled personnel, the lack of baseline information and the continuing protracted civil war are key factors restricting the successful implementation of the EA process. It is from this perspective that the paper looks at the possible role that SEA may play in overcoming the failings of EA.

Vietnam is a rapidly developing nation in Southeast Asia and has adopted and implemented mandatory legislation for Environmental Assessment since 1994. This review analyses the successes and failures of this legislation and investigates the role of strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in the future development of the country. Along with many other developing nations in the region, the implementation of existing environmental legislation is generally weak in Vietnam and increased efforts to educate, train and motivate responsible personnel in the government, non-government and private development sectors is a continuing requirement. Many overseas agencies are currently financing projects to meet these current needs and to develop sustainable development policy within the natural resource management and planning framework in the country. It is concluded that Vietnam does have a good potential for an increased application of SEA, but success will depend on the effective conversion of theory into practice.

The course of urban environmental management (UEM) development in China is reviewed and analysed in this paper. The current situation that exists in the field of urban environmental management is also analysed from the aspects of the legislation, environmental policies, economic incentives and market mechanisms, technical instruments and environmental education and public participation. Further, this paper highlights the problems in China's UEM and puts forward some suggestions according to the existing characteristics of UEM in China.

Kazakhstan has shown an increase in its offshore oil and gas (O&G) prospection and operation activities in the Caspian Sea since 1998, so far with a limited number of operators, but which is about to increase significantly. This is of concern, considering that the environmental and industrial safety regulatory framework is still inadequate for the prevention of pollution from a large number of operators in a very sensitive aquatic ecosystem. This paper reports on the results of a study undertaken for the European Commission Tacis programme aimed at enhancing the environmental and industrial safety regulatory framework in order to align it with EU and international best practice. Based on a comprehensive analysis of applicable international standards and regulations, as well as those of Kazakhstan, ten issues are identified which require urgent attention. These issues are discussed and recommendations made on how to address them in order to improve the regulatory system.

The chapter contains the results of a theoretical and legal analysis of the problem of ecological economics and the legal status of specially protected natural territories as a factor in its implementation. The authors prove that the need to implement the ecological economy model is due to the national priorities fixed in the regulations, affecting the area of national security and sustainable socio-economic development. The formation of such territories has become an important direction of the state’s implementation of its environmental functions, which requires the effective legal regulation of legal relations, considering the specifics of these objects. This scientific research allowed the authors to classify the lands of specially protected natural areas and determine their place in the system of objects of civil rights. The authors identify directions for improving civil regulation of these objects, considering the proposed classification.