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Environmental Policy - Legal and Economic Instruments Presentation by Per Erichsen, Roskilde University, Denmark BUP Teachers Conference on Environmental Management, Poland 2006
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The concept Traditional command-and-control with recipient-orientation not sufficient to promote CP and prevention A mix of instruments and dialogue needed Traditional command-and-control important (binding minimum standards and emission limit values). Voluntary instruments => improvements beyond compliance From one-way communication to continual information exchange between company and authority, maintaining requirements
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Towards selfregulation
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A shared responsibility A responsibility of both company and authority The starting point: The company’s accountability towards the environment Bridging the gap between company and authority The role of the regulation Other regulatory instruments
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The company as the starting point Companies could commit themselves to introduce an EMS (thorough implementation crucial) Companies may even apply other means where able to support their endeavour (eco- labelling, environmental management accounting/ triple-line accounting etc.) Companies could keep an open dialogue with stakeholders – and involve them, if possible The dialogue starts here
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Networking Companies can share experience in networks The international level: World Business Council for Sustainable Development – not least image nursing The local level: Green Network, Vejle County, Denmark (Glass wool) Supply chain responsibility – both environmental and social – a question of ethics and goodwill
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Shared responsibility Environmental issues are the responsibility of both the companies and the authorities Company and authority should engage in dialogue Voluntary agreements could promote CP Voluntary agreements may lead to improvements, which could then be required in conditions in the permit Ensures economic considerations (e.g. timing according to the investment cycle)
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Role for the regulation The purpose of command-and-control: Only requirements and control or also a firm base for goal-setting for environmental improvements? Regulation should support voluntary instruments (e.g. EMS) – only possible through dialogue, due to lack of information exchange
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Environmental licensing & the IPPC directive Focus on both input, output and throughput Integrated assessment of environmental impacts – solving the shifting problem Differentiation (site-specific regulation) Awareness of the timing for the company to be regulated when requiring investment- based improvements (e.g. investment cycle) Introducing Best Available Technique (BAT)
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Best Available Technique The best available environmental technique (technologies and other measures) – could be preventive Originally BATNEEC (Best Available Technique Not Entailing Excessive Costs) NEEC still part of the BAT thinking Is it possible to make BREFs that will continously reflect recent developments?
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Inspection Two objectives: 1) Control; 2) Promotion of pro-active environmental investments Dialogue about pro-active investments Differentiation Compliance programmes (both authority and company) Compliance programmes ’light’ for SMVs
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Enforcement A just enforcement system has to be present, in case of non-compliance Companies subject to enforcement: 1) Laggards; 2) Not as pro-active companies as the authority expected Non-revenge No mercy (but still giving the company a second chance to comply)
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Economic instruments Combination with other policy instruments Objective: To make environmentally sound practices financially attractive Taxes/subsidies to make it less economically attractive to behave bad, and more attractive to behave well environmentally Emission trading – buying/selling pollution rights, making emission reductions where the cost is low Ecological Tax Reform
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Questions for discussion (1) How do you understand ’environmental accountability’ – what role should the companies play in the regulation of themselves? How do we make companies share experiences in the competitive context they work in?
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Questions for discussion (2) How could we make authorities cope with both enforcement and promotion of CP at the same time? How pro-active do you consider BAT, in comparison to Cleaner Production, eco- efficiency and zero emission, in terms of promoting a sustainable industry? And how could BAT be improved in this respect? How do we take the discussed ideals into our teaching? (applies to all 4 questions)
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