24 e PVI Division 44

Environmental Management, Water,

Energy, Transport

Technical Assistance in
Environmental Law and
Institutional Development
in Environment

Focus, Methodology, Resources

Division 44
Environmental Management, Water,
Energy, Transport

24 e PVI

Technical Assistance in
Environmental Law and
Institutional Development
in Environment
Focus, Methodology, Resources

Eschborn 1998
Published by:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für
Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH
P.O. Box 5180, 65726 Eschborn, Germany
Internet: http://www.gtz.de

Division 44, Environmental Management,

Water, Energy, Transport

Pilot Project Institutional Development

in Environment (PVI)
Wachsbleiche 1, 53111 Bonn, Germany
Tel.: (+49) 0228 98533-0 / Fax: (+49) 0228 98570-18
E-Mail: gtzpvi@aol.com

Author: L. Gündling

Responsible: W. Hamacher, S. Paulus, B. Winkler

Layout: D. Goldstein

Printed by: Universum Verlagsanstalt, 65175 Wiesbaden

Nominal fee: DM 10,-

Preface

Management of environment and natural resources is one of the priority areas of

German Development Cooperation. In this context, the government of the Federal
Republic of Germany has supported the development of governmental and non-
governmental environmental institutions in Developing Countries since the beginning
of the Eighties.

Refinement and adaptation of environmental legislation is receiving increasing atten-

tion within programmes of institutional development in the environment. Issues at sta-
ke are e.g. elaboration of environmental framework legislation, definition of functional
roles at various administrative levels, definition of administrative procedures as well
as cooperation between relevant actors, legal aspects of environmental policy in-
struments and the integration of environment into various sectoral legislations.

This document, which was elaborated within the framework of the Pilot Project on
Institutional Development in the Environment (GTZ-PVI), wishes to present an over-
view on issues relevant to environmental law. In addition, the paper is meant to be a
methodological orientation for advisory services in the field of environmental legislati-
on and contains a brief review of available expertise in Germany and abroad, inclu-
ding a selected bibliography on environmental law.

In preparation of this paper a number of GTZ projects dealing with environmental ma-
nagement were requested to communicate their demand for advisory services in en-
vironmental law. We wish to express our thanks for their inputs and comments and
hope that the paper presented will serve as a useful orientation. In general, we would
like to encourage field staff and partners in Developing Countries to pave the way
towards environmental legislation for sustainable development.

Bonn/Eschborn, July 1998

Dr. H. P. Schipulle Dr. W. Morbach

Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische
and Development Zusammenarbeit (GTZ)
Division 412, Environmental Protection, Division 44, Environmental Management,
Natural Resources Management and Forestry Water, Energy and Transport

I
Contents

Preface.................................................................................................................................. I
Contents ................................................................................................................................II
Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................III

1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Institutional development in the environment as consultancy field for technical
cooperation ............................................................................................................ 1
1.2 Environmental Law in the environment-and-development discussion................... 4

2. Environmental law in developing countries ........................................................... 6

2.1 The state of environmental law ............................................................................... 6
2.2 Relevance of environmental law issues in GTZ projects ..................................... 11

3. Basic elements of an effective environmental legal regime .............................. 13

3.1 Structural issues ................................................................................................... 13
3.2 Constitutional law .................................................................................................. 15
3.3 General environmental laws ................................................................................. 16
3.4 Laws on environmental quality management ....................................................... 19
3.5 Protection and use of natural resources .............................................................. 22
3.6 Environmental policy instruments......................................................................... 24
3.7 Enforcement of environmental law ....................................................................... 27
3.8 Environmentally-oriented sectoral law .................................................................. 30
3.9 International cooperation....................................................................................... 31

4. Assistance with environmental law in technical cooperation projects on

institutional development in the environment ..................................................... 32
4.1 Objectives and principles of technical assistance with environmental law.......... 32
4.2 Methodology for technical assistance with environmental law ............................. 33
4.3 Identification and use of environmental law expertise .......................................... 35
4.4 Resources for technical assistance with environmental law ............................... 37

5. Conclusion................................................................................................................. 42

Annex 1: Answers received from GTZ projects on institutional development

in the environment ............................................................................................. 43

Annex 2: Resources for technical assistance with environmental law ............................ 50

a) Institutions providing technical assistance with environmental law............ 50
b) Environmental law advisers........................................................................ 51
c) International organisations providing technical assistance with
environmental law....................................................................................... 56
d) Environmental law information centres ...................................................... 56
e) Index to basic environmental law materials ................................................ 57
f) Other Literature............................................................................................ 63

II
Abbreviations

EIA Environmental impact assessment

EU European Union

FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation

GTZ Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit

IDE Institutional Development in Environment

IMO International Maritime Organisation

IUCN The World Conservation Union (International Union for the

Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources)

MERCOSUR Mercado Común del Cono Sur

NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement

NEA National Environment Agency

NEAP National Environment Action Plan

NEMA National Environment Management Act

NGO Non-governmental organisation

NPSD National Plan for Sustainable Development

PVI Pilotvorhaben Institutionenentwicklung im Umweltbereich

TC Technical Cooperation

UNCED UN Conference on Environment and Development

UNDP UN Development Programme

UNEP UN Environment Programme

UNIDO UN Industrial Development Organisation

WHO World Health Organisation

WWF World Wide Fund for Nature

III
1. Introduction

1.1 Institutional development in the environment as consultancy field

for technical cooperation

Since the beginning of the 1980s, the Federal Government has supported a growing
number of developing countries (DCs) with building up governmental and non-
governmental environmental institutions. This gave rise, on the part of the DCs,
principally to a need for building up the technical infrastructure and for the
corresponding technical advice and training (“institution building”).

General Definition of Institutional Development in the Environment

By institutional development in the environment (IDE) we mean the process in which the relevant actors
develop institutional structures which put them in a position independently to resolve environmental
problems in the context of the tension among economic, social and ecological goals, and to take
ecological perspectives into account in their dealings.
To the list of relevant actors belong the following: Actors and Institutional Structures in the Field
environmental organizations (for example ministries,
agencies, etc., which function on various levels as Those affected Institutional
immediate “bearers” of corresponding institutional structures

structures), those responsible for environmental problems Those

(for example industries, transporters, land users), those responsible

who are affected by environmental problems (for example

urban populations, the poor), and other relevant actors (for Environment Other
organizations actors
example sectoral ministries, technical service providers,
NGOs, science, the media, etc.).
Institutional structures in the environment comprise all institutionalized procedures, instruments,
incentives, communications media, etc. which drive the interplay of the relevant actors and have direct or
indirect influence over the behavior of those responsible for environmental problems. Experience shows
that development of institutional structures in the environment sphere does not take place in a vacuum,
but as part of a lengthy and by no means straight-line process. This is particularly the case with
institutionalized rules for the following tasks:
• environmental monitoring (for example emissions controls, air and water quality measurements,
laboratories, remote sensing);
• environmental planning and management (for example emissions inventions, environmental
information systems, EIA, land use and regional planning, as well as questions of decentralization,
division of responsibilities)
• environmental training, information and communication (for example education, awareness-building,
environmental reporting, public participation, fora, advisory services, consensus-building processes);
• environmental policy guidelines (for example limits, standards, targets, permit procedures,
monitoring and compliance, market economic instruments, use rights, mediation);
• cross-sectoral strategy development (for example integration of environmental perspectives into
sectoral policies, “policy EIA”, NEAPs, NCS, NPSD, coordination).
In most DCs the process of institutional development in the environment is still just beginning. Relatively
young and weak environment ministries and agencies in complex surroundings, (sectoral ministries,
federal structures, NGOs, associations, research and advisory institutions, etc.), fragmented and unclear
competencies, intersectoral conflicts, insufficient human and financial capacities, deficient compliance
and other factors contribute to the fact that the institutional landscape is not far from taking over the whole
spectrum of tasks described above.
Special deficits exist in the area of environmental policy guidelines and cross-sectoral coordination,
consensus -building and conflict resolution. Precisely in these areas is, however, the best potential for
win-win solutions.

1
Source: GTZ 1996:4.

2
Against a background of experience to date and the discussion around sustainable
development there is agreement that technical cooperation must further develop
approaches to institutional demands with a view to their workability and significance
to a broader conceptual basis and to projects for institutional development in
environment. Above all it has to do with a stronger effort to take prevailing
environmental conditions and policy guildelines into account in the conceptual and
strategic orientation of projects, the specific search for starting points for possibilities
for exerting influence at the causal level, as well as the participation and networking of
relevant actors. This demand is linked not only to the integration of new technical
elements in the corresponding advisory approaches, but also to a distinctive catalytic
and process-oriented understanding of technical cooperation.

Principles for Fostering IDE Processes in the Context of Technical Cooperation

• IDE projects should not gloss over questions of prevailing environmental policy conditions, policy
guidelines, and cross-sectoral strategy development, but rather specifically address them. This
includes beginning as far as possible on various levels particularly in view of several of the functions
mentioned above.
• IDE projects should strive to have direct or indirect effect at the causal level. This assumes relatively
complex target groups or intermediate structures, which should be reflected in an appropriate
partnership structure. Where institutional structures are to show an effect on those responsible for
environmental problems, it is important to support all relevant actors in their particular roles and to give
them a share. To ensure this, projects should specifically promote network building, take advantage of
the comparative strengths of individual actors, create structures for cooperation and support a
balancing of interests.
• GTZ should offer a diversified performance spectrum in IDE projects. The following components are
significant here:
(a) environment-related technical advice to develop and test concepts for appropriate institutional
structures;
(b) human resources development, to increase the availability of qualified personnel and relevant
knowledge at all levels;
(c) organization and management advisory services to strengthen the efficiency, functionality and collective
competence of the organizations involved;
cooperation, communication and conflict resolution advisory services to promote networking and
cooperation among different organizations and actors.
• IDE projects should be based on a catalytic and process-oriented understanding of advisory services.
This depends not only on technical input, but also on bringing into play participatory planning and
consultancy methods to promote participants’ learning processes.
Source: GTZ 1996:5

Talking here about about IDE consultancy approaches and projects does not mean
that a new, complete conceptual approach is being presented which could serve as a
model for all technical cooperation projects in this field. On the contrary it has to do
with an incremental understanding that consciously remains open to a situation-
specific combination of technical, conceptual and methodological elements.

Institutions resonsible for environmental interests, whether national, regional or local,

need a legal basis which establishes their tasks and authority. Environmental
institutions need instruments with which to guarantee environmental protection and
the maintenance and use of natural resources. These instruments need to be set
down multiple times in legal norms in order to be effective. Instruments for
environmental protection must on the other hand be implemented. The
implementation deficit in environmental law is almost proverbial. Legal questions
pose themselves here: implementation can be enforced either directly by authorities
or through the courts, which can at times be laborious. In addition to the authorities,
3
individuals or associations can be granted rights to bring suit or to intervene.
Frequently there are implementation problems in environmental law that go beyond
the legal sphere, such as financial or technical deficits, lack of appropriate training or
political will. The law alone cannot remedy them; it can however contribute to analysis
of the difficulties and thus also to possible solutions to the problems.

1.2 Environmental Law in the environment-and-development discussion

Environmental law has played an important role in the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) since the beginning. Particular attention was paid to
environmental law in developing countries. As early as 1975 the UN General
Assembly gave UNEP the task of supporting developing countries in building
effective environmental law. By the end of the ‘80s UNEP had provided assistance to
more than 50 developing countries in preparing their environmental laws.

The World Conservation Strategy published in 1980 by IUCN, UNEP and WWF
likewise emphasized the importance of legal instruments necessary for the realization
of the goals of the Strategy. Appropriately the Strategy contains the proposal to
review legislation on protection and use of natural resources and if necessary to
revise it. The implementation problem is also stressed:

“Special attention should be paid to the enforcement of conservation law.

Enforcement is a multidisciplinary activity that should begin with the design
of legislation. It is necessary but not sufficient to provide adequately
trained and funded personnel to implement and police the law. It is also
important to make sure in advance that the law is ecologically and socially
feasible. Public education programmes may be required both before and
after the law comes into force to help the public understand and support it.
If the law imoses undue hardship on a particular segment of society, then
measures to relieve that hardship may be needed. The effects and the
effectiveness of the law should be monitored so that, if necessary, the law
or its enforcement can be improved.” (IUCN-UNEP-WWF 1980, Section
11).

The World Charter for Nature set down fundamental principles and responsibilities
for the protection of the environment and natural resources. The World Charter as
such is admittedly not legally binding, although it has been given important status in
the further development of environmental law. It means, although in very general
terms, that the principles prescribed in the Charter must find expression in suitable
form in the laws and in the behavior of each State as well as at the international level.
It means as well that the stated goals for the maintenance of nature can only be
achieved if the necessary means, programmes, and administrative structures are
created.

The report of the World Commission for Environment and Development

(Brundtland Commission), published in 1987, formulated legal principles for
environmental protection and sustainable development and included them in an
annex to the report. At the core are the general principles, rights and responsibilities

4
of States for the protection of humanity and the environment and for international and
transboundary environmental protection.

These works on legal principles also had a decided influence on the preparations for
the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)
which took place in Rio in 1992. The development of environmental law at the national
as well as the international level was in the forefront and was intensively discussed
during the Conference. The Rio Declaration deals explicitly with environmental law.
States are obligated to create effective environmental legislation. Environmental
standards, management goals and priorities should be reflected in the environment
and development context in which they are applied.

Agenda 21 also gives environmental law special significance. Chapter 8 on the

integration of environmental protection and development in decision-making signifies
that laws and regulations are important instruments for implementing environmental
and development policies. It is viewed as necessary to create integrated, applicable
and effective laws and regulations. Compliance is also given special attention here. It
calls for setting up programmes to ensure compliance with laws, regulations and
standards. Environmental law is also required to implement most international
agreements at the national level.

Agenda 21 plans the following activities in connection with environmental law:

• making laws and regulations effective;

• creating the preconditions for judicial and administrative procedures;
• making available legal information and support services;
• creating en environmental law training network;
• developing effective national programmes to review and strengthen compliance
with environmental law;
• examining legal compliance measures in connection with international
agreements which States have ratified.

5
2. Environmental law in developing countries

2.1 The state of environmental law

Early trends

Inventories undertaken by the United Nations Environment Programme clearly show

that many developing countries have established their environmental legislation. This
legislation may be classified as follows:

• legal rules on protection against risks from environmental pollution;

• legal rules on protection and use of natural resources; and
• legal rules establishing general instruments of environment protection, particularly
environmental planning and assessment and monitoring of environmentally
relevant projects.

In the early days those legal rules were mainly laid down in specific or sectoral
environmental laws which were far from being comprehensive in the sense that they
addressed all environmental areas. In almost all countries laws and regulations had
considerable gaps. Therefore, a number of developing countries already in the 1970s
and the 1980s decided to adopt general environmental framework laws in order to
achieve some harmonization in environmental legislation and to meet the
requirements of effective environmental protection.

Environmental framework laws in developing countries up to 1992:

Colombia Código Nacional de Recursos Naturales Renovables y de Protección al Medio 1974
Ambiente
Malaysia Environmental Quality Act 1974
Venezuela Ley Orgánica del Ambiente 1976
Phillipines Environmental Code 1977
China Environmental Protection Law 1979
Sri Lanka National Environmental Act 1980
Kuwait Law Regarding Protection of the Environment 1980
Cuba Protección del Medio Ambiente y del Uso Racional de los Recursos Naturales 1981
Indonesia Act No. 40 1982
Libya Legislative Act Concerning the Protection of the Environment 1982
Pakistan Environmental Protection Ordinance 1983
Senegal Environmental Code 1983
Guatemala Ley de Protección y Mejoramiento del Medio Ambiente 1986
India The Environment (Protection Act) 1986
Gambia National Environment Management Act 1987
Mexico Ley General del Equilibrio Ecológico y la Protección al Ambiente 1988
Peru Código del Medio Ambiente y los Recursos Naturales 1990
Zambia The Environmental Protection and Pollution Control Act 1990
Mauritius The Environment Protection Act 1991
Bolivia Ley General del Medio Ambiente 1992
Source: UNEP 1991(2); UNEP 1992; compilation by the author.

6
Those early environmental framework laws varied considerably. Fairly
comprehensive laws providing for environmental institutions and environmental
instruments co-existed with relatively short laws providing for nothing else than an
institutional structure. In the latter cases the environmental institutions established
were hardly able to take effective action. Where those were able to function, their
activities were limited to consultations and rendering of recommendations. Examples
are abundant in many African countries where environmental ministries or
environmental councils (National Environmental Councils) were established but could
not be successful due to the lack of effective competences and of a functioning
institutional structure.

Example: The Pakistan Environment Protection Ordinance 1983

The Pakistan Ordinance is an example of an early environmental framework law. It provided for the
establishment of an environmental council and an environmental agency at the federal level. The
environmental council, chaired by the state President, was given the responsibility to prepare a
comprehensive national environmental policy to ensure the conservation of natural resources, to ensure
that environmental aspects were integrated into development planning, to enforce environmental quality
standards, and to control environmental impacts from all governmental agencies.

The environmental agency was established to implement the Ordinance, to prepare state of the
environment reports, to decide on environmental standards, and to promote environmental information and
environmental research.

Furthermore, the Ordinance provided for the basic elements of an environmental impact assessment
system at the federal level and included several general criminal provisions.

Practice under the Ordinance was somewhat sobering, essentially because the environmental council for
years simply was not convened. It was convened for the first time in 1991 - and held an informal meeting.
The environmental agency or other governmental authorities could not take action either because they were
dependent on the environmental council. The council did not delegate its powers - it could not do so
because it was not convened. Therefore, the general opinion prevails that the Ordinance did not achieve its
objectives. Furthermore it was criticized because it focused too much on pollution issues and neglected the
problems of the use of natural resources.
Source: Pakistan National Report to UNCED 1992.

Improved environmental framework laws

The trend to establish general environmental framework laws or to improve the

existing ones continued in developing countries through the beginning of the 1990s.
Since 1990 new environmental framework laws have been adopted, inter alia, in
Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Jordan, Comores, Nepal and Vietnam. In even more
countries such environmental framework laws are under preparation or planned, for
example in Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau, Qatar, Mozambique, Pakistan, Romania, Syria
and Uganda.

Obviously adopting environmental framework laws is not the end of the process. On
the contrary, such laws create a need for further environmental law work. In many
developing countries the framework laws are nothing more than the first step to
establish an environmental law system in a true sense. This is particularly the case in
countries which were newly established or have successfully overcome war situations
or are countries in transition. Another aspect which will be of paramount importance
in many countries is that the legal regime will need to be adapted to environmental
framework laws. The major problem will be to coordinate the competences of

7
environmental agencies with those of other agencies which are also concerned with
environmental matters. The specific issue clearly is coordination not only with regard
to law-making, planning and licensing of investment projects but also with regard to
enforcement. Environmental agencies do not substitute sectoral agencies which is
clearly the experience of Gambia, India and Philippines. Mechanisms of cooperation
and coordination need to be developed.

Example: Environmental law in Gambia

In the 1970s and 80s Gambia developed a relatively active body of environmental legislation. In addition to
several sectoral laws, a first National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) was adopted in 1987. This
law established environmental agencies - the National Environmental Council and the Environmental
Committee - it also provided for basic obligations for environment protection and the use of natural
resources, even though in a very general form.

The law was completely revised and enlarged in 1994. The NEMA 1994 is an example of a comprehensive
environmental framework law aiming at the integration and harmonization of environmental law. The
National Environmental Council was retained; in addition the law provides for the establishment of a
national environment agency, regulates the major instruments of environmental policy, namely planning,
environmental impact assessment and enforcement, contains basic obligations of pollution control,
protection of resources and the use of resources, and comprehensively addresses issues such as
environmental reporting, environmental education and environmental awareness raising.

The environmental legal regime in Gambia consists of the following major laws:

National Environmental Management Act 1994

Public Health Act 1990

National Water Resources Council Act 1979
Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides Control and Management Act 1994
Environmental Protection (Protection of Dumping) Act 1988

Forest Act 1977

Forest Regulations 1977
Wildlife Conservation Act 1977
Fisheries Act 1991
Fisheries Regulations 1995

Physical Planning and Development Control Act 1990

Land Use Regulations 1995
State Lands Regulations 1995
Development Control Regulations 1995
Draft Plans Regulations 1995

Work on further development of environmental law needs to focus on the preparation of EIA regulations, the
revision of forestry legislation, and the development of a water law and a law on waste management. Work
is carried out by the newly established National Environment Agency which is supported by a GTZ project
(Gambian-German Environmental Management Project, GGEMP).
Source of the laws: Environmental Laws and Regulations of The Gambia, compiled by the Gambian-German
Environmental
Management Project (GGEMP), 1996.

Conservation and use of natural resources

In many countries legal rules are available which regulate the conservation and
sustainable use of natural resources, such as hunting, fisheries or forestry laws. In
most cases, however, the laws have gaps; partly they are too rigid and therefore
cannot be forced. There are also countries where legal rules on protected areas are

8
not flexible enough. Often they do not differentiate between the various categories of
protected areas and consequently do not allow for the necessary harmonization of
protection requirements on the one hand and utilization needs on the other.

Hunting and protected area legislation in many developing countries often provided
restrictions or the use of or access to resources without taking into account existing
rights or customs of local communities. Often there were no exceptions in favour of
local communities, which resulted in difficulties where the local communities in
question were dependent on the use of the resources. In these cases the
inappropriate legislation itself was the very reason for the lack of enforcement; and at
the same time nature conservation and environment protection lost their credibility
with the local communities.

A completely new challenge in conservation and sustainable use of natural resources

comes up with the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity,
particularly its provisions on access to genetic resources. In almost all countries
pioneering legal work needs to be done. Many countries will have particular need of
such rules because they are rich in genetic resources and may be particularly
interested in the participation mechanism which the Convention provides. According
to the Convention, the country of origin of genetic resources has the right to
participate in scientific research based on genetic resources and to share in the
benefits from the use of genetic resources (Article 15). In many countries work has
started to prepare inventories and strategies for the conservation and use of
biological diversity, partly with support from UNEP and IUCN. Other countries and
regions have begun to prepare legal rules on access to genetic resources, for
example the Andean Pact region and the Philippines.

Unwritten customary law

In some countries, particularly in Africa, the existence of customary laws creates

particular legal problems. On the one hand customary law is difficult to identify; on the
other hand it may conflict with the objective of an ecologically sustainable use of
natural resources. Customary laws pose particular problems where pressure from
population growth is high, which is the case in many developing countries.

Nevertheless, there can be no doubt that customary laws often contain concepts
which aim at using natural resources sustainably. This is the reason why the
traditional law of local communities should not only be taken into account but also
used in environmental policy. The Convention on Biological Diversity recognizes the
value of normative concepts of indigenous communities. Traditional (tribal) law in
many cases, particularly in rural areas, is the only functioning legal order; it would not
make sense at all to replace this order by a “modern“ legal system. Finally, there are
also good reasons to build an environmental consensus on recognition and
integration of customary law.

Environmental impact assessment

In many countries there is a lack of functioning EIA procedures even though the legal
basis may be available either in specific laws or in environmental framework laws.
This is the case for example of Pakistan, a country which in 1983 established a EIA
9
system at the federal level that was never implemented in practice. The situation is
similar in Zambia where the environmental framework law of 1990 provided the EIA
procedure; the details of the regulations are currently in preparation. In Gambia, the
1994 NEMA provides the basic rules on EIA; the detailed EIA regulations are being
developed at the moment.

It may be fair to state that in many developing countries the framework for EIA is
available whereas the detailed procedural regulations are still missing. Regulatory
options are either specific EIA laws or regulations or degrees which regulate the
details. The legal regulations may be supplemented by guidelines which apply to
specific sectors.

Lack of environmental standards

Almost all developing countries lack environmental standards. This is a significant

deficit and handicap in licensing proceduresand also has negative impacts on
enforcement measures. Licensing and enforcement authorities often face the
situation of having to prove a real or potential pollution case, but having no
environmental quality standards on which to do so. International standards may be
relied on in part; however, these standards often have gaps, are not appropriate, or
their applicability is disputed in the country affected.

Environmental law enforcement problems in developing countries

As far as enforcement of environmental law is concerned, practical experience with

technical assistance encounters well-known phenomena such as lack of political will,
low standing of environmental policy, lack of resources (personal, technical and
financial), or the insufficient state of information on environmental problems and
environmental regulations. In a number of countries the low standing of the rule of law
as such has negative impacts on environmental law.

Reasons for enforcement deficits

• lack of political will

• lack of public awareness and participation
• insufficient financial means
• insufficient trained personnel
• inappropriate legislation
• inefficient institutional structures
• bad planning
• insufficient integration of environmental considerations in economic and sectoral policies
Source: UNEP 1991 (2), p. 19 ss.

Particular problems in enforcing environmental law exist in countries which are in a

state of transition with regard to their societal, economic and governmental order.
Often those countries suffer from particularly dramatic environmental damages, for
example a number of countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Issues of
economic recovery have priority and therefore the tasks of preparing environmental
policies, establishing environmental authorities, adopting environmental legislation
and enforcing it, are particularly difficult.

10
The situation is similar in those countries which suffered from civil wars, for example
Mozambique, Angola and Eritrea. Governmental, legal and economic structures need
to be built from scratch. Here again it is obvious that economic growth has priority,
leaving little room for ideas such as protection of the environment and sustainable
use of natural resources.

International cooperation

Developing countries often give a cool reception to international agreements on

environment protection and nature conservation. There may be various reasons for
this. Often a sceptical attitude prevails because governments fear political constraints
from international agreements. Sometimes international agreements are considered
instruments of industrial countries attempting to impose their values and interests
worldwide. Sometimes governments believe that they have not been involved
sufficiently in the making of international agreements. Governments may in addition
fear that they cannot fulfil international obligations. There are also cases where even
major international agreements are simply not known. It is also being argued that it is
difficult to assess the scope, costs and benefits of ratifying or acceding to
international agreements.

2.2 Relevance of environmental law issues in GTZ projects

All GTZ projects interviewed for the purpose of carrying out this study confirmed the
relevance of environmental law issues (see Annex I for details). There are only few
projects however, where environmental law issues were specifically addressed. In
most project countries established environmental institutions have a legal basis,
either in laws or regulations. An exception in this regard is a project in the Philippines.
In this country the legal status of the Environmental Quality Council is under
discussion and the discussion is fairly controversal. Often the competences of
environmental institutions are considered not to be sufficient. In some cases it is
argued that the competences are splintered among specific environmental
institutions and sectoral institutions (Benin, Morocco). In others, the competence to
enforce environmental laws is considered not to be sufficient, for example in India and
the Philippines. In these cases there is a need to strengthen inspection powers, to
make inspections more effective and faster, and to make inspection results binding
so that they can be challenged in courts.

In most project countries substantive environmental regulations are in place; often,

however, regulations are rudimentary. Some projects point out gaps in environmental
legislation (Brazil, Russia) or at conflicts between existing legal regulations (Ecuador,
India). Others indicate problems with environmental standards which are either non-
existent, outdated, or inappropriate (Brazil/Alagoas, Morocco). The Morocco project
also notes a discrepancy between environmental regulations and the general criminal
law; the latter should be harmonized with environmental regulations. The necessary
integration of environmental laws into other legal regimes is critically addressed in the
reply from the Ecuador projects. A number of project countries report numerous
legislative initiatives in the environmental area (Benin, Ecuador, Morocco). In some

11
cases general environmental framework laws are being prepared, in others work is
going on on sectoral laws, such as water laws, air pollution control laws, waste
management laws, or laws on the protection and use of natural resources. One
project (Philippines) reports on the privatization of environmental management tasks
and the use of economic instruments, the difficulty being that environmentally-friendly
behaviour needs to be ensured.

Enforcement of existing environmental regulations is a problem in all project

countries. Enforcement of environmental law apparently needs to be improved
everywhere. The reasons given for enforcement deficits vary however. Some project
countries deplore the fact that personnel are not available (Benin, Ecuador), others
the lack of well-trained personnel or good equipment (Brazil, India). The
environmental law enforcement deficit in some countries apparently has to do with
societal problems such as corruption. Projects also mention the lack of political will
(Brazil/Paraná, Ecuador). Sometimes administrative procedures are either too
centralized or not sufficiently participatory (Ecuador, Russia, Morocco).
Decentralizing decision-making to defer decisions to regional or local levels may help
in some cases. It is also being argued that decision-making procedures need to be
more open, allowing individuals or groups to participate. In one case issues with
regard to indigenous populations are mentioned (Ecuador), recognizing however that
the rights of indigenous populations have been strengthened.

The question of whether legal means and procedures may help to improve
enforcement of environmental law is being answered differently. The project in
Ecuador for example reports that judicial dispute settlement may be difficult; on the
other hand the projects in Brazil/Alagoas and in India have had encouraging
experiences with legal proceedings (particularly with citizen suits and suits by
environmental organizations).

In general, the projects articulate a need for technical assistance in environmental law
to address the relevant legal issues. An exception may be the project in India which
apparently does not need legal technical assistance but rather needs scientific
technical assistance. It may be assumed, taking into account the general experience
in India, that the available legal infrastructure is in place and may be used for
environmental law projects.

In several cases however a need for technical assistance in environmental law is

specified. For example the project in Russia/Lake Baikal replied that international
assistance should focus on general support of law-making, leaving the details,
particularly the harmonization of the environmental legal regime to local lawyers. In
other cases, for example in Benin and Brazil/Paraná, the replies point at the need of
environmental legal education. It is submitted that the most effective contribution to
technical assistance in environmental law may be the building of local legal know-
how.

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3. Basic elements of an effective environmental legal regime

3.1 Structural issues

Regulatory levels

Environmental law raises difficult structural issues. First there are different regulatory
levels: international law; supranational economic integration organizations (EU,
NAFTA, Andean Pact, MERCOSUR); national law; states or regions; municipalities
and their associations. Often the division of competences between the various levels
is a problem; a “classical“ issue is the question of whether or not the lower regulatory
level has powers to make and enforce laws if the upper level has taken action (most
important examples are the division of powers between the federal and the state
levels in Germany, or the relationship between the European Union and its Member
States). In general the principle of subsidiarity applies, which means that the higher
level only acts if there is a need for a general regulation at the higher level and if this
is more effective than regulation by the individual actors.

Law-making and enforcement

Law-making and law enforcement have to be differentiated as well. In many countries,

and also with regard to the relationship between national law and international law,
the rule is that environmental law is enforced at the lower governmental levels. This
applies to most areas of German environmental law which is adopted at the federal
level but in most cases enforced by the individual states. The situation is similar with
regard to European environmental legislation; the directives and regulations adopted
by the European organs are enforced by the individual Member States.

Environmental law and general legislation

A major structural issue concerns the relationship between environmental law and
other legal sectors. Environmental regulations are not only contained in specific laws
and regulations concerning the protection of the environment. Many other laws and
regulations pertain in addition to these legal instruments such as constitutional law,
laws and regulations concerning environmentally-relevant activities (mining, tourism,
land use, etc.), and regulations concerning charges, taxes or subsidies. Taking those
regulatory fields into account gives rise to difficult issues (which matters can be
regulated in the clearest and most effective way at which level by which institution?).

Differentiation of environmental law

A major consideration concerns the relationship between the laws and regulations
within environmental law. Environmental law in most countries consists of many
general and specific legal regulations which co-exist. “General“ legal regulations are
those which address all or essential cross-cutting issues of environmental protection;

13
“special“ legal regulations are those which concern the protection of individual
environmental media or specific problems (environmental impacts from activities or
products). In practice, many countries do not address the issue of the most
appropriate regulatory approach from an abstract effectiveness perspective. In many
cases historical, political and legal structures play a role and need to be taken into
account when environmental law is developed. In almost all countries environmental
legislation started with adopting specific environmental laws, often regulations
concerning public health (waste, sewage) and regulations to control air and water
pollution. The next phase saw the adoption of specific regulations on hazardous
products or processes (for example, laws on chemicals, particular substances,
nuclear energy production, or genetic engineering).

Following the phase of specific regulations, most countries have recognized the need
for harmonizing environmental law. This can best be done with general environmental
laws which either address all or cross-cutting issues, such as environmental impact
assessment. Interestingly, states with a rather developed environmental legal regime
face more difficulties in adopting general environmental laws. The best example may
be the Federal Republic of Germany where the introduction of a general
Environmental Act (part of an environmental code) has been discussed for decades.
Often it is easier for developing countries to adopt general environmental legislation,
although one must not overlook the fact that in many cases the laws and regulations to
implement the general laws are not yet in place.

There can be no doubt that both categories of environmental laws and regulations are
necessary. General laws need to address and uniformly regulate issues which are
common to all areas of environment protection, such as the terms used (such as
environment, environment pollution, environment protection, environmental impact,
environmental standard, environmental impact assessment, monitoring, biological
diversity, natural resources, and many others) or the establishment of procedures for
prevention or control. Those basic issues should be uniformly regulated to the extent
possible. The procedures for environmental impact assessment as well as the
considerations which guide environmental assessment decisions should be the same
everywhere.

There is equally a need for specific environmental laws and regulations applying to
individual areas; those laws and regulations may govern either media or issues. It
should be recognized that both approaches have their advantages and
disadvantages. Laws governing media (air pollution control, water pollution control)
allow for comprehensive protection taking into account all sources of pollution. A
disadvantage often is that application of the laws does not look beyond the
environmental media in question. Regulations governing products or processes
(chemicals, wastes, genetic engineering, industrial installations, nuclear energy) have
the advantage that they can take into account protection of all media (integrated
environment protection). The limitation of this approach however is that only one
environment pollution source is being controlled.

The best success probably is being achieved by a combination of approaches. In

addition to regulations concerning environmental media (protection of air, water and
soil), important problem areas (such as hazardous substances, wastes, genetic

14
engineering or nuclear energy production) should be regulated in specific legal
instruments, leaving central and basic issues to a uniform general environmental law.

3.2 Constitutional law

There is agreement that the constitution of a country should address basic issues of
environmental protection. It should at least provide for the duty of the State to take
environmental protection measures and to ensure an environmentally-friendly and
sustainable use of natural resources. A number of countries have provided the
constitutional right of every citizen to live in a decent environment. Such a fundamental
right may be complemented by a duty on every citizen not to damage the environment
and natural resources.

Constitutional law must address the division of responsibilities in environmental

matters between the central government on the one hand and other levels of
government on the other. The division of competences is of particular importance in
federal states. The constitution may also address the competences and
responsibilities of local governments, as the local level is increasingly important in
environmental matters.

Examples: Europe
The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany is an example of what a constitution may provide as a
minimum. Article 20 a, added to the Constitution in 1994, provides:

“In fulfilling its responsibility for future generations the State shall protect the natural basis of life within the
framework of the constitutional order through legislative means, executive measures and judicial review, in
conformity with legislation and legal rules“.

The constitutional provision establishes the duty of the state to protect the environment; it does not provide
an individual right to a clean environment. This means that the duty of the state cannot be the basis of a
court case. Also important is the reference to existing legislation which provides the framework for any
environment protection measure taken by the administration. Another country where the constitutional
provisions are similarly restrictive is The Netherlands.

Other countries in the European Union go further and provide a constitutional right to a clean environment.
The constitution of Spain, for example, provides in its Article 45:

(1) "All citizens have the right to live in an environment condusive to the development of the individual
personality, as well as the duty to protect the environment.
(2) The government supervises the rational use of all natural resources with the objective to protect and
improve the quality of life and to conserve and restore the environment. In doing so it relies on the
indispensable solidarity within the society.
(3) For violations against the above provisions the law provides for criminal or as appropriate
administrative sanctions as well as for the obligation to compensate the damage caused.“

Similarly the Portuguese Constitution provides an individual right to a clean environment.

Constitutional law can also address issues of information and participation of citizens
or environmental associations. Constitutional provisions may also regulate access to
judicial remedies, whether for individual citizens or for associations. Such regulations
can strengthen environmental law enforcement. Clearly such issues can also be
regulated in statutory law. However, if they are included in the constitution they have
particular weight.

15
Example: Colombia
The Colombian Constitution of 1991 addresses environmental protection issues in a broad way which
goes beyond guaranteeing the individual right to a clean environment. A series of environment protection
issues is addressed and thus regulated at the highest possible legal level. Article 8 provides the duty of the
state to protect the natural wealth of the nation. Article 58 stipulates that private property also has an
ecological function; a progressive definition of private property. Article 59 guarantees an individual right to a
clean environment and places an obligation on the state to protect the environment in an integrated way.
Article 67 contains the duty of the state to organize environmental education. Article 80 makes it a duty of the
state to plan and manage the use of natural resources in order to guarantee sustainable development.
Article 86 contains mechanisms to protect and enforce individual rights. Article 95 provides the individual
obligation to protect the country’s natural resources. Article 267 makes it a duty of the state to integrate
environmental aspects in public finance. Governmental authorities at all levels, the central state, the region,
and the communities are obliged to protect the environment. Development of economic policies must take
environmental aspects into account (Article 334). Furthermore the Constitution provides the obligation to
prepare a National Development Plan which takes environment protection objectives into account (Art. 339).

3.3 General environmental laws

General environmental laws are those which regulate cross-sectoral environmental

issues in a unifom way. Such laws serve harmonization purposes and lay down
guiding principles for all areas of environmental policy. Therefore, they are often
called environmental framework laws.

Establishment of environmental agencies

Environmental agencies at all levels of government (central government, regions,

municipalities) need to have a basis in law. Most countries provide such a basis
either in sectoral or in framework laws. Laws provide for the establishment of
environmental agencies, define their tasks and competences, and regulate their
relationships to other governmental agencies. It is very rare that environmental
agencies are given the full range of competences in environmental matters. In most
cases other agencies - sectoral agencies such as industry, mining, agriculture,
forestry, fisheries, transport or public health authorities - also have environmental
competences.

Many developing countries favour the “nodal agency model“. Generally, this model
concentrates cross-sectoral competences, such as environmental reporting,
environmental information systems, environmental awareness and environmental
education. In addition, such agencies fulfil advisory and coordinating functions in
licensing and EIA procedures, standard setting, environmental planning and policy
formulation. Enforcement of environmental law under this model is the responsibility
of other agencies; e.g., water authority, forestry authority, etc. Equally important is the
conflict resolution function for which it is crucial that the “nodal agency“ is given some
power. It should be emphasized that it is not sufficient that such environmental
agencies are part of other agencies or are line ministries with the same rank as
others. Conflict resolution can work only if environmental agencies are somewhat
“above“ other agencies. It is an advantage if environmental agencies report to the
head of state or the prime minister.

16
Another type of environmental agency is the so-called “enforcement agency model“.
Under this model the essential environmental competences are concentrated in the
agency which also deals with law enforcement, i.e. adopting, implementating and
enforcing regulations, setting standards, monitoring and control, licencing, planning
and imposing sanctions. At first glance, this enforcement agency model seems to be
the preferable option since chances for effective enforcement seem to be high. On
the other hand, however, establishing such administrative structures requires a major
decision which may be costly and politically difficult, the reason being that often
strong sectoral agencies deal with specific environmental tasks (e.g., water resource
management) and are not prepared to give competences to other agencies.
Therefore, in practice, the enforcement agency model remains an exceptional case
(e.g., federal EPA in the US). In some countries environmental agencies are given
enforcement competences for certain areas. This is the case in India where the
Pollution Control Boards have relatively broad enforcement powers with regard to
water and air pollution control.

Basic elements of an environmental framework law

1. Purpose of the law 6. Environmental instruments
2. Definitions • environmental fund
3. Fundamental rights and duties of environmental • monitoring
protection and sustainable development • environmental reporting
4. Principles of environmental policy and law • environmental planning
• precautionary principle • EIA
• polluter pays principle • inspection and control
• principle of cooperation • economic incentives
• public participation 7. Basic elements of pollution control
• integration of environmental policy in other (management of environmental quality)
policies 8. Basic elements of natural resource
• international cooperation management
5. Environmental authorities 9. Environmental awareness
• environmental council 10. Environmental education
• environmental agency 11. Environmental research
• scientific advisory board 12. Enforcement
• informal bodies or fora • enforcement measures
• liability
• judicial review
• penalties and sanctions
13. Final provisions

Many countries have established other environmental institutions which are not line
agencies but rather serve advisory functions. This is the case with environmental
councils. The membership of such councils is representative in the sense that
members come from both governmental and non-governmental sectors. In addition to
their advisory function they may be in a position to organize a consensus within a
society which helps to avoid or resolve environmental conflicts. A typical task for
these institutions is the development of general environmental policies which provide
guidance for all governmental activities in environment. Environmental councils have
been established particularly in African countries, for example in Gambia, Malawi and
Uganda, countries where UNEP has provided technical legal assistance. The
councils established are composed of representatives from environmentally relevant
ministries. They prepare and adopt environmental policies, standards, procedures
and guidelines.

17
Jordan and Eritrea follow a different model. The environment council established in
1995 in Jordan and the proposed environmental council for Eritrea are not only
composed of governmental representatives but also of representatives from
academics (research institutions and universities), the private sector and non-
governmental organizations. With regard to these representative environmental
councils it is important to carefully consider the competences. Since they are not
purely governmental institutions, one may question whether typically governmental
tasks such as law-making and law enforcement are appropriate.

Establishment of environmental agencies is more than a legal issue. Also important

are practical considerations, policies and existing structures of public administration.
Nonetheless law can make an important contribution to the establishment of effective
environmental agencies. It is crucial to clearly divide the responsibilities of
enforcement agencies and those of environmental councils. Even more important is a
clear division between enforcement agencies and sectoral agencies which also carry
out environmental protection tasks. Experience shows that responsibilities and
competences often overlap, creating conflicts. Where general environmental
agencies coexist with sectoral agencies and where they fulfil coordinating functions,
the definition of “coordination“ must be made clear. This needs to be done with
regard to both law-making and law enforcement. Coordination should be more than a
word. Coordination undertaken by general environmental agencies should ensure that
governmental environmental policy is systematic and rational.

Guiding principles and instruments of environmental policy

General environmental laws should also lay down the guiding principles and major
instruments of environmental policy. Guiding principles of environmental policy which
should be provided in all legal systems include:

• the precautionary principle

• the polluter pays principle
• the principle of cooperation, and
• the principle to integrate environmental and development policies.

The major instruments of environmental policy in most countries comprise:

• environmental planning
• environmental impact assessment
• monitoring of environmentally relevant activities, institutions and products
• control instruments (duties, prohibitions, incentives, sanctions, agreements,
licensing procedures, etc.)
• environmental information, education and training.

General environmental laws address principles and instruments of environmental

policy only in a basic form. They need to be regulated in more detail in specific
environmental laws. General environmental laws are not substitutes for laws and
regulations which either address the protection of environmental media or regulate
hazardous products or processes.

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3.4 Laws on environmental quality management

Overview

The major objective of environmental law is to establish and enforce substantive

regulations concerning the protection of the environment and the ecologically
sustainable use of natural resources. This refers to the protection and rational use of
environmental media, soil, water and air, of nature and landscapes as well as flora
and fauna and their components. A consistent system is hard to achieve, as
experience shows in many countries. There is probably no country so far which can
claim to have found a satisfying solution. One cannot escape the fact that many
individual laws and regulations are necessary; overlaps may be unavoidable. In
addition to laws and regulations which address protection of environmental media, it
is necessary to develop legal regulations which concern individual activities or
products. In almost all countries establishing specific provisions on the management
of wastes, chemicals and other hazardous materials is unavoidable. Such regulations
almost by necessity overlap with provisions regulating the protection of certain
environmental media. It is obvious that the purpose of laws on substances is nothing
else than the protection of environmental media. Also possible are overlaps of
pollution control regulations and regulations which aim at protecting natural
resources. Here again, the ultimate goal is the protection of soil, air, water, plants and
animals.

Regulations on wastes and waste water

In many countries regulations on wastes and waste water are part of public health
legislation. Often this legislation is rudimentary and needs to be amended to provide
comprehensive regulations.

A second option is to introduce independent legislation on solid waste and waste

water management. Most industrialized countries follow this model. And there are
good reasons to introduce separate waste management legislation: it makes it
possible to provide comprehensive regulations and to establish independent
institutions.

A particular question is whether or not separate waste legislation should address

both solid waste and liquid waste. The answer to the question depends on the
technical capacity for waste water treatment which exists in the country. If waste water
is not treated in treatment plants but rather collected and disposed of just as solid
waste, there may be good reasons to regulate both in one legal instrument. This may
be the situation in many developing countries.

Elements of waste management legislation

• definitions
• responsibilities
• basic obligations (waste reduction and avoidance, recycling, safe disposal)
• prohibitions of unsafe disposal
• waste management planning
• construction of waste treatment and waste disposal installations (licensing requirements,
environmental impact assessment)

19
• monitoring and inspection of waste treatment and waste disposal plants or installations
• international aspects (import and export of wastes)
• fees (enabling provisions)
• sanctions (administrative and criminal law sanctions).

Waste management legislation needs to differentiate between hazardous wastes and

other wastes. There must be specific regulations on hazardous wastes . The
complexity of waste management problems may in any case lead to a differentiated
legal regime. In all countries an attempt should be made to establish a general legal
basis for the management of wastes, i.e., a general waste management act. This act
should be implemented by more specific legal instruments.

Water resource management legislation

In many developing countries the availability of sufficient water resources and water
pollution control are problems which are as serious as those of waste management.
There are several options for regulating water resource management:

In many countries comprehensive legislation on water resource management has

been enacted. It addresses both availability of water and water pollution control.
There are good reasons to address both issues in the same legal instrument, as both
aspects are interrelated. Sufficient water resources depend on measures for water
pollution control, and vice versa. Legal regulations will vary according to the political,
legislative and administrative conditions in the country. From a legal technical point of
view it is possible to address the relevant issues in separate legal instruments.

Elements of water resource management legislation:

• scope (internal waters, ground waters, coastal waters)
• definitions
• basic obligations to use water resources sparingly and to control water pollution
• licence requirements for water uses (permits and licences or one single licence)
• requirements of waste water discharge, technical regulations concerning waste water, establishment
of waste water treatment facilities
• international aspects (transboundary waters, coastal waters, other marine areas under national
jurisdiction)
• fees (enabling provisions)
• sanctions (administrative and criminal law sanctions).

The example of the Federal Republic of Germany shows that water resource
legislation may exist at various levels of government. National regulations may coexist
with state or regional regulations. Piecemeal regulations should be avoided.
Management should follow the river basin approach wherever possible. Legal
regulations should ensure integrated management of a river or watercourse basin.

Legislation on air pollution control

Air pollution is a problem particularly in urban centres in developing countries. Major

sources of air pollution are industrial installations, power plants and automobiles. The
legal regulations to protect the atmosphere should address all sources of pollutants,
i.e., both stationary and mobile sources.

20
Basic elements of air pollution legislation
• definitions
• responsibilities
• prohibitions
• air pollution control planning
• licencing requirements for air polluting activities
• licencing procedures (including environmental impact assessment)
• standard setting
• notification requirements for low impact activities
• monitoring of air quality and control of pollution sources
• sanctions (administrative and criminal law sanctions).

Regulations on air pollution control may exist at the national level but also at the
regional or local levels to the extent that the constitutional law of the country allows for
law-making activities at the lower governmental levels.

Legislation on soil protection

Comprehensive legislation on soil protection hardly exists. In most countries

individual activities, substances and products which may have impacts on the soil are
addressed in legislation. The lack of comprehensive legal regulations is remarkable
given the fact that soil is as important to human life as are atmosphere and water.
Nonetheless protection of the soil is a neglected area.

Example: Draft Federal Soil Protection Law

Part One: General regulations
§ 1 Purpose of the law
§ 2 Definitions
§ 3 Scope

Part Two: Principles and obligations

§ 4 Obligations to prevent risks
§ 5 Restoration
§ 6 Introduction of materials on or into the soil
§ 7 Precautionary principles
§ 8 Standards and requirements
§ 9 Risk assessment and monitoring order
§ 10 Other orders

Part Three: Complementary provisions on abandoned sites

§ 11 Inventory
§ 12 Information on stakeholder
§ 13 Clean-up planning
§ 14 Clean-up planning by governmental agencies
§ 15 Governmental supervision, self-control
§ 16 Complementary orders to cleanup abandoned sites

Part Four: Agricultural land use

§ 17 Good agricultural practice

Part Five: Final provisions

§ 18 Experts
§ 19 Data transfer
§ 20 Scientific advisory board
§ 21 Hearings for concerned groups
§ 22 State regulations

21
§ 23 Fulfilment of binding decisions of the European Community
§ 24 National security
§ 25 Costs
§ 26 Fines
A law on soil protection should address all sources of soil pollution (activities,
substances and products). Particularly important for soil protection is the control of
wastes, including the problems of abandoned dump sites and pollution from
agricultural activities. An example of a somewhat comprehensive soil protection law
is the soil protection bill which has been introduced in Germany.

Legislation on hazardous substances and hazardous activities

Legal regulations on substances and activities are desirable because they allow for
integrated, cross-media environmental protection. Waste management legislation
has already been mentioned as an example of such integrated legislation. Other
examples which are relevant to developing countries are chemicals and pesticides
legislation. One could add legislation on pharmaceuticals; here however the major
aspect is human health.

Examples of activities which may be regulated for environmental reasons and which
are relevant to developing countries are mining, tourism or the construction of
industrial facilities. Environmental aspects of such activities are not regulated in
separate legal instruments; rather they are part of sectoral laws or regulations which
means that environmental aspects are dealt with in chemical, pesticides, tourism,
mining or industrial installation legislation. Chemicals and pesticides may be
regulated in the same piece of legislation which may be a framework law which is
then implemented by several regulations. An example is the recent chemicals and
pesticides legislation in Gambia.

3.5 Protection and use of natural resources

Systematic aspects

In many countries the legal regulations concerning the protection and sustainable use
of natural resources form a separate body of legal instruments. They are laid down in
numerous laws, for example, nature conservation laws, protected area laws, hunting
laws, fishery laws and forestry laws. Most of these laws are implemented piecemeal
through a variety of regulations and other administrative acts.

Practical experience shows that legal regulations have gaps and that the enforcement
deficit is considerable. Nature conservation and natural resources regulations coexist
with forestry, hunting and fishery regulations, which very often emphasize use rather
than conservation.

The concepts of conservation and use of natural resources need to be integrated. On

the one hand species protection and protected areas legislation should allow for use
wherever this is acceptable. On the other hand, hunting, forestry, and fishery

22
legislation should integrate protection and sustainable use wherever necessary, both
at the planning level and at the level of individual decisions.

To some extent harmonization is possible, for example through the adoption of

general nature conservation laws or laws on conservation of biological diversity. The
Convention on Biological Diversity, signed in 1992, will probably lead to more and
more comprehensive laws on biological diversity. However, there will always be a
plurality of legal instruments, and the need to harmonize and coordinate legislation
will remain.

Coordination between agencies

The question of who is responsible for coordination is crucial. In most countries

responsibility for the protection and use of natural resources is given to several
departments within agriculture ministries. Often these departments are strong
institutions which resist the idea of coordination. Sometimes they have strong
ambitions to take over the coordination functions. Therefore there are good reasons
to give the coordination function to an institution which is not a part of the traditionally
strong agriculture ministry. The general environment agency may be entrusted with
coordination, as it has coordination functions to fulfil anyway. It should not be
overlooked however that such arrangements may face difficulties.

Basic elements of legislation on protection and use of biological diversity

1. Purpose 7. Species protection
2. Definitions 8. Use of biological resources
3. Responsible agencies 9. Basic principles on
• general agency • hunting, fishery
• special agency, for example for CITES • agriculture
• scientific advisory board • forestry
4. Basic principles for protection and use • tourism
5. Instruments • other
• inventories 10. Access to biological and genetic resources
• monitoring 11. Awareness raising
• planning 12. Education
• EIA 13. Research
• inspection and control 14. International cooperation
• economic incentives 15. Financial means
6. Protected area system 16. Enforcement
17. Final provisions

Species protection, protected areas, overall protection measures

Species protection and the protection of particular areas require flexible regulations
which ensure necessary protection on the one hand and allow for use of natural
resources on the other. Enforcement mechanisms are crucial. It is also important to
integrate the concept of conservation in all other relevant decision-making
procedures.

Experience has shown that protection of natural resources cannot rely on species
protection and protected area measures alone. Such measures need to be
complemented by a general regime on conservation and sustainable use, applicable
and respected in all sectors and affecting and guiding all activities.

23
Such a comprehensive regime should make use of integrated planning. Planning
procedures should be provided in general nature conservation laws or laws on
biological diversity. Integrated planning means combining nature conservation
planning and use planning. Another instrument is environmental impact assessment
applying to all activities which may have impacts on nature and particularly on
biological diversity. Environmental impact assessment may be provided for in the
environmental framework law of a country or in nature conservation or biodiversity
legislation.

Access to genetic resources

Increasingly important for conservation and sustainable use of natural resources is

the issue of access to genetic resources. It is a central issue in the Convention on
Biological Diversity which is now ratified by more than 170 countries. The Convention
provides that parties shall have sovereign rights over genetic resources, that they
decide on access to those resources, and that they establish the conditions for
access. The Convention however also contains an obligation on Parties to facilitate
access to genetic resources. The Convention provides that access to genetic
resources is subject to the prior informed consent of the country which provides
genetic resources. One of the most important aspects of the Convention access
regime is the obligation on all Parties to share the profits from genetic resources
(principle of fair and equitable sharing). These fundamental provisions of Article 15 of
the Convention need to be implemented at the national level; from a legal technical
point of view this is a difficult undertaking. It should be emphasized here that a regime
on access to genetic resources must be implemented not only in the country of origin
but also in the country which uses genetic resources. At the same time it is necessary
- at least useful - that user countries establish legal regulations which complement
and support the regulations in the countries of origin, particularly if the latter are
developing countries.

Technically, regulations on access to genetic resources may be included in a general

law on biological diversity. It is also possible to develop a specific law on access to
genetic resources. State practice offers examples of both options. In some cases,
access regulations are being developed at the regional level, for example in the
Andean Pact region.

3.6 Environmental policy instruments

The legal basis of environmental policy instruments (planning, control measures,

incentives) may be laid down in environmental framework laws or in sectoral laws. In
general more specific laws and regulations are required to implement them.

Environmental impact assessment

Environmental impact assessment is of major importance. The environmental

framework law or a specific environmental impact assessment law should provide the
following basic elements:

24
• requirement of EIA (general criteria or list of activities)
• responsibility for carrying out EIA
• simplified and comprehensive EIA
• procedure of developing and evaluating of EIA studies
• participation of agencies and general public in EIA
• effects of the EIA in the decision-making process
• administrative or judicial review of EIA
• ex-poste monitoring and control of EIA.

EIA procedures for which the basic elements have been included in a law need to be
regulated in detail in regulations and guidelines. Criteria and procedures may be
specified for particular sectors.

Environmental standards

Environmental laws and regulations usually are general and do not regulate all details.
It is therefore necessary to introduce environmental standards which regulate either
environmental quality, emissions from installations, products or procedures. Legal
issues may include the nature of the standards: whether they are legally binding, or
only recommendations. Another important question is the appropriate procedure for
setting environmental standards and whether and to what extent the general public
should participate in the process. Developing country governments often question
which environmental standards are appropriate to their situations.

The purpose of environmental standards is to make environmental requirements

more specific. To the extent that they provide an ecological minimum, it may be wise
to adopt legally binding provisions. Administrative instructions or binding regulations
may be used. The scientific debate in recent years suggests that environmental
standards are so important that they should be laid down in legally binding norms. On
the other hand environmental standards should be flexible. This implies that though it
is desirable to set binding norms, this should be done by the executive power rather
than by the legislative power.

In the Federal Republic of Germany a particular problem exists with regard to the Eu-
ropean Union. Directives of the Union adopted on the basis of the EC Treaty often
contain environmental standards which need to be implemented at the national level.
According to the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union, Euro-
pean directives must be implemented through legally binding norms; implementation
by administrative instructions is not sufficient. This has important consequences for
the Federal Republic of Germany where a number of environmental standards are
contained in the so-called “Technical Instructions“. The decisions of the European
Court of Justice have already had important consequences for German practice: the
“Technical Instructions“ must be replaced by legal regulations. This development is a
clear indication of the importance of environmental standards.

The legal nature of environmental standards has consequences for standard-setting

procedures. Where standards are set as legally-binding regulations, respective for-
mal procedures and criteria need to be applied. In addition it should be taken into
account that standards are not only technical descriptions but political decisions at
25
the same time. It is therefore important that procedures be developed which allow for
public participation. There needs to be a consensus on such political decisons which
implies at least informing the public concerning proposed standards. Even more ef-
fective would be a possibility for the public to provide comments and recommendati-
ons, which means that a consultation process should be built in.
In developing countries environmental standards are often not available, particularly
with regard to pollution control. Environmental agencies often have to specify requi-
rements without having the necessary technical information. It is a serious problem in
EIA procedures as well as with regard to control measures. Since standard setting
procedures may be lengthy and technically difficult, it may be wise to rely at least for
an interim period on internationally-recommended standards, for example those pro-
vided by organizations of the United Nations. In cases where international standards
do not exactly address national conditions, it is therefore possible to modify and a-
dapt them.

Given the importance of environmental standards and standard setting procedures, it

is recommended that the legal nature of the standards as well as the procedures for
setting them are addressed in the country’s environmental framework law.

Economic incentives

Several decades of environmental law experience have clearly demonstrated that

command and control approaches need to be complemented by other instruments,
particularly economic incentives. It should be emphasized here that alternative in-
struments need a legal basis as well in order to be effective. A crucial problem is the
relationship between these instruments and the traditional instruments of command
and control. Environmental taxes, charges or fees, as well as tax reductions or e-
xemptions to promote environmental technology developments need to be regulated
in specific laws and/or general tax laws.

A number of countries have established specific financial mechanisms to support

environmental policy measures, particularly environmental funds. Environmental funds
require a legal basis as well to regulate administration of the fund and the use of the
financial resources. Environmental audit, another economic instrument, requires legal
regulation even if it is a voluntary mechanism (example, the European Union).

Instruments of environmental policy

command and control instruments economic incentives

• commands, prohibitions, standards • flexible requirements (for example “bubble con-

• inspection of existing installations and activi- cept“)
ties • tradable (pollution) licences
• ex-poste orders • fees, awards
• licencing requirements for new installations • charges and taxes
and activities • environmental funds
• EIA • subsidies
• notification requirements for installations • tax exemptions and reductions
and activities with low impacts • rewards
• planning • liability
• environmental audits
• voluntary measures

26
There is a consensus today that the alternative is not either command and control or
economic incentives. Both types of instruments are necessary and do have their
specific advantages and problems. In certain areas command and control is
indispensable; in other areas economic incentives may be more effective than
command and control. Both types of instruments complement each other.

3.7 Enforcement of environmental law

Enforcement deficits

It has been indicated above that deficits in enforcement of environmental law are not
only a problem of law. However, there is a legal dimension which needs to be
considered here. Legal strategies and measures need to be developed to improve
enforcement. First environmental law needs to be appropriate, which means legal
rules must be realistic. It is important that environmental law correspond to the
problems as well as the capacity of a country. It is also important that environmental
law is made using transparent procedures which allow citizens and the private sector
to participate. Paying attention to both the content of the law and the procedures for
law-making may help to reach a higher degree of acceptance which is a prerequisite
for effective enforcement of environmental law. In the US for example environmental
standards are increasingly set using public policy mediation procedures.

Appropriate environmental law

“Appropriate environmental law“ does not mean weak or ineffective environmental

law. Rather it means that requirements contained in environmental law should not be
too rigid. There should be no standards and values which cannot be implemented.
Another example is that economic uses in or around protected areas should not be
prohibited where the local population has used the land from time immemorial or
where the local population is dependent on the use of the land.

Clarity and consistency of environmental law

Appropriate law is but one possibility to improve enforcement. One should also
ensure that environmental law is clear, simple and consistent. As has been indicated
above, historical development of environmental law in many countries has led to
piecemeal regulation, complex institutional mechanisms, and procedures and
different substantive requirements and criteria. There is a great need to harmonize
regulations and make them less complicated. This may be achieved through the
adoption of general environmental laws (framework laws) either for the entire field of
environmental law or at least for certain major areas.

In particular enforcement deficits may be reduced by reducing the complexity of

institutions. Experience shows that for political reasons this is not always easy; it is
simply not possible to concentrate all environmental competences in one institution.
There will always be a variety of environmental and sectoral agencies. It is therefore
important to identify the task of coordination and to allocate this task to one institution,

27
if possible an environmental agency. Harmonization and coordination are also
important for enforcement of environmental law.

Enforcement systems

It is an open question whether or not enforcement can be improved by combining the

competences of regulation and enforcement, or whether regulatory functions and
enforcement functions should be separated and given to an independent institution
(for example an inspectorate). For both systems there are examples in practice.

If the regulatory and the enforcement functions are to be separated there are various
options. It is possible to separate the functions within one institution and entrust
various departments with different functions. Another option is to give the
enforcement functions to the environmental agency which then establishes a separate
environmental inspectorate. It is also possible to entrust a general inspectorate with
environmental law enforcement which then may establish a separate environmental
law enforcement unit. Recently a proposal has been made to establish control organs
for enforcement of environmental law which would be similar to audit institutions.

Duty to control or discretion?

Enforcement of environmental law might be improved by replacing administrative

discretion within a duty to monitor and control. In many countries enforcement
activities are within the discretion of administrative agencies. It is possible to
introduce generally the “legality principle“ which means that administrative agencies
must monitor and control and prosecute violations in all cases and not only where
there are reasons to believe that criminal law provisions are violated.

Specifying environmental requirements

Enforcement deficits may have a variety of causes: sometimes environmental law

may be too complicated, sometimes there may be a lack of enforceable
requirements. It is important to substitute complicated regulations by clear and simple
requirements. Similarly, in many cases general terms and principles need to be
made more specific through additional regulations.

Participation and standing to sue

Further legal mechanisms to improve enforcement are participation rights for

individual citizens and/or for environmental associations. Similarly, access to justice
may also improve the enforcement situation. In a number of countries participation
rights and standing to sue are given only to adminstrative agencies. If, however,
access to administrative procedures and judicial proceedings is open to individual
citizens and/or associations, they can make a contribution to a better enforcement of
environmental law and can help control companies and even administrative agencies.
Experience clearly shows that participation and standing to sue improve
enforcement.

28
There are various options to introduce participation rights and standing to sue:

• Participation rights and standing to sue may be given to those who can invoke
individual rights (e.g., property or health). This is a restrictive model which can be
found for example in the law of the Federal Republic of Germany. This option may
reduce enforcement deficits to some extent.

• Participation rights and standing to sue may be given to everyone irrespective of

individual rights. Everyone has the right to participate in administrative
procedures and to bring cases to courts. Examples may be found in the law of the
United States and to a degree also in India. This option serves to ensure objective
legal control and allows for a hard look at administrative agencies. This liberal
option may reduce enforcement deficits to a large extent. It is often said that
participation rights and standing to sue for everyone are too far-reaching and
obstruct governmental authorities and courts. Practice however does not support
such conclusions.

• Various intermediate options are possible. Participation rights and standing to

sue may be restricted to associations and those citizens who can invoke at least
an individual interest. Examples for such models can also be found in state
practice (examples are common law remedies in the US, and standing to sue in
French law). It is also possible to limit standing to sue to associations which
according to their statutes pursue the objectives of environment protection and
nature conservation (examples are to be found in the nature conservation law of
some German states). It is also possible to limit standing to sue by requiring
recognition procedures and giving participation rights and standing to sue only to
associations which are legally recognized.

Environmental information

An essential prerequisite for participation rights and standing to sue is sufficient

information. Environmental law should provide for a legal right to access to
environmental information. Citizens and associations should have the right to get
information concerning the status of the environment, environmental pollution, data on
licences and other administrative measures, as well as information concerning the
monitoring and inspection activities of governmental authorities. An example of how
access to information may be regulated is the law of the European Union where a
European directive requires Member States to establish rights to environmental
information.

Technically, standing and rights to information and participation may be provided

either in specific laws or in general (framework) laws. There are good reasons to
choose the latter option to ensure harmonized regulation of information and
participation rights.

Often enforcement deficits are due to lack of information at the governmental agency
level. Enforcement authorities and also sectoral authorities often lack knowledge of
relevant environmental provisions. If this is the case, one cannot expect environmental
law to be enforced. The situation may be improved by providing training not only for
enforcement personnel but also for personnel in regulatory authorities. Training
29
activities need to be appropriate. It is also helpful and easy to compile the major
environmental laws and regulations and to make them available to governmental
agencies.

3.8 Environmentally-oriented sectoral law

As has been said in the context of economic instruments, environmental law is not
only contained in specific environmental laws and regulations but also in general legal
instruments. Some general legal instruments with environmental law provisions are,
for example, integrated planning laws. Integrated planning means that a country’s
general development planning respects and takes into account environmental
protection considerations. This is provided by law in many countries but certainly not
in all. In addition to a planning law, all laws and regulations establishing licencing
procedures should prescribe that environmental considerations be taken into
account.

Land tenure law which regulates property and land use rights is highly relevant for
environment protection. In many countries land tenure laws and environmental and
resource conservation laws conflict. The problems are highly complex, particularly in
developing countries. Often state ownership is necessary to achieve environmental
objectives. Sometimes, however, governmental ownership is the cause of
environmental problems. This may be the case where the political will is lacking to
take environment protection measures and to use natural resources in a sustainable
way. There are cases where private property may help environment protection. Again,
however, there is no guarantee, this will be the case if there are no obligations and
incentives for conservation in private land. The concept of community-based
management of natural resources also has implications for property and land use
rights. Law must provide for the possibility to create community property or at least
community use rights as a legal basis for community-based management.

The unwritten customary law of some countries may provide environmentally friendly
property and land use rights. Sometimes problems exist because traditional rights
are not, or are no longer recognized. Modern law may have substituted customary law
even in other countries even where customary law may be recognized, there may be
uncertainties. Sometimes customary rights are recognized in land tenure law but are
violated by legally-based planning decisions. Such conflicts within the law need to be
removed.

Environmentally relevant sectoral legislation needs to be re-oriented to take

environment protection considerations into account. This is important for legislation
concerning industrial facilities, construction laws, laws regulating infrastructure
measures, or laws on tourism. From a legal point of view it is obvious that sectoral
legislation must take into account existing environmental legislation. It is however
desirable to provide explicit environment protection regulations in sectoral legislation,
particularly:

• substantive obligations to protect the environment;

• assessment of environmental aspects in licencing procedures, particularly EIA;

30
• obligation to take environmental considerations into account in monitoring and
enforcement;
• obligation to respect environmental considerations in planning;
• environmental commissioners in private companies;
• requirement of environmental audits.

3.9 International cooperation

International cooperation in environment and nature conservation is increasingly

important. A growing number of international agreements must be implemented at the
national level. This is not always an easy task. International agreements which may
address a wide variety of problems and issues, tend to be very general and leave
great discretion to national law-makers. Only a few international agreements are “self-
executing“. In most cases it is necessary to adopt national laws and regulations to
achieve the objectives of the conventions. An important legal issue is who takes the
lead for implementing an international agreement. This is a fundamental problem in
many countries, not only developing ones. Traditions play a major role here. Often
foreign ministries compete with environmental ministries and sectoral ministries;
usually competences overlap. It is highly desirable to clarify the situation in a general
environmental law (framework law). It is certainly not possible to make only one
ministry responsible for international environmental cooperation. Here again, it is
important to provide coordination mechanisms. There are good reasons to give the
coordination function to the country’s environmental agency.

It cannot be overlooked that international cooperation in the environment poses

particular problems for developing countries. Often information about international
negotiations and existing international regulations is insufficient. In many countries
there is a lack of qualified personnel to participate in international negotiations. A
similar problem exists with regard to the implementation of international agreements
at the national level, where there is not only a lack of qualified lawyers but of qualified
technical experts as well.

31
4. Assistance with environmental law in technical cooperati-
on
projects on institutional development in the environment

4.1 Objectives and principles of technical assistance with environmental

law

The methodology of assistance with environmental law needs to correspond to its

objectives. Basically there are three:

• assistance with environmental law is a component of institutional development in

the environment. The production of academic studies should be avoided. Instead
basic elements for legal rules useful for law-making processes need to be
developed. Rules need to be prepared which are acceptable to ministries of
justice as well as sectoral ministries concerned. This has implications for the
approach used in providing the advisory service, for the identification of legal
experts, and for the contents of the legal rules developed.
• assistance with environmental law should lead to proposals which are appropriate
to the country in question and consequently have a chance of being enforced.
Here again there are implications for the approach, the identification and use of
experts, and the content of the legal rules.
• assistance with environmental law in institutional development should contribute to
better application of environmental policies. It is not sufficient to make legal rules;
it is also important to strengthen the mechanisms for applying them.

Law is a cultural phenomenon closely linked to the society which it governs.

Consequently there are no recipes to be used in environmental law - and above all no
global recipes! This does not mean that experiences from certain countries, concepts
used in international agreements, or guidelines adopted by international
organizations are useless. They are all important, but only as examples and starting
points for discussion in the law-making process. Whether or not the experience of a
foreign country may be transferable needs to be discussed in each individual context.
This is where the dialogue between national and expatriate legal experts becomes
significant.

Finding the appropriate governmental level at which to work is a threshold question

for all activitiesinvolving environmental law. In many countries the central government
may be the only level where law-making activities take place. However there may be
countries where legal rules are adopted at the regional or local level as well. Projects
on institutional development in the environment can hardly influence that situation. The
competences to adopt legal rules at various governmental levels are established in
the constitutions of the countries and must be respected. The possibility of adopting
legal rules at different governmental levels should be taken into account when
technical assistance projects are carried out. It has already been pointed out that in
many developing countries customary law coexists with modern law and that in many

32
cases customary law is local law. It is not only important that this law be respected;
one should consider whether it can be strengthened. It may support the objectives of
environmental policy. On the other hand it is also possible that customary law,
particulary customary rights to use natural resources, are in conflict with the objectives
of environmental policies. If this is the case, it is important that those carrying out legal
reforms discuss such conflicts with the holders of traditional rights. If environmental
policy objectives are considered to be more important, efforts need to be made to
find alternatives to restricting or even prohibiting traditional uses of natural resources.

Any environmental law assistance project requires an analysis of the general legal
and institutional context. If possible, amendments and new legal rules should be
integrated into existing systems. Respect for existing institutions increases
acceptability. However, where competing competences exist, cooperation
mechanisms need to be developed.

4.2 Methodology for technical assistance with environmental law

Integration into projects for institutional development in the environment

Technical assistance with environmental law is not an end in itself. Nor is it an

independent field of activity. Its objective rather is to support the processes of
institution-building. Technical assistance with environmental law should help create
the legal instruments needed to achieve the goals of institutional development. It
should also identify legal rules which create obstacles to the goals of institution-
building, and submit proposals to remove such obstacles. Technical assistance with
environmental law should in addition lead to the creation of appropriate legal
frameworks for institution-building processes, for example in areas such as
constitutional law, administrative law, procedural law, land tenure law, civil law and
criminal law.

Integration into environmental policies

Environmental law needs to be integrated into a country’s environmental policies.

Without a solid environmental policy, no effective environmental law can be
established. General environmental legal instruments should be based on general
environmental plans or strategies. Sectoral environmental legal instruments should be
based on sectoral environmental plans.

Work on environmental legal instruments, be it general environmental framework laws

or sectoral laws, requires planning as well. Existing legal rules should be reviewed
and deficits identified. Then a programme for law reform activities should be
developed which provides not only for the various steps to be taken but also for the
basic principles upon which new legal rules are to be based. This may be illustrated
using the example of a GTZ project in Gambia where an Environmental Legislation
Action Plan was drafted following the analysis of existing law. This Action Plan also
discusses fundamental principles such as decentralization and property and land-use
rights.

33
Example: Environmental Legislation Action Plan for Gambia
Under the Gambian-German Environmental Management Project an Action Plan was developed to provide
guidance and a structure for the environmental law component of the project. It provides the basic
measures to be taken, describes the procedural steps, creates an institutional arrangement, and contains
a time schedule. The draft Environmental Legislation Action Plan was submitted to a consultation process
within the government and was adopted at a workshop, with broad participation of agencies and non-
governmental organizations, held in April 1996. The Environmental Legislation Action Plan provides the
following structure:

Part A Introduction
• Background of Action Plan
• Purpose of Action Plan
• Basis of Action Plan
• Focus on priority areas and role of NEA
• Structure of Action Plan
• Role of Policies
• Nature of Action Plan

Part B Enviromental Legislation Action Plan

• Basic Principles of Environmental Legislation
• Cooperation and Coordination in Government
• Decentralization of Government
• Public Participation
• International Cooperation
• Security of Land Tenure

Legislative Actions in Priority Areas

• Public Health Legislation
• EIA Legislation
• Review of Draft Forestry Legislation and Draft Water Legislation
• Preparation of Studies

Time Schedule

Part C Institutional Arrangement for Implementation

• Environmental Legislation Working Group
Source: GGEMP Enviromental Legislation Action Plan, April 1996

Participatory approach

Any political activity which is to lead to law reform or to new legal rules should involve
the stakeholders both in government and in the private sector. This requirement is
essential; otherwise law amendments and new legal rules will not be accepted.
Participation is also necessary in order to ensure that new law is appropriate and to
avoid conflicts.

Relevant administrative agencies need to be involved at all levels of government.

Regional and local agencies as well as representatives of the population need to
have access to the law-making process at the national level. Participation by lower
levels of goverment is particularly important, as this is where legal rules will be
enforced. Acceptability of legal rules is an essential prerequisite for effective law
enforcement.

34
With regard to the law-making procedure, it is important that drafts of proposed legal
rules are made available far enough in advance of adoption so that relevant
stakeholders can comment and submit proposals for amendments. Opportunities and
fora for discussion of draft regulations should be provided. An alternative option is to
prepare regulations in working groups composed of experts representing the various
stakeholders. Such working groups should bring together representatives of key
institutions: representatives of environmental agencies; of sectoral agencies, the
private sectorm and non-governmental organizations. However, it is important to limit
the size of these teams in order to have workable entities.

Public procedure and communication strategy

Law reform projects which are to be implementable need to be open. This implies
involving the media. Although the media cannot be involved from the very beginning,
it is essential to involve them at later stages when consolidated drafts can be
discussed. The law reform activity needs to become a political event. This increases
the level of information and strengthens the motivation of all stakeholders.
Furthermore it increases the level of acceptability and creates the mechanisms
necessary for effective cooperation between the governmental and non-governmental
sectors.

Those who carry out law reform activities should actively seek access to the media.
This strengthens the political dimensions of environmental law reform. This could take
the form of contributions to local newspapers, radio programmes or TV interviews.
Developing environmental legal rules is a political activity which can only be
successful if the public debate takes place at the same time. Environmental law is
nothing else than the legal expression of environmental policy.

Contribution to better enforcement of environmental law

Enforcement deficit is a problem which cannot be solved by legal techniques alone. It

has many causes and therefore only a series of methods can lead to improvement.

On the legal side two approaches are possible:

• Rights of participation in administrative procedures and access to courts.

• Even more important are environmental law education and training. Lawyers,
technical personnel in administrative agencies, in the private sector and in non-
governmental organizations, and, last but not least, the general public are the
targets. Institution-building projects should have environmental law seminars as
standard components. Furthermore, environmental laws and regulations of a
country should be collected and made available to governmental agencies, the
private sector and the general public. Such information and education measures
help to reduce the enforcement deficit to some extent.

4.3 Identification and use of environmental law expertise

Using and strengthening local know-how

35
In many project countries considerable legal expertise is available which may be
used for environmental law assistance activities. It is important to identify it and make
it available for the project. Experience has shown that environmental law expertise
exists at universities and also in the private sector. A number of developing country
governments have lawyers with environmental law expertise who can be involved in
environmental law project activities. Necessary arrangements need to be made to
avoid conflicts of interest, however.

National legal experts may need general and specific environmental law information.
They may be provided with laws and regulations from other countries where
conditions are similar. Information provided may also cover international agreements,
documents from international organizations, and environmental law literature.
Wherever possible, local legal experts should be provided with short-term
attachments in libraries, research institutions or with colleagues in other countries
where they can continue the environmental law consultancy work using available
information and profiting from discussions with colleagues.

In countries where environmental law expertise is not sufficiently available, it is

possible to build up environmental law know-how through short-term but focused
environmental law training targeted at interested and open-minded lawyers with a
good general legal education. Environmental law training should focus on the
environmental problems and the legal structures of the country in question. Lawyers
who participate in such training coursesmay then be respected to be available for
insitution-building activities, whether in environmental agencies, sectoral agencies,
tribunals or even in the private sector. Training courses may also be organized to
train environmental law instructors who then in turn train technical personnel in
government, adminstration and the private sector. Such training activities have been
suggested for two GTZ projects, the Gambian-German Environmental Management
Project and the GTZ project which supports the Environmental Agency in Jordan. An
attempt should be made to provide a similar opportunity for a group of lawyers from
Eritrea.

The role of expatriate legal experts

It is submitted here that technical assistance in environmental law should use local
expertise wherever possible. However, expatriate advisers can provide support,
make available international and comparative material, and be partners in a dialogue
about experience in other parts of the world. Environmental law reform can greatly
benefit from a dialogue on experience in other countries and in other legal systems;
such a dialogue does not necessarily lead to simple adoption of foreign models.
Expatriate advisers may be resource persons for training activities for lawyers as well
as technical personnel. Furthermore they can be used to make contacts with
universities, research institutions and other organizations for attachment possibilities
for local experts. Practicing attorneys in Europe, for example, may offer colleagues
from developing countries the opportunity to work in their offices for a certain time.

The profile of expatriate environmental law advisers

36
Expatriate advisers should have several years experience in environmental law.
Familiarity with comparative and international environmental law is particularly
important. Experience with technical assistance in environmental law shows that
expatriate advisers’ most important input is to provide information on environmental
law practice in other countries and other legal systems.

Consequently the adviser needs a background in environmental law in the major legal
systems, on the law on the books and the law in practice. Environmental law advisers
need to know about problems of law enforcement. They need to have an
understanding of enforcement deficits which, as noted several times in this brochure,
has legal and non-legal causes alike. This means that environmental law advisers
must be capable of looking beyond the horizon of their own discipline.

It is obvious that environmental law advisers cannot escape from their professional
and national backgrounds. However, a certain distance from their own national
context is necessary so that their recommendations do not simply transfer solutions
from their home countries to others. Environmental law advisers must be capable of
integrating their activities into the institution-building programmes in the respective
countries. There need to be openness and understanding for the other components of
projects. Environmental law advisers need to understand their work as a service to
others rather than looking at it as an end in itself.

This clearly implies a particular understanding of the law as such. Law should not be
considered as neutral, but as a political instrument. Assistance with environmental
law is political which means that environmental law advisers must be capable of
thinking in political terms. They must be able to recognize the roots of a legal order,
i.e., the basic historical, societal, economic and social conditions of the country to
which their service is provided.

Language skills are indispensable as is the capacity to analyse and communicate

foreign environmental law experiences. Environmental law advisers should also have
teaching experience since training in environmental law plays a key role.

4.4 Resources for technical assistance with environmental law

Environmental law expertise in developing countries

The nature and extent of technical assistance with environmental law depends upon
the environmental law resources available in developing countries. There are regions
where a good environmental legal infrastructure is available. This is the case, for
example, in Latin America, particularly in Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia and
Peru. Environmental law advisory services may rely on those resources not only for
work in those countries themselves, but also for other consultancy activities in the
region. Significant environmental law resources are also available in India,
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

37
Examples: Environmental organizations in developing countries specialized in
environmental law
Latin America:
Centro de Derecho Ambiental y los Recursos Naturales (CEDARENA) / Costa Rica
Corporación de Estudios de Estructura y Administración del Estado (ESTADE) / Ecuador
Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN) / Argentina
Fundación para la Defensa del Interés Público (FUNDEPUBLICO) / Colombia
Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental (SPDA) / Peru

Africa:
Société Marocaine pour le Droit de l’Environnement / Morocco

Asia:
Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association
Environmental Foundation Ltd. / Sri Lanka
IUCN Pakistan Office
Society for Legal and Environmental Analysis and Development Research (LEADERS) / Nepal

The situation in Africa is slightly different. Environmental law expertise is available in

Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Tanzania,
Kenya and Sudan. However, in most other countries, environmental law expertise are
scarce.

Environmental law is a marginal discipline in the West Asia region. There may be
exceptions with regard to individual states such as Kuwait, Lebanon and Pakistan
which do have lawyers specialized in environmental law. In Southern Asia and in the
Pacific region environmental law capacity exists in individual countries, for example
Philippines and Indonesia. South Pacific Island states often invite environmental law
experts from Australia, New Zealand or the U.S. not only as experts or consultants but
also as employees in governmental agencies. It is fair to state that in the Pacific
region local environmental exertise needs to be developed.

In countries where an environmental law infrastructure is available, it is sufficient to

provide incentives for local lawyers to carry out the environmental law work.
Experience shows that it is necessary to support them with information and materials,
such as texts of laws from other countries, international agreements, environmental
law literature, judicial decisions and documents from international organizations. It is
also important to bring local environmental lawyers in contact with colleagues from
other countries and other parts of the world. Workshops should be built in to all
environmental law activities. Local lawyers may also be given the chance to visit
Europe, the U.S., or other countries in order to carry out environmental law research.

In countries where an environmental law infrastructure is not yet available, expatriate

experts are indispensable at least in the beginning. Wherever possible, experts from
the region or from other developing countries should be identified and brought in, as
developing countries often prefer those experts. And it is important that training
opportunities are provided from the beginning of an environmental law project.

External advisers

38
Many institutions offer advisory services in environmental law for developing
countries. Selected institutions, including universitites and non-governmental
organizations, are compiled in Annex 2a.
Worldwide there are many lawyers specialized in environmental law who fit the profile
given in Section 4.3. A selection is offered in Annex 2b of this brochure.

International organizations also provide environmental law advisory services,

particularly UNEP, FAO, the World Bank and IUCN. In some cases they provide the
expertise of staff members specialized in environmental law, in others they call on
established networks of experts. These international organizations are listed in Annex
2c.

Environmental law information centres

The most prominent is the IUCN Environmental Law Centre in Bonn, Germany. The
Environmental Law Information System (ELIS) compiles environmental legislation and
other national legal instruments, international agreements, European directives,
regulations and decisions, documents of international organizations, and
environmental law literature from all over the world. ELIS is a computerized databank;
selected references are available on the Internet. Full-text hard copies of many legal
instruments are available from the Law Centre.

The IUCN Environmental Law Centre provides the UNEP INFOTERRA information
system with environmental law information. The UNEP Regional Office for Latin
America and the Caribbean has established its own information system on
environmental law, focusing on the Latin American and Caribbean region.

The Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN) in Buenos Aires, Argentina,

has an established environmental law information system which focuses on the South
American region. FARN also cooperates with the IUCN Environmental Law Centre as
well as with the UNEP Regional Office for Latin American and the Caribbean. In
addition to environmental legislation and environmental legal literature the holdings
include documents and materials on environmental policy.

Technical assistance with environmental law provided by international

organizations

Since the 1970s environmental law advisory services have become an important
activity of international environmental organizations. UNEP made environmental law
one of its priority areas and established a specialized department, the Environmental
Law and Institutions - Programme Activity Center (ELI-PAC). The advisory services
offered cover numerous fields of environmental law, particularly framework
environmental laws which provide the foundation for environmental institutions. Some
of UNEP’s regional offices also offer environmental law services, particularly the
Regional Office for Latin American and the Caribbean which recently development a
model for an environmental framework law.

The specialized agencies of the United Nations, particularly FAO, IMO, WHO, UNDP
and UNIDO provide environmental law services. Each agency provides services in its

39
particular area of interest. FAO assists with forestry legislation, water resource
legislation, fishery and wildlife legislation, and sometimes with legislation concerning
protected areas. FAO specializes in pesticide legislation. FAO has established its
own department responsible for such advisory services. The Development Law
Service is part of the Legal Office. Its staff lawyers cover various disciplines and
languages as well.
IMO assists with implementing international agreements on marine pollution control. It
is therefore an important partner for coastal developing states. WHO supports
countries with legislation on public health. Its standards on environmental quality are
very important for developing country governments. UNDP and UNIDO both assist
with industrial pollution control.
The World Bank has increased its environmental law services, particularly since the
1992 Rio Conference. The Bank offers consultancy services on general
environmental laws which often implement the Bank’s national environmental action
plans. The legal office of the World Bank established its own sub-unit for
environmental law; this sub-unit, however, is not the only institution within the World
Bank which works on environmental law. Regional and technical departments of the
Bank employ environmental lawyers as well.

Projects of the IUCN Environmental Law Service 1990 - 1996 (selection)

Africa:
Botswana EIA Legislation 1994/95
Eritrea Environmental Framework Law 1996
Eritrea Law on Biological Diversity 1996
Gambia Environmental Framework Law 1993/94
Gambia Legal institutions in the field of biological diversity 1996
Guinea-Bissau Protected Area Legislation 1994/96
Mauritania Legislation on Hunting and Forestry 1994/96
Mozambique Environmental Framework Law 1992
Niger Protected Area Legislation 1991
Zambia Implementation of the Environmental Framework Law 1991
Tanzania Amendment to Forestry Legislation 1992
Uganda Environmental Framework Law 1993

West Asia:
Jordan Environmental Framework Law 1991/95
Qatar Environmental Framework Law 1994
Lebanon Recommendations on environmental legislation 1993
Nepal Environmental Framework Law 1990/94
Nepal EIA Legislation 1990/94
Nepal Protected Area Legislation 1992/94
Pakistan Environmental Framework Law (federal and provincial) 1992/95

Asia and Pacific:

Cook Islands
Marshall Islands
Federal States of
Micronesia /
Solomon Islands
Tonga Environmental Law Profiles 1993

Latin America:
Argentina Environment Protection in Constitutional Law 1993
Argentina Structure of Environmental Legislation 1994
Bolivia EIA Legislation 1993/94
Colombia Environment Protection in the Constitution 1991
Colombia Nature Conservation Legislation 1992/93

40
Ecuador Forestry Legislation 1992
Andean Pact Legislation on Access to Genetic Resources 1994/95

Eastern Europe:
Romania Nature Conservation in the Danube Delta 1993

The IUCN Environmental Law Programme has always assisted developing countries
with environmental legislation. In 1990, the Environmental Law Service was
established to assist developing countries in all regions of the world with establishing
and further developing environmental legislation. Between 1990 and 1996 advisory
services were provided to some 40 countries on a variety of environmental legal
issues. Of particular importance were environmental framework laws and laws and
regulations on nature conservation.

41
5. Conclusion

The preceding chapters are far from being an exhaustive analysis of environmental
issues and of approaches for technical assistance with environmental law. Such
however, was not the intent.

It has been said that technical cooperation projects concerned with environmental
institution-building often are confronted with environmental law issues which in many
cases cannot be resolved. Project planning often considers these issues as external
factors or assumptions and does not include them. The purpose of this brochure is to
give an overview of essential aspects of environmental law and of the resources
available for environmental law assistance (see annexes) and to provide guidance in
addressing and improving the legal components of technical cooperation projects.

It is up to GTZ and its partners in developing countries to review the understanding of

institution-building projects in the environment. It is a fact that the effectiveness and
significance of many institution-building projects can be increased if the results of the
projects are transformed into legal norms wherever this is relevant. It is beyond any
doubt that the role of external experts must be limited to an advisory function; the
initiative and responsibilty lie with the partners in developing countries. It is also
beyond doubt that environmental law activities will vary according to the content and
the level of the project as well as the type of partner organization. Limited experience
with environmental law technical assistance on the German side and the political
sensitivity of the issues involved should not, however, be grounds for considering
legal issues as external factors beyond the scope of institution-building projects.

It is important to consider environmental law advice as a service. The environmental

law adviser must share this understanding. Legal concepts must not be simply
“exported“. What is helpful is to provide information about both positive and negative
experiences in comparable legal systems. Comparative law - theory and practice - as
well as public international law are increasingly important. Public international law is
not only a source of legal approaches and concepts; it is at the same time an
incentive for international cooperation and thus fulfils a political function. Technical
assistance with environmental law, if organized and carried out in the way described
above, is a communcation process designed to identify and develop the legal
mechanisms which are appropriate to the environmental problems, the political
structures and the legal culture of the country concerned.

42
Annex 1: Answers received from GTZ projects on institutional development
in the environment

GTZ identified 14 projects to which questionnaires were sent. These projects were:

• Benin environmental planner in the Ministry of Environment, Housing

and Urban Development;
• Brazil support to environment and resource protection, IMA, Alagoas;
• Brazil PRORENDA: support to environment and resource protection,
RGS;
• Brazil environmental impacts of dam projects in Parana;
• CARICOM improvement of environmental health in the Caribbean;
• Ivory Coast sectoral programme forest management and nature
conservation;
• Ecuador forestry policy advice;
• India strengthening of environmental agencies;
• Colombia local community development;
• Mali integrated resource management;
• Morocco environmental management;
• OECS cooperation in natural resource management;
• Russia ecologically oriented land-use planning in the Baikal region;
• Tunisia support to the environmental agency ANPE.

For the purposes of the study, summary project descriptions were made available.
On the basis of the project descriptions, questionnaires with both general and
specific questions were developed and sent to the GTZ projects in the respective
countries.

Results received from GTZ projects

Replies were received from the projects in Benin, Brazil/Alagoas, Brazil/Parana,

Brazil/Rio Grande do Sul, Ecuador, India, Morocco and Russia. The project in the
East Caribbean region made available a study which had been produced by the
project. An additional response was received from the Philippine-German project on
industrial pollution control, which was also included in this study. The replies received
are summarized as follows:

Benin

The Environmental Action Plan of Benin provides for a series of legislative initiatives.
These initiatives are:

- compilation of existing legislative texts and their dissemination;

- development of an environmental framework law;
- implementation of international conventions ratified by Benin;
- harmonization of existing legislation at the national and international level.

43
In the 1980s and 1990s a number of laws were amended, including the Forestry Law
(1993), the Mining Law (1983), the Hunting Law (1987), the Law on Public Health
(1987) and the Water Resource Law (1987). In addition to these amendments, new
laws and regulations have been planned. Of priority interest is the introduction of the
Environmental Framework Law, the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment and
the development of standards and norms. According to the reply from the project the
standards and norms are to be introduced by regulations.

The legal foundation for the Ministry of Environment, Housing and Urban
Development, the main actor in environmental policy in Benin, is considered to be
sufficient. It is added, however, that the competences, particularly with regard to
enforcement, are weak. Important competences in environmental matters are
allocated to other ministries for example, nature conservation, forestry and biological
diversity are all given to the Ministry of Agriculture. These other institutions insisted on
retaining their competences.

Enforcement of environmental law faces enormous problems. The reply from the
project describes that in recent years a lot of work has been done to raise awareness
and involve the public in legislative processes. Due to structural adjustment
measures, however, the governmental factor has been reduced so that civil servants
at the lower and middle levels are lacking. Regular monitoring is hardly possible.
Measures are needed to train civil servants and to decentralize existing governmental
structures.

There is a need for GTZ to provide technical assistance with environmental law as the
country lacks experience and resources. In-country training focusing on specific
cases was considered most effective.

Brazil / Alagoas

Legal regulations are lacking in priority areas, such as the chlorine chemical industry.
There are no air pollution control standards, and existing waste water treatment
standards are only very general.

Enforcement of existing legal rules is a major problem. Fines and penalties provided
for in existing legislation are low. Penalties imposed do not correspond to the
seriousness of accidents occuring. One possibility for improving environmental law
enforcement would be to strengthen the public prosecutor who is concerned with
environmental matters and who has an urgent need of technical facilities to provide
the evidence necessary to prove violations of the law. Another would be to strengthen
and use citizen suits and suits by organizations.

In addition, the legal foundation for the environmental agency needs to be

strengthened. There is considerable need for environmental education, including in
the area of environmental law. In this context, however, there are political and
personal difficulties to be overcome.

Brazil / Parana

44
The legal rules on environmental impact assessment which are of particular
importance for the project are not yet established in the state of Parana. The project
has developed draft regulations, but they have not yet been adopted by the state
government. The basis of decisions to be taken by the licensing authority, the
Environmental Institute of Parana, are internal agreements which are even not
available in written form.

Legal issues have played a major role in the course of the project. An analysis of the
legal issues has been completed and recommendations for improvement have been
submitted. These recommendations concern a state environment protection act,
procedural regulations for planning involving environmental impact assessment,
regulations on public participation, regulations on industrial pollution control and water
resource management. In addition, a comparative study on water resource
administration in various federal states of Brazil and at the federal level has been
completed. The project has compiled a loose-leaf collection of Brazilian
environmental legislation. This collection comprises federal, state, and local laws as
well as international agreements.

As to the need for environmental law advisory services, the reply suggests that
national legal know-how needs to be strengthened. Measures applying to several
projects are proposed.

The causes of ineffective enforcement of environmental law are, inter alia, the lack of
political will, special interests of socially and economically powerful groups, the
weakness of public administration, lack of technical training and equipment, and
delays in developing and implementing legislation. Here again, it is suggested that
improvement may be possible through strengthening the public prosecutor of the
State of Parana. An application for such activity has been submitted to the GTZ.

Brazil / Rio Grande do Sul

The environmental enforcement agency Fundação Estadual de Proteção Ambiental

(FEPAM) is a governmental foundation of the State of Rio Grande do Sul. The legal
basis is Decree No. 33.765 of 1990. The legal basis for the foundation is said to be
sufficient, however, it lacks qualified personnel. The FEPAM employs two lawyers
who can hardly cope with the workload. Both at the state and the local level there is a
considerable need for advice and training, which could be provided through
expatriate experts, workshops and seminars.

Environmental law in Brazil in general and in the State of Rio Grande do Sul in
particular is extremely piecemeal. Legal regulations at the three governmental levels -
the Federation, the States and the local communities - are often not harmonized.
They are hard to understand and often are simply not known. Therefore, there is a call
for codifying environmental law. At the State level, the draft of a comprehensive
environmental protection law has been submitted. The draft has been criticised as
unnecessarily repeating federal legislation and not clarifying the competences for law
enforcement.

Environmental impact assessment in Brazil is regulated at the federal level

(Resolution 001 of the National Environmental Council of 1996 and Federal
45
Constitution of 1988). The Brazilian Federal Constitution is the only constitution in the
world which addresses the issue of environmental impact assessment. However, the
major problem is the lack of qualified personnel to evaluate the studies submitted by
project proponents. Therefore a good legal regime does not function in practice. This
is the case also in the State of Rio Grande do Sul.

The enforcement deficit is considerable. One reason is that the legal rules raise high
expectations (“laws are often considered aesthetic products of their creators who
want to demonstrate problem awareness and political experience“). Another reason
is that the law is often contradictory. Penalties provided for are often outdated. The
1985 law introducing standing to sue environmental organizations together with the
constitutional provisions allowing citizen suits has improved judicial review of
governmental action and has brought about good conditions for better enforcement of
environmental law. However, experience in practice is somewhat sobering. There
have been few suits which indicates that granting standing has not ensured
enforcement of environmental law.

Environmental councils have been established at all governmental levels. Councils

are important for individual cases, but they are no substitutes for enforcement of
environmental law by administrative agencies.

Ecuador

There is a legal basis for a national forestry policy (Forestry and Nature Conservation
Law of 1981 and the Law on the Establishment of the Forestry and Nature
Conservation Institute INEFAN of 1992). In addition, more than 50 laws concern the
use and protection of forest resources. These laws however are not without
contradictions, and partly overlap. Various legislative initiatives are pending in
congress, inter alia, for an Environment Protection Act, an Act on Protected Areas
and an Act on Biological Diversity. Furthermore, a forestry sector policy document on
natural areas and wildlife has been prepared which envisages an initiative for a
modern forestry and nature conservation act.

Environmental law is not as effective as it should be. The control of major economic
sectors such as petroleum, mining, shrimp farming and agriculture has proven to be
difficult. Environmental impact assessments of major development projects (road
construction and urban development) have not been sufficient. Also in Ecuador there
is a gap between the written law and reality in society. This is particularly serious in
the large forest areas of the Amazon region or the Northern coastal zone, where the
governmental authorities are simply not present.

The project suggests that local, i.e. Indian and farmer, populations can be more
effectively involved in the preparation of forest use and protection concepts. It is
proposed that management of natural resources should increasingly be shifted to the
community level. Better institutional coordination, environmental education, better
qualification and equipment of forest and protected area personnel, development and
implementation of innovative political concepts are also necessary.

The participation of individuals and groups in environmental procedures has been

minimal so far, and should be strengthened by new legislative initiatives. Similarly,
46
access to courts should be made more effective. In general, however, the potential of
judicial review to solve conflicts is considered by the project to be low. Major legal
actions involving violations of environment law are not pending in Ecuador itself but
rather in foreign countries (suits pending in the U.S. for compensation for
environmental damages from oil exploitation). The project suggests that it is more
important to avoid conflicts through more effective participation of concerned groups
in both law-making and law enforcement.

India

Legal issues are part of the everyday work and have played a major role in all
activities of the project. The legal rules affecting some project activities have been
reviewed. Substantive legal regulations concerning environment protection are
available in India, mostly in federal legislation. There are, however, contradictions and
gaps, and some of the legal regulations are not enforceable. Enforcement is
complicated by corruption; and insufficient technical qualification of enforcement
authorities, and poor staffing.

The legal foundation for the Pollution Control Boards is sufficient, and the
competences are adequately described. The authorities have the power to close
installations through court procedures. In general the courts play an important role,
and the legal position of citizens and of environmental organizations is relatively
strong. The project indicates that there is no need for law reform in this respect.

There is a need for legal regulations and to initiate legislative processes. The project
replies, however, that there is no specific need for environmental law advisory
services in India as national resources are considered to be sufficient. There is
however a need for scientific technical assistance.

Morocco

Although there is scarcely any environmental law to date, there are plans to remedy
the situation. Currently an environmental framework law is being prepared, and there
are plans for legislation concerning:

• air pollution control;

• water resource management;
• water pollution control;
• hazardous wastes;
• law of industrial installations;
• establishment of administrative agencies.

A model water resource protection decree is planned. An environmental impact

assessment system is currently being considered by the Environmental Secretariat
and the World Bank.

A fundamental problem is the lack of environmental standards. So far there are

known national standards only for drinking water. The project aims at introducing
environmental standards or to advise on their introduction but there is no legal basis

47
on which to do so. Enforcement of environmental law is a considerable problem as
well. Enforcement responsibility is not clearly regulated but is basically the
responsibility of sectoral ministries. The Environmental Agency was given a
coordinating function in order not to disturb the balance of powers.
Organization of Eastern Caribbean States

Two studies were consulted to evaluate the environmental law situation in the East
Caribbean region: the report “OECS / Natural Resource Management Unit“ of July
1994 and the report “Inventory of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and
Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Application in Five OECS Member States“ of
Devember 1994.

The OECS has developed model regulations on the two issues. However, the
Member States have adopted only parts of them. OECS has developed EIA
legislation regulations and guidelines. A framework CZM law and various thematic
regulations have been proposed. The reports indicate that it is necessary to
implement the regionally-proposed legal instruments in the national legislation of the
Member States.

Russia

The project in Russia concerns ecologically-oriented land-use planning in the Lake

Baikal region. The region is a unique and highly sensitive natural area which is not
sufficiently protected through existing policies and legal regulations. Therefore, a
specific law concerning the protection of the Lake Baikal region is being prepared. It
is a Federation law and concerns all economic uses in the region. So far it is not yet
in force.

In Russia there is no central, regional or local land-use planning. Planning laws in the
true sense do not exist so far and there are no regulations concerning planning
procedures and contents. The project therefore aimsto prepare the legal regulations
for planning and do the planning itself. The lack of planning legislation also means
that there are no rules for public participation.

During the course of the project the legal issues have been reviewed to some extent.
There are considerable difficulties. From a legal point of view the following questions
have been raised:

• Is there a need for a landscape plan or for an integrated plan? Which specific
plans are to be integrated into a regional plan?
• What degree of binding force can and should the plan have? What are the
respective consequences if the plan is binding for authorities only or if the plan is
generally binding, thus effecting the citizens as well?
• Is there a need for a specific planning law? Can planning issues be regulated in
specific laws, e.g., on nature conservation or agriculture?

The project also indicates that in the Baikal region enforcement of environmental law
is a major problem. There are considerable discrepances between what the law is
supposed to regulate and the reality in practice.

48
The lack of qualified environmental lawyers is a serious problem. According to the
project, there is no lawyer specialized in planning and environmental law available.
There is a great need for general support to determine the contents, procedures and
implementation of planning. The details and the coordination should be left to the
Russian partners.

Philippines

The reply from the GTZ project in the Philippines indicates that a series of legal
issues have been raised. The first question concerns the controversial legal status of
the Environmental Quality Council. It has been proposed that the Council be either an
enforcement agency or a private law foundation. There is also the question of liability
of members of the Council for an erroneous assessment. The project suggests that
there is an urgent need for advisory services to assist on preparing the statutes of the
Council.

Another problem concerns the legal competence of the Joint Inspection Team which
consists of members of three departments: environment, public health and labour. All
of them are given enforcement and control responsibilities. So far the legal basis of
the Joint Inspection Team is a memorandum of agreement which is not considered
sufficient. The Team needs a stronger legal foundation.

A third legal issue has been raised in the context of establishing environmental
laboratories. At the moment 12 laboratories cooperate. The legal basis here again is
a memorandum of agreement. In order to achieve results which can stand up in
courts, the laboratories need to be accredited. Here again liability issues have been
raised, for example with regard to the closing of facilities. Legal advice is needed.

A fourth legal issue concerns a treatment plant for toxic industrial wastes, which has
been constructed by the project and is being operated by a private company. The
question is how to ensure that the operator’s business practices are environmentally
friendly. There is a need for advice on which legal instruments can be used to ensure
environmentally sound behaviour on the part of the operator.

A last legal issue concerns the establishment and operation of a so-called Revolving
Fund. The question is how the Fund can be used as an economic incentive
mechanism to ensure environmentally friendly behaviour.

49
Annex 2: Resources for technical assistance with environmental law

a) Institutions providing technical assistance with environmental law

LATIN AMERICA
Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales Lawyers for a Green Planet
(FARN) Faculdade de Direito da USP
Monroe 2142 CEP 01401-002
1428 Buenos Aires São Paulo
Argentina SP Brazil
email: info@farn-sustenar.org
Centro de Derecho Ambiental y de los Corporación de Estudios de Estructura y
Recursos Naturales (CEDARENA) Administración del Estado (ESTADE)
Apdo. 134-2050 San Pedro P.O. Box 17-17-8
Costa Rica Quito
Ecuador
email: estade@uio.satnet.net
Fundación para la Defensa del Interés Instituto de Derecho Ambiental y Desarrollo
Público (FUNDEPUBLICO) Sustenable (IDEADS)
Calle 71 No. 5-83 CP 01001
Bogotá Ciudad de Guatemala
Colombia Guatemala
email: ideads@pronet.net.gt
Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental
(SPDA)
Plaza Arrospide No. 9
San Isidro CP 27
Lima
Peru
email: todos@spda2.org.pe

ASIA
Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Society for Legal and Environmental
Association Analysis and Development Research
House 47 Road 5 LEADERS Nepal
Dhanmondi R/A Radhakudi Arcade, Ramshah Path
Dhaka 1205 P.O. Box 4851
Bangladesh Kathmandu, Nepal
email: bela@bangla.net
IUCN Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law
Pakistan National Office (APCEL)
1, Bath Island Road National University of Singapore
Karachi 75530 10 Kent Ridge Crescent
Pakistan Singapore 254866
email: bal@iucn.khi.sdnpk.undp.org Singapore
email: lawapcel@leonis.nus.sg
Internet:
http://www.sunsite.nus.sg/apcel/index.html
Environmental Foundation Ltd.
29, Siripa Road
Colombo 5
Sri Lanka

50
EUROPE
Institut für Umweltrecht Zentrum für Europäische Rechtspolitik
Universität Frankfurt /Main Universität Bremen
Fachbereich Rechtswissenschaft Postfach
Senckenberganlage 31 Bremen
60054 Frankfurt / Main Germany
Germany
Ökoinstitut Centre International de Droit Comparé de
Bereich Umweltrecht l´Environnement
Bunsenstraße 14 Place du Présidial
64293 Darmstadt F- 87031 Limoges
Germany France

Foundation for International Environmental

Law and Development (FIELD)
SOAS / University of London
46-47 Russell Square
London WC1B4JP
United Kingdom
email: field@gn.apc.org

USA
Environmental Law Institute Center for Environmental Legal Studies
1616 P Street NW Pace University, Law School
Washington, D.C. 78 North Broadway
USA White Plains NY 10603 USA
http://www.eli.org http://www.law.pace.edu/env/vell6.html
Center for International Environmental Law Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide
(CIEL) (E-LAW)
1367 Connecticut Ave., N.W. 1877 Garden Avenue
Suite 300 Eugene OR 97403 USA
Washington, DC 20036 USA email: elawus@igc.org
Internet: http://www.econet.apc.org/ciel/ Internet: http://www.igc.apc.org/elaw/

AUSTRALIA
Environmental Law Research Center Australian Center for Environmental Law
Macquarie University 173-175 Phillip Street
School of Law Sydney, NSW 2000
Sydney, NSW 2109 Australia
Australia Internet: http://www.law.usyd.edu.au/~acel/

b) Environmental law advisers

AFRICA
Kifle Lemma John Ntambirweki
P.O.Box 10028 Makere University
Addis Abeba Faculty of Law
Ethiopia P.O.Box 7062
Kampala
Uganda
email: uweso@imul.com

51
Doris Mwinga Wilson M.K. Masilingi
Ministry of Legal Affairs P.O.Box 63154
P.O. Box 50106 Dar es Salaam
Lusaka Nemaco
Zambia Tanzania

Olawale Ajai
Head, Dept. of Public & Private Law
Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies
P.M. Box 12820
Akoka-Yaba, Lagos
Nigeria

NORTH AFRICA / WEST ASIA

Ms. Iman Moqbel Prof. Mohammed Bekhechi
P.O. Box 910454 Legal Counsel
11191 Amman Environmental Affairs Unit
Jordan (Legal Department)
World Bank
1818 H Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20433, USA
email: mbekhechi@worldbank.org

Dr. Badria Al -Awadhi Prof. Ali Mékouar

Legal and Environmental Consultant FAO Legal Office
Ahmed Al-Jaber Street Development Law Service
P.O.Box 27357 Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
13134 Safat, Kuwait 00100 Rome, Italy
email: lexdbalo@ncc.moc.kw email: ali.mekouar@fao.org

Prof. Abdelaziz M. Abdelhady

Kuwait University
Faculty of Law
P.O.Box 5476
13055 Safat, Kuwait

LATIN AMERICA
Ricardo Koolen Prof. Dr. Daniel Sabsay
c/o FARN c/o FARN
Monroe 2142 Monroe 2142
1428 Buenos Aires 1248 Buenos Aires
Argentina Argentina
email: info@farn-sustenar.org

Grethel Aguilar Prof.Dr. Paulo Affonso Lemme Machado

Apartado postal: El Tumi 1247-1007 Rua Barao de Piracicamirim No. 787
San José, Costa Rica Ap. 102
email: galagui@sol.rasca.co.cr 13 416-150 Piracicaba, Brazil

Prof. Roberto dos Santos Vieira Eduardo Astorga

Universidade do Amazonas Monsenor Edwards 2087
Faculdade de Direito La Reina
Departamento de Direito Publico Santiago

52
Pr. dos Remedios 147 Chile
69.003 Manaus, AM, Brazil email: eastorga@mop.cl

Rodrigo G. Barahona Israel Ms. Patricia Madrigal Cordero

Calle 19 Ap. 4117-1000
Entre Avenidas 10 y 10 bis No. 1035 San Jose, Costa Rica
San Jose, Costa Rica email: patmadri@sol.racsa.co.cr

Efrain Perez Ms. Diana Ponce-Nava

Direktor Prolongatin de Angelina 10
ESTADE Col. Guadalupe Inn
P.O. Box 17-17-8 Mexico D.F. 01020
Quito,Ecuador email: dponcenava@laneta.apc.org
email: estade@uio.satnet.net

Albert Szekely
(Address: see Ponce-Nava)

Jorge Caillaux Zazzali Antonio Benjamin

President Lawyers for a Green Planet
SPDA Faculdade de Direito da USP
Plaza Arrospide No. 9 CEP 01401-002
San Isidro CP 27 São Paulo
Lima, Peru SP Brazil
email: todos@spda2.org.pe

ASIA
Surya P.S. Dhungel Lalanath de Silva
Chairman Environmental Foundation Ltd.
LEADERS Nepal No. 3, Campbell Terrace
P.O.Box 4851 Colombo 10
Kathmandu Sri Lanka
Nepal

Parvez Hassan Zahid Hamid

Attorney Hamid Law Associates
Chairman IUCN – CEL 409-410 Falah Building
PAAF Building Shahrah-e-Quaid-e-Azam
7 D Kashmir Egerton Road Lahore
Lahore - 54000 Pakistan
Pakistan email: hamid@hla.edunet.sdnpk.undp.org
email: phassan@brain.net.pk

EUROPE
Prof. Dr. Michael Bothe Dr. Lothar Gündling
Institut für Umweltrecht Attorney at law
Fachbereich Rechtswissenschaft Sofienstr. 23
Universität Frankfurt /Main 69115 Heidelberg
Senckenberganlage 31 Germany
60054 Frankfurt / Main email: LGuendling@T-online.de
Germany
email: mbothe@jur.uni-frankfurt.de

53
Prof. Dr. Eckard Rehbinder Dr. Peter Sand
Institut für Umweltrecht Agnesstr. 56a
Fachbereich Rechtswissenschaft 80798 München
Universität Frankfurt /Main Germany
Senckenberganlage 31 email: p.sand@jura.uni-muenchen.de
60054 Frankfurt /Main
Germany

Cyril de Klemm Prof. Dr. Michel Prieur

21 Rue de Danzig Centre international de Droit Comparé de
F- 75015 Paris l’Environnement
France 87031 Limoges
France

Prof. Dr. Christian du Saussay Prof. Malcolm Forster

46, Bd. de Cimiez Environmental Law Groups
F- 06000 Nice Freshfields, Whitefriars
France 65 Fleet Street, London, EC 4Y 1HS
United Kingdom
email: mforster@freshfields.com

Prof. Philippe Sands Stéphane Doumbé-Bille

FIELD 6, rue Mazard
46-47 Russell Square 69002 Lyon
London WC1B 4JP France
United Kingdom email: s.doumbe-bille@mailcity.com
email: ps12@soas.ac.uk

Liliana Maslarova Claire Shine

General Suvorov Str. 90 37, rue Erlanger
Pavlovo-Buckstone 75016 Paris
Sofia 1618 France
Bulgaria
email: ClareShine@compuserve.com

Andrea Simoncini
University of Florence
Faculty of Economics
Legal Institute
Via Montebello 7
50132 Florence
Italy
email: simon@facec.cce.unifi.it

54
CANADA AND USA

Linda Duncan Maryse Grandbois

Commission for Environmental Cooperation 4020 Rue Adam
393, rue St-Jacques Ouest, Bureau 200 Montréal (Québec) H1W 2AE
Montréal (Québec) Canada H2Y 1N9 Canada
email: lduncan@ccemtl.org

Howard Mann Ralph Osterwoldt

Attorney Legal Services
24 Rue Principale Department of Justice
Bureau 200 Jules Léger Building
Aylmer, Québec, Canada 15 Eddy Street, 13th floor
email: hmann@netcom.ca Hull, Québec K1A 0M5
Canada

Prof. Dr. Günther Handl Lee Kimball

Tulane University - Law School 1517 P St., N.W. #3
6329 Freret Street Washington, D.C. 2005
New Orleans, LA. 70118-5670 USA USA
email: ghandl@law.tulane.edu email: lkimball@igc.apc.org

Prof. Stephen McCaffrey Prof. Nicholas Robinson

McGeorge School of Law
University of the Pacific
3200 Fifth Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95817, USA
email: smccaffrey@unixl.cc.uop.edu
Pace University - Law School
78 North Broadway
White Plains, N.Y. 10603 USA
email: Nrobinson@genesis.law.pace.edu

AUSTRALIEN

Prof. Ben Boer Ms. Donna Craig

University of Sydney Environmental Law Research Center
Faculty of Law Macquarie University
173-175 Phillip Street Sydney, NSW 2109
Sydney, NSW 2000 Australia
Australia email: donnacraig@one.net.au
email: benboer@law.usyd.edu.au

55
c) International organisations providing technical assistance with
environmental law

Organisation Director Resource persons

UNEP Donald Kaniaru • Dan B. Ogolla
Environmental Law and Institutions - • Prof. Charles O.
Programme Activity Center Okidi
P.O.Box 30552 • Dr. Alexandre
Nairobi, Kenya Timosheko
Internet: http://www.unep.org
FAO Lawrence C. Christy • Lawrence C.
Legal Office Christy
Development Law Service • Stefano Burchi
Vialle delle Terme di Caracalla • Ali Mekouar
00100 Rome, Italy
Internet:
http://www.fao.org
http://faolex.fao.org/faolex/index.html
FAOLEX Legal Database
World Bank Prof. David Freestone • Charles DiLeva
1818 H. Street N.W. • Barbara J. Lausche
Washington, D.C. 20433, USA • Paatii Ofosu-
Internet: http://www.worldbank.org Amaah

IUCN Dr. F. Burhenne- • Dr. F. Burhenne-

Environmental Law Centre Guilmin Guilmin
Adenauerallee 214 • Patricia Moore
53113 Bonn, Germany • Richard Tarasofsky
email: iucn-elc@wunsch.com • Lyle Glowka
Internet: http://
www.iucn.org/themes/law/index.html.

d) Environmental law information centres

IUCN The ELC has at its disposal an information

Environmental Law Centre
Adenauerallee 214
53113 Bonn, Germany
IUCN-ELC
Treaty references on Internet:
http://www.ciesin.org/entri/
centre on national and international
environmental law. National and
supranational environmental legal
instruments as well as global and regional
conventions are collected and entered into a
computerized database. In addition to the
primary sources of environmental law, the
ELC information system holds
environmental law literature from all over the
world. Information can be ordered; a fee is
charged.

56
UNEP The UNEP Infoterra information system
Infoterra includes an environmental law department
P.O. Box 30552 which collects national legislation and
Nairobi, Kenya international conventions. Infoterra
UNEP collaborates with the IUCN-ELC.
UN Treaties database on Internet:
http://www.un.org/cgi-bin

UNEP The system collects environmental law

Regional Office for Latin America and information from and for the Latin American
the Caribbean and Caribbean region.
Information System on Environmental
Law
Boulevard de los Virreyes No. 155
Colonia Lomas de Virreyes
11000 Mexico, D.F.
Mexico

UNEP-ROLAC
Internet: http://rolac.unep.mx

Fundación Ambiente y Recursos FARN's environmental law and policy

Naturales information system, originally limited to
2142 Monroe Argentina, has been expanded into an
1428 Buenos Aires, Argentina regional information system for South
America. FARN collaborates with UNEP-
FARN ROLAC as well as with IUCN-ELC.
email: info@farn-sustentar.org

e) Index to basic environmental law materials

Selected collections of legislation and treaties are referenced below. This is not an
exhaustive list, but rather a practical introduction. Some of the references cover
various levels in the hierarchy of laws (national law, European law, international law),
others are representative of what is available in other languages.

National Legislation/Collections of Texts

To date there is no comparative collection of national environmental legislation for

environmental law advisers to rely on. For national legislation, contact one of the
information centres listed in Annex 2d).

Some individual countries, primarily industrialized ones, have at least partial

collections of current national environmental law.

57
Germany:

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW NATURE PROTECTION LAW

Important Laws and Regulations for Federal and State Nature Protection
Environmental Protection Laws
Beck-Texte Beck-Texte

Resources for some countries and regions:

USA/Federal Federal Environment Laws, 1996 Edition

(West Publ. Corp. 1996).

Latin America and the Caribbean Legislación Ambiental Général en América

Latina y el Caribe, Serie de Legislación
ambiental, No. 1, hrsg. vom UNEP Oficina
Regional para América Latina y el Caribe,
México 1992.

Code de l’Environnement, (Protection de la

France
nature/Lutte contre les nuisances)
Dalloz (Petits Codes Dalloz).

International Agreements /Collection of Texts

A collection of multilateral environmental protection agreements:

& INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW/MULTILATERAL TREATIES

(W.E. Burhenne, editor) Looseleaf, updated annually

This collection includes the most important multilateral treaties in their official
languages, and in some cases with a German translation. The lists of Parties to each
agreements are updated at least once a year.

Other collections of international agreements include:

& HARALD HOHMANN

Basic Documents of International Environmental Law, 3 Vol., Graham &
Trotman, 1992

& PHILIPPE SANDS ET AL.

Documents in International Environmental Law, Manchester University Press
1993

& EDITH BROWN WEISS ET AL.

International Environmental Law: Basic Instruments and References ,
Transnational Publ. 1992

58
The UNEP Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean has published a
collection of international agreements for this region:

& DERECHO INTERNACIONAL AMBIENTAL REGIONAL,

Serie de Legislación Ambiental No. 2, 1993.

The following study complements the collection:

& THE CURRENT STATE OF INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW IN

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN,
Document Series on Environmental, Law No. 2, 1993.

So-called “soft-law“ is collected in:

& WOLFGANG BURHENNE / MARLENE JAHNKE

International Environmental Soft Law / Collection of Relevant Instruments
Kluwer / Nijhof Publ. 1993

Documents on the European Union’s environmental policy

The European Union's environmental legal instruments are usually interesting

resources. Useful collections are:

& STORM / LOHSE

EG-Umweltrecht, Looseleaf, 2 Vol., Erich Schmidt Verlag, (several updates
per
year).

An English-language edition (1991):

& EUROPEAN COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION

Ed. by the Commission of the EC, 7 Vols.

Comprehensive reviews of international environmental law

Out of the almost unmanageable volume of literature on environmental law worldwide,

the following treatises are recommended for the environmental law adviser:

& BIRNIE / BOYLE

International Law and the Environment, Clarendon Press 1992

& KAMTO
Le droit de l’environnement en Afrique, Edicef / AUPELF, Coll. Universités
francophones, 1996.

& KISS / SHELTON

International Environmental Law, Graham & Trotman 1991

59
& KISS
L´écologie et la loi - Le statut juridique de l’environnement, Edition Harmattan
1989
& KRÄMER
Focus on European Environmental Law, Sweet and Maxwell 1992

Comprehensive reviews of national environmental law/Selection from various

legal systems and languages

& ALVAREZ BAQUERIZO

Derecho Ambiental: Manual Prático. Penthalon, Madrid 1990.

& BALL/BELL
Environmental Law: The Law and Policy relating to the Protection of the
Environment. 3rd ed., Blackstone, London, 1995.

& BONINE/MCGARITY
The Law of Environment Protection, 2d ed., West Publ. 1992.

& CAMPBELL/FUTRELL/BREEN (Ed.)

Sustainable Environmental Law, West Publ. 1993.

& LEELAKRISHNAN
Law and Environment, Eastern Book Company, India, 1992.

& LEESON
Environmental Law, Pitman Publ., 1995 (UK)

& LEMME MACHADO

Direito ambiental brasileiro, 4. ed., Malheiros Ed. 1992.

& MATEO
Tratado de derecho ambiental, Ed. Trivium, Madrid, 1991.

& MCLOUGHLIN/BELLINGER
Environment Pollution Control. An Introduction to Principles and Practice of
Administration, Graham & Trotman, 1993.

& NEURAY
Principes de droit de l’environnement: Droit international - droit européen –
droit interne. Story-Scientia (u.a.), Bruxelles, 1995.

& PRIEUR
Droit de l’environnement. 3. éd., Dalloz, Paris, 1996.

& ROSENCRANZ ET AL.

Environmental Law and Policy in India, Tripathi Private, Bombay, India, 1991

& WINTER (Hrsg.)

60
 German Environmental Law: Basic Texts and Introduction. Nijhoff, Dordrecht,
1994.

& WOLF/WHITE
Environmental Law, Cavendish Publ., 1995 (UK)

Journals and Periodicals

There is are abundant journals dealing with environmental law, published primarily in
the USA and Western Europe. Most are heavily oriented toward the national law of
the country in which they are published and neglect international law and comparative
law which are so important for those providing advisory services. Nevertheless, the
following are helpful:

& ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND LAW

bimonthly, IOS Press, Amsterdam

This journal publishes articles on current developments in international law, primarily

documentation on the activities of international organizations and conferences.

& YEARBOOK OF INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

published since 1990; 1990-1992 by Graham & Trotman, since 1993 by
Oxford
University Press

The Yearbook reports on developments during the year in all fields of international
environmental law, including the activities of international organizations.

Newsletters

& UNEP
Biannual Bulletin of Environmental Law (available on request)

& IUCN Environmental Law Programme Newsletter

published every four months (available on request)

& INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW NEWS

A Newsletter of the American Society of International Law Interest Group in
International Environmental Law, no fixed publication schedule, in principle
only for members of the Interest Group

Miscellaneous

"One of a kind" and therefore worth recommending:

& CAPONERA
Principles of Water Law and Administration, Balkema Publ. 1992.

61
& DE KLEMM
Biological Diversity Conservation and the Law / Legal Mechanisms for
Conserving Species and Ecosystems, IUCN 1993

& DE KLEMM
Guidelines for Legislation to Implement CITES, IUCN 1993

& ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION IN ISLAM,

Second Edition, IUCN 1994.

& GLOWKA ET AL.

A Guide to the Convention on Biological Diversity, IUCN 1994, also in
Spanish (1996) and French (1996).

62
f) Other Literature

Der Rat von Sachverständigen für Umweltfragen, Umweltgutachten 1994. Für

eine dauerhaft-umweltgerechte Entwicklung, Metzler-Poeschel, 1994.

Der Rat von Sachverständigen für Umweltfragen, Umweltgutachten 1996. Zur

Umsetzung einer dauerhaft-umweltgerechten Entwicklung. Metzler-Poeschel, 1996.

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) - Pilotvorhaben

Institutionenentwicklung im Umweltbereich (PVI): Indikatoren der Institutionenent-
wicklung im Umweltbereich - Anregungen und Beispiele für Projektplanung und -
management, 1996.

Gassner, E.: Treuhandklage zugunsten von Natur und Umwelt, Erich Schmidt Verlag
1984.

Glowka, L.: A Guide to the Convention on Biological Diversity, IUCN Environmental

Law Centre, IUCN Biodiversity Programme, 1994 (Environmental Policy and Law
Paper No. 30).

Glowka, L.: Determining Access to Genetic Resources and Ensuring Benefit-

sharing: Legal and Institutional Considerations for States Providing Genetic Resour-
ces. Paper presented to the Global Biodiversity Forum, Jakarta, 4 November 1995.

Gündling, L.: Compliance Assistance in International Environmental Law: Capacity-

Building through Financial and Technology Transfer, ZaöRV 56 (1996), S. 796.

Henkel, M.: Umweltrecht, Allgemeiner Teil, Umweltberatung für Kommunen, Deut-

sches Institut für Urbanistik, Berlin,1992.

Hucke, J. / Wollmann, H.:, Vollzug des Umweltrechts, Handwörterbuch des Umwelt-

rechts, Band 2, 2. Aufl., Erich Schmidt Verlag 1994, Sp. 2694 ff.

Internationales Jahrbuch für Rechtsanthropologie. Bd. 4 - 1989, Renner Verlag,

1989.

IUCN-UNEP-WWF: World Conservation Strategy. Living Resource Conservation for

Sustainable Development, 1980.

Lübbe-Wolff, G.: Modernisierung des Umweltordnungsrechts: Vollziehbarkeit - De-

regulierung - Effizienz, Bonn, 1996.

Mayntz, R. u.a.: Vollzugsprobleme der Umweltpolitik, 1978.

Pitschas, R.: Einführung: Soziale Sicherung und Umweltmanagement im Süden als

Aufgaben der Institutionenentwicklung. In: Pitschas (Hg.), Entwicklungsrecht und sozi-
al-ökologische Verwaltungspartnerschaft, Schriftenreihe der Hochschule Speyer,
Band 116, 1994, S. 19 ff.

63
Prieur, M.: Droit de d’Environnement, Précis Dalloz, 3e édition, 1996.

Prittwitz, V. von, Politikanalyse, Leske und Budrich, Opladen, 1994.

Robinson, N. (Ed.), Agenda 21. Earth´s Action Plan, Oceana 1993.

Storm, P.-C., Umweltrecht, in: Handwörterbuch des Umweltrechts, Band 2, 2. Aufla-
ge, Erich Schmidt Verlag 1994, Sp. 2331 ff.

The Results from Stockholm / Les Résultats de Stockholm / Stockholmer Resulta-

te, Erich Schmidt Verlag 1973.

The World Charter For Nature. A Background Paper by Wolfgang Burhenne and
Will A. Irwin, Erich Schmidt Verlag 1983.

The World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Futu-

re, Oxford University Press, 1987.

UNEP Environmental Law and Institutions Unit, New Directions in Environmental

Legislation and Administration Particularly in Developing Countries, Nairobi 1989.

UNEP, Environmental Law in UNEP, Nairobi 1991.

UNEP, Legal and Institutional Arrangements for Environmental Protection and Su-
stainable Development in Developing Countries, Nairobi 1991.

UNEP/Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, Legislación Ambiental
General en América Latina y el Caribe, Serie de Legislación ambiental No. 1, Méxi-
co, 1992.

Waskow, S. Mitwirkung von Naturschutzverbänden in Verwaltungsverfahren, Erich

Schmidt Verlag 1990.

Welt im Wandel: Wege zur Lösung globaler Umweltprobleme. Jahresgutachten

1995, Springer Verlag 1996.

64
Publications on the Work of Division 44

Publications No. Titel Order No.

402/94 - 3 d PVI Ökonomische Instrumente der Umweltpolitik als Beratungsfeld P3-003-d

im Rahmen der TZ - Systematische Kurzdarstellung der in der
Bundesrepublik Deutschland angewandten Instrumente und
relevanter Institutionen

402/94 - 4 d PVI Der Runde Tisch als Programm? Möglichkeiten und Grenzen P3-004-d
der Institutionenförderung im Spannungsfeld von Umwelt und
Entwicklung

402/94 - 4 e PVI The round table as a Programme? Institutional Development P3-004-e

caught between the Environment and Development - Options
and Limitations

402/94 - 5 e PVI Pollution Prevention Through Market-Based Incentives P3-005-e

Two Case Studies on Thailand

402/94 - 6 e PVI The Use of Economic Instruments in the Environmental Policy P3-006-e
of Chile

402/94 - 7 e PVI The Role of Land Tenure and Property Rights in Sustainable P3-007-e
Resource Use: The Case of Benin

402/94 - 9 d PVI Information, Bildung und Kommunikation im Umweltbereich P3-009-d

402/95 - 12 d PVI Marktwirtschaftliche Instrumente der Umweltpolitik in Entwick- P3-012-d

lungsländern - Beiträge zur Institutionenentwicklung und Poli-
tikberatung im Umweltbereich

402/95 - 12 e PVI Market-Based Instruments in Environmental Policy in Develo- P3-012-e

ping Countries - Framework for Policy Planning and Institutio-
nal Development in the Environment

402/95 - 12 f PVI Instruments économiques applicables aux politiques de P3-012-f

l’environnement dans les pays en développement - Contribu-
tions au développement institutionnel et à l’assistance techni-
que en matière de politique de l’environnement

402/95 - 12 s PVI Instrumentos económicos y política ambiental en los paises P3-012-s

en desarrollo - Desarrollo institucional y asesoramiento politi-
co en materia de protección ambiental

402/95 - 13 d RMSH Die Rolle von Anreizen bei der Anwendung von RMSH als Vor- P3-013-d
gehensweise. Eine Handreichung für Projektbearbeiter/innen,
Consultants und Projektmitarbeiter/innen

402/95 - 13 e RMSH Incentives and the NARMS Approach - A hand-out for project P3-013-e
desk officers, consultants and onside project staff

402/95 - 13 f RMSH Le rôle des mesures d'incitation dans l'application de la straté- P3-013-f
gie GERNAP - Outil de travail à l’intention des chargés de pro-
jets, des consultants et des collaborateurs de projet
402/95 - 13 s RMSH El papel de los incentivos en la aplicación del enfoque AMREN P3-013-s
- Folleto de información para encargados de proyectos, consul-
tores y colaboradores de proyectos

402/95 - 14 d PVI Umweltinformation und ihr Management P3-014-d

402/95 - 14 e PVI Environmental information and its management P3-014-e

402/95 - 15 d Biodiv Biologische Vielfalt erhalten! Eine Aufgabe der Entwicklungs- P3-015-d
zusammenarbeit

402/95 - 16 d Lösungsansätze für den technischen Umweltschutz in kleinen P3-016-d

und mittleren Unternehmen in Entwicklungsländern

402/96 - 16 e Approaches to cleaner production in small and medium -sized P3-016-e

enterprises

402/95 - 17 d PVI Mediation / Konfliktmanagement im Umweltbereich und seine P3-017-d

Bedeutung im Rahmen der TZ
Dokumentation eines Fachgesprächs in der GTZ

402/96 - 19 d PVI Konfliktmanagement im Umweltbereich P3-019-d

Instrument der Umweltpolitik in Entwicklungsländern

402/96 - 19 e PVI Environmental Conflict Management P3-019-e

An environmental policy instrument in developing countries

402/96 - 19 f PVI La gestion des conflits dans le domaine de l'environnement - P3-019-f

Instrument de la politique de l'environnement dans les pays en
développement

402/96 - 19 s PVI Manejo de conflictos en el área de medio ambiente - Instru- P3-019-s

mento de política ambiental en los países en desarrollo

402/96 - 20 e Environmental Protection in Small and Medium Enterprises in P3-020-e

Developing Countries - Proceedings of the GTZ-workshop

402/96 - 21 d PVI Methodenkompaß - Eine praktische Orientierungshilfe für Pla- P3-021-d

nungs - und Managementaufgaben im Umweltbereich

402/96 - 22 d RMSH Prozeßmonitoring - Eine Arbeitshilfe für Projektmitarbeiter/- P3-022-d

innen

402/96 - 22 e RMSH Process Monitoring (ProM) - Work Document for project staff P3-022-e

402/96 - 22 f RMSH Suivi des processus - Un outil de travail pour des collabora- P3-022-f
teurs de projet

402/96 - 22 s RMSH Seguimiento de procesos - Una auyuda para personal de P3-022-s

proyectos

402/96 - 23 d PVI Indikatoren der Institutionenentwicklung im Umweltbereich - P3-023-d

Anregungen und Beispiele für Projektplanung und -
management

402/97 - 24 d PVI Umweltrechtsberatung und Institutionenentwicklung im Um- P3-024-d

weltbereich - Schwerpunkte, Methoden, Beratungsressourcen
402/97 - 25 d UVP Umweltdatenbanken für die Entwicklungszusammenarbeit P3-025-d
Handbuch für Recherchen mit Katalog von Datenbanken

402/97 - 26 d RMSH Förderung von Beteiligung und Selbsthilfe im Ressourcenm a- P3-026-d

nagement. Ein Leitfaden für Projektmitarbeiterinnen und Pro-
jektmitarbeiter

402/97 - 26 e RMSH Promoting Participation and Self-help in Natural Resource P3-026-e

Management. Guidelines for project staff
.
402/97 - 26 f RMSH Encouragement de la participation et de l'autopromotion dans P3-026-f
la gestion des ressources naturelles. Un guide concu à l'inte n-
tion des collaboratrices et collaborateurs de projets.

402/97 - 26 s RMSH Fomento de la participación y la autoayuda en el manejo de P3-026-s

recursos naturales. Una guía para los colaboradors y colabo-
radoras en los proyectos.

402/97 - 27 d RMSH Ressourcenmanagement über Selbsthilfeansätze (RMSH). P3-027-d

Lernerfahrungen und Lernpartner/innen im Überblick.

402/96 - PVI Umweltprojekte durch Kommunikation verbessern P3-901-d

402/96 - PVI Erfahrungen und Ansätze der TZ bei der Unterstützung von Um- P3-902-d
weltaktionsplänen - Dokumentation eines Erfahrungs -
austausches in der GTZ

402/96 - RMSH Prozeßbegleitende Beratung - Eine Arbeitshilfe für Berater/- P3-903-d

innen im Ressourcenmanagement

402/96 - RMSH In-Process Consultancy - A Work Document for Consultants to P3-903-e

Natural Resource Management Projects

402/96 - RMSH La Consultation interne - Un outil de travail pour les consultants P3-903-f
et consultantes en gestion des ressources n aturelles

402/96 - RMSH Acompanamiento de procesos - Una ayuda para asesoras y P3-903-s

asesores en el manejo de recursos naturales

402/96 - RMSH Towards decentralised Natural Resource Management P3-904-e

(VARENA) - Case study: The village of Balingnar in Burkina Faso

402/96 - RMSH Vers une Gestion Décentralisée des Ressources Naturelles P3-904-f
(VARENA) - Cas du village de Balingnar au Burkina Faso

402/96 - PVI Umweltkommunikation in der TZ - P3-905-d

Dokumentation eines Fachgespräches in der GTZ

402/96 - PVI Bibliographie Umweltkommunikation P3-906-d

402/97 - RMSH Hinweise auf Schlüsseldokumente für die Anwendung von Be- P3-908-d
teiligungs - und Selbsthilfeansätzen im Ressourcenmanage-
ment
Eine Handreichung für Mitarbeiter/innen in der Projektplanung-
und durchführung.
402/97 - RMSH Lernbilanz zu Prozessmonitoring. Ein Arbeitspapier zu den Ler- P3-909-d
nerfahrungen mit der Arbeitshilfe Prozessmonitoring.

402/97 - PVI Bibliographie Konfliktmanagement im Umweltbereich P3-910-d

Kommentare und Nutzerhinweise z ausgewählten Dokumenten
Sonstige PVI-Literatur (z.T. in Zusammenarbeit mit anderen Herausge-
bern/Autoren)

(Bestellung direkt über: GTZ-PVI, Frau Goldstein, Wachsbleiche 1, 53111 Bonn,

Tel.: 0228-985330)

402/97 - PVI Lessons learned in Environmental Mediation

Practical Experiences in North and South

402/98 - PVI Environmental Communication Handbook for the Mediterranean Region

402/98 - PVI Manuel de Communication Environnementale pour la région méditerranéenne

402/98 - PVI Communicating for Development

P3U Arbeitspapiere
(Bestellung direkt über: GTZ-P3U, Frau Jansen, Wachsbleiche 1, 53111 Bonn,
Tel.: 0228-604710)

1d Umweltkostenmanagement (Zusammenfassung auch in spanischer und portugiesischer

Sprache erhältlich)

1e Environmental Cost Management

1f La gestion des coûts environnementaux

Gestão dos custos ambientais; Resumo (Portug. Zusammenfassung AP Nr. 1)

2 Schlüsseldokumente zum Thema „Umweltorientierte Unternehmensführung“

3 Auswertung von Geberprogrammen zu umweltorientierter Unternehmensführung. Umfrage bei

GTZ-Projekten zu Kooperationsmöglichkeiten im Bereich Umweltmanagement

4 Leitfäden zum Umweltmanagement

Überprüfung ihrer Anwendbarkeit auf kleine und mittlere Unternehmen in Entwicklungsländern.
(Zusammenfassung auch in engl.)

Assessment of Manuals on Environmental Management, Summary of a Study (Engl. Zusam-

menfassung AP Nr. 4)

5d ISO 9000, ISO 14001, EMAS: Inhalte, Vor- und Nachteile, mögliche Synergien

5f ISO 9000, ISO 14001, les EMAS: Les avantages et les inconvénients, des synergies éventuel-
les

6 Kooperationsmöglichkeiten u. Unterstützungsbedarf in Fragen der umweltorientierten Unte r-

nehmensführung. Ergebnisse der Umfrage bei GTZ-Ansprechpartnerinnen u. -partnern mit
fachlichem Schwerpunkt in den Abteilungen 402, 414 und 415

7 Inter-Firm Cooperation in Environmental Management: Experience from Santa Catarina/Brazil

8 Qualitäts- und Umweltmanagement in KMU in Entwicklungsländern. Workshop-Bericht

9e Good-Housekeeping-Guide for Small-&Medium-Sized Enterprises

10e Case Study Environmental Cost Management at Cairns Food Ltd.Harare
Weitere P3U-Produkte

Projektdarstellung, (auch in, e, f, span. u. port. Sprache)

Angebote ausgewählter deutscher Handwerksinstitutionen im Bereich umweltorientierter Unterneh-

mensführung

Umweltmanagementsysteme und ihre Anwendbarkeit auf Klein- und Mittelunternehmen - Zusammen-

fassung einer Umfrage bei deutschen Handwerksinstitutionen (auch in engl., franz., span. und portug.
Sprache)

Workshop-Dokumentation: Vernetzung ökologischer und sozialer Zeicheninitiativen für Produkte aus

Entwicklungsländern

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