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Table 2 Differences in Environmental Policy Development
Role of Local Government
Japan
Korea
China
Japan
Korea
China
Japan
Korea
Local governments initiated environmental policy beginning with the Tokyo Prefectural Ordinance for
Pollution Control of 1949. Subsequently, local governments adopted several advanced policy
instruments such as environmental impact assessment in advance of the central government. Such local
governments’ initiatives were possible because of the Local Autonomy System provided in the 1946
Constitution.
In the President Park Chung-Hee era, Korea centralized her administrative power, and the central
government played the main role in environmental preservation. Until quite recently, local governments
showed little or no concern about environmental issues. Because Korea has gradually restored the Local
Autonomy System due to democratization since the late 1980s, large local governments such as Seoul
and Taejon have enacted their own ordinances for environmental preservation since the mid 1990s.
China has adopted the Democratic Centralized System based on her socialist constitution, and local
governments have had very limited autonomy. For this reason, the central people’s government has
dominated environmental protection activities. However, the Environmental Protection Law of 1989
requires that local people’s governments accept responsibility for maintenance environment quality. In
near future, the role of local governments will become important.
Information Disclosure
The citizens’ movements against pollution, represented in cases such as the Honshu- seishi Incident of
1958, have had a strong influence on environmental policy development. In 1967 the Basic Law for
Pollution Control was enacted in response to public pressures, and the Environmental White Paper for
environmental information disclosure has been published annually since 1969.
The Korean government, at one time, regarded anti-pollution movements as anti-government
movements, such as the case of pollution damages in the Ulsan industrial area during the late 1960s.
Since the early 1980s, environmental information disclosure has gradually been promoted. Since
democratization in the late 1980s, campaigns in the mass media for environmental preservation have
become prominent.
Under the rule of Mao Zedong, information disclosure about both the state of environment and the
public reaction against pollution was very limited. However, as a part of the policy reform since 1978,
environmental policy has progressed. Since 1990, the Chinese government has published annual
environmental reports.
Influence from International Pressure
Pressure from foreign countries, especially from USA, has influenced Japanese environmental policy
development. Examples of this include the improvement of Sumida River’s water quality just before the
Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964, the regulation on exhaust gases in the USA’s Muskie Act of 1970, and
the criticism of Japanese pollution dumping in the U.S. President’s statement in 1970.
Korea also reduced the air pollution in Seoul, just before the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988. In near
future, the Korean government will be required to response to global environmental issues equal to
developed countries as a member nation of OECD.
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