Manual on the Development of Cleaner Production Policies ... - Unido

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DEVELOPMENT OF CP POLICY MODULE 4: POLICY TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS EXAMPLE In Latin America, the principle of environmental protection has been included in constitutional law by all nations, although to varying degrees. Most countries have established a general environmental legal framework together with regulations dealing with specific areas such as water resources, mineral resources, marine and land areas, hunting and fishing, forestry resources, tourism, chemical products, pesticides and air pollution. Many countries have also developed national environmental plans and strategies. There is a large body of rules and regulations on specific environmental issues, such as Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), hazardous wastes, environmental crime, protection of natural resources and biodiversity, regulations for the production of, use of, and access to natural resources, and the protection of human health from harmful effects on the environment. Laws intended to regulate the use of natural resources often include provisions to punish noncompliance. However, the rules and regulations do not usually include realistic criminal or administrative sanctions. Rules and regulations are hard to enforce because many institutions cannot monitor compliance and systematic enforcement can have negative economic effects. One recent significant development has been the introduction of mandatory EIAs in many countries. However, most of the EIAs conducted so far have mainly focused on reducing negative environmental impacts and have seldom altered a proposal significantly, let alone led to its rejection. Environmental norms and regulations Historically, the most widespread approach to environmental pollution has been the setting of standards, i.e. the command-and-control approach. This approach relies on standards of various types to bring about improvements in environmental quality. In general, a standard is simply a mandated level of performance that is enforced in law. An emission standard is a maximum rate of emissions that is legally allowed. The idea behind a standard is, if you want people not to do something, simply pass a law that makes it illegal, then send out the authorities to enforce the law. A leading problem with standard setting is the question of cost-effectiveness and enforcing compliance. In direct regulations, the policy maker may specify a desired outcome or condition, such as a maximum level of emissions from a pollution source (emissions standard), or a maximum ambient concentration of a particular pollutant (ambient standard). Example of the former include regulations on the maximum allowed value of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5) and total suspended solids in waste water discharged to water bodies; examples of the latter include the allowable concentration of air pollutants in a residential area, or noise levels at the workplace. Alternatively, a policy maker can prescribe a specific technical means to achieve the required outcome (technology-based standard). This type of direct regulation uses detailed technological standards to obligate a polluter to use a specific type of machinery, pollution control equipment, or process specifications. Best Available Technology is an example where a technology-based standard would be used. Another policy tool is a performance-based standard, which focuses on the quality of a facility’s operation by requiring certain equipment maintenance or housekeeping procedures. All countries in Latin America have some form of environmental norms and regulations, some of the most developed of which, in terms of promoting Cleaner Production, can be found in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. PAGE 88
DEVELOPMENT OF CP POLICY MODULE 4: POLICY TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS Product bans and trade restrictions Direct regulation may also prohibit, limit, or phase out the use or release of a chemical compound. The imposition of a ban—or defined phase-out schedule—for a particular product or substance is an authoritarian means of promoting Cleaner Production. This may be implemented through application of the product-choice (or substitution) principle. Some examples include the prohibition of the use of certain pesticides (e.g. DDT), the ban on the use of products containing cadmium, or the elimination of ozone-depleting substances such as chlorofluorocarbons. Raw materials depletion quota The sustainable management of natural resources can be promoted by limiting and regulating extraction activities, or requiring compensating measures. This approach was used for the first time in the case of lost fish catches resulting from overfishing. On a national level, it is commonly used in connection with forestry, e.g. requiring reforestation efforts in the wake of commercial woodcutting. A good example is a ban on the export of unprocessed wood introduced in Costa Rica, whereby the export of timber in the form of logs or unprocessed planks is prohibited. In addition, specific forms of reforestation are required. SLIDE: Regulatory instruments/2 • Liability assignment (Brazilian law on non-compliance, hazardous waste management in the United States); • Extended producer’s responsibility and product take-back schemes (cars in Germany, household appliances in Japan); • Facility operation standards/permits (EIA, IPPC Directive). Liability assignment Liability payments are made to compensate for the damage caused by a polluting activity. Such payments can be made to the victims of chronic or accidental pollution or to the government. Environmental liabilities with a potentially strong financial impact that a company may face include: (a) Environmental fees/taxes for the “use of the environment” charged by the state or local administration; (b) Environmental fines assessed in case of non-compliance, or even closure or suspension of activities on environmental grounds; (c) Cost of implementing environmental measures required by authorities for a company to continue operations; (d) Cost of implementing environmental clean-up programmes, both on-site and off-site; (e) Compensation paid to third parties that suffered as a result of environmental damage; (f) Compensation paid to employees whose health was damaged (e.g. exposure to lead or asbestos); (g) Potential costs of dealing with the consequences of changing environmental regulations (e.g. waste substances that may be declared hazardous in the future). PAGE 89
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Manual on the Development of Cleaner Production Policies ... - Unido

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