Transcript Overview of Elements of Environmental Law

Module 1:
Building a Legal Foundation
for Good Water Governance
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Discussion
What water protection and
management issues
are you facing?
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Good Governance is Essential for
Sustainable Development
At the domestic level, sound environmental, social,
and economic policies, democratic institutions
responsive to the needs of the people, the rule of
law, anti-corruption measures, gender equality, and
an enabling environment for investment are the
basis for sustainable development.
Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, Para. 4
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Good Water Governance is Essential
for Sustainable Water Resources
Development and Management
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Implementing Environmental Policy
through Legal Requirements
Mont-Orford National Park, Quebec. Source: Bodin, Marie-Aude/UNESCO.
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Drivers for Environmental Goals
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Public Health
Environmental Quality
Conservation of Natural Resources
Economics
Sustainable Development Goals, including
Poverty Reduction and Gender Equity
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Mandates for Environmental Protection
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Constitution
Legislation and Sub-legislation
Judicial Decisions
Treaties
Public Demand
Enforceable Settlements
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Sources of Environmental
Requirements
Constitution
Legislative
Executive
Judicial
Laws & Statutes
Rules, Regs, & Binding Instruments
Judicial Decisions
Permits and
Licenses
International Treaties
and Non-binding
Declarations
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Cascading the Requirements
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National Standards
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Provincial or Local
Standards
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Facility-specific Application
via Permits/Licenses
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Responses to Water Management
Issues: Behavioral Change
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Drivers of behavior
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Economic incentives
Social norms
Strategies to bring about behavioral change
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Public education and awareness raising
Compliance assistance
Enforcement / Deterrence
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Methods for Achieving
Environmental Goals
Aerial view of the Brazilian Amazon. Source: UNESCO; Luis Alberto.
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Communication Strategies
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Environmental Impact Assessment
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Introduces possible alternatives for consideration
Raises awareness among public and responsible officials
Works best with meaningful public participation
Community Right-to-Know
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Empowers communities by providing knowledge
Provides information to public watchdogs
Enables better targeting of enforcement actions
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Incentive Strategies
Measures aimed at motivating action toward environmental
goals by harnessing economic, social, and other drivers of
behavior.
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Tax Incentives
 Subsidies or other Financial Support
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Recognition/Awards for Meeting Higher Standards
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Market-Based Approaches
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Effluent Trading – market-based mechanism for water pollution control
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E.g.: Australia Salinity Trading Program
Benefits of using a market-based approach
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Firms with lower control costs reduce effluent more and are able to sell
effluent credits to firms with higher control costs within the same river basin
Brings economic forces to bear on environmental protection efforts
Provides greater flexibility to industry to achieve environmental goals
Generates continual incentive to reduce pollution
Potentially requires fewer regulatory resources
Enforcement is required to provide confidence in the market
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Discussion
Types of Standards
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Defining What, Where, & When:
Environmental Standards
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Ambient Standards
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Performance Standards
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Limit the rate or amount of discharges that a facility can release into the
environment
No facility shall discharge effluent containing arsenic in concentrations greater
than 50 ppb
Technology Standards
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Set goals for the quality of a water body (or bodies)
Arsenic concentrations in any protected water body shall not exceed 50
ppb
Require the regulated community to use a particular type of technology
Farms with more than 100 livestock must have runoff holding ponds
Practice Standards
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Require or prohibit certain activities
Aerial spraying shall be conducted at a distance not less than 300 meters from
any protected water source
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Discussion:
Is This An Enforceable Requirement?
“No facility shall discharge too much
pollution into the rivers.”
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Elements of Enforceable
Requirements
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Who:
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What:
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What can’t they do? What must they do? (e.g. shall not
discharge more than a certain amount of a pollutant)
Where:
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Who does the requirement cover? (e.g. owners or operators of a
facility)
Specific locations where regulations apply (e.g. to protected
waters)
When:
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Give any temporal restrictions or exceptions (e.g. except at startup or shut-down)
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Sample Requirement
The owner or operator of a
registered sewage treatment plant
shall not discharge more than 90 mg/l of
suspended solids
to a protected water
from its permitted discharge pipe
except during cleaning of the surge tank.
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Other Things to Consider:
Developing Enforceable Language
To ensure that the requirement has taken all
appropriate factors into account:
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Engage the regulated community
 Ensure public participation through comment
periods
 Compare with similar requirements in other
contexts or countries
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Other Things to Consider:
Beyond Enforceable Language
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Well-written standards are enforceable, but that
does not necessarily mean they will be enforced
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Factors:
 Cost
 Technical & human resources
 Feasibility for the regulated community
 Political will
 Lack of public attention to issue
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Other Things to Consider:
Environmental Impact Assessment
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EIAs can be used as an information tool
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EIAs may provide guidance when setting sitespecific standards
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EIAs may be used as or become an enforceable
requirement
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Other Things to Consider:
Cross-Issue Connections
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Consider the impact of water regulation on all
sectors
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e.g., a water distribution plan affects forestry, mining,
agriculture, and other land uses
Consider regulating other issues that may
indirectly affect water quality
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e.g., Large-scale construction projects may dramatically
increase sedimentation, leading to decreases in water
quality
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Exercise
Writing the Requirement
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Coming Up Next
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Module 1: Building a Legal Foundation for Good Water
Governance
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Module 2: Promoting Compliance with Environmental
Laws
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Module 3: Responding to Violations of Environmental
Laws
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Module 4: Designing Performance Indicators for
Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Programs
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