Union Environmental Policy Research Articles

Sustainability Entrepreneurship and the Importance of International Policies in Sustainable Development

In the world of today, despite economic developments, there is an increase in negative social and environmental conditions. Sustainable development is to improve a better quality of life for current and future generations. Sustainable entrepreneurs develop products and services that are suitable for society and the environment instead of using traditional business processes and systems. Sustainable development and providing a liveable life for future generations depend on these entrepreneurs' use of innovation in their business processes and the effects of this situation on society. The aim of this study is to conceptually address the importance of international policies in sustainability entrepreneurship within the framework of the European Union's climate change and environmental sustainability policies, considering the social, environmental, and economic dimensions of sustainable development.
 Literature review methodology provides the advancement of knowledge by scoping and analysing previous research on the study. A literature review will be conducted regarding the research method, and determinations and suggestions will be presented within the framework of the purpose of the study. The data is collected from European Commission and Eurostat database.
 Entrepreneurship plays an important role in the transformation of countries towards a more sustainable future by protecting the environment and in harmonizing social, economic, and ecological goals. Climate change is one of the most important challenges of the 21st century. As climate change becomes more evident, the European Union's environmental policy has also evolved. The EU's policies on climate change and environmental sustainability create opportunities for technological development and sustainable entrepreneurship.

Considerations on pollution at European level

Human activity has caused profound changes to the environment, and not infrequently the resulting effects have proven to be irreversible. Man becomes the main responsible and the most dangerous actor on the scene of pollution to the environment. Today, nature is exploited and polluted more than at any time in history. Any source of pollution becomes a disturbing factor for the smooth running of phenomena encountered at the level of natural ecosystems. Even if each ecosystem has the capacity for self-regulation, this function may be outdated in the face of dosage and the force of polluting elements. Contemporary European society feels most strongly the need for anti-pollution policies, but especially for the immediate implementation of measures to stop various phenomena and actions harmful to the environment and human life. Although the problem is real and topical, various economic and social interests reduce the number of participants with an active role in greening. This raises the need to raise broad awareness of environmental issues and encourage civil initiatives, a task that is shared between various environmental non-governmental organisations and the European Union. It currently has a broad set of rules on environmental issues, including: air quality, chemical safety, climate action, nature protection, waste management and water quality. When it comes to climate, nature and chemicals, the EU has been a pioneer in environmental and health protection, inspiring others around the world to follow suit. However, the European Union's achievements are not just a thing of the past, but its attitude towards environmental protection is future-oriented. The preservation, protection and improvement of the quality of the environment, the protection of human health and the prudent and balanced utilisation of natural resources are objectives of the European Union's environmental policy. This policy is based on the precautionary principle, as well as on the principles that preventive action should be taken, that environmental damage should, as a priority, be rectified at source and, last but not least, that the polluter pays.

The European Union facing climate change: a window of opportunity for technological development and entrepreneurship

The fight against climate change is one of the significant challenges of the 21st century. The European Union's environmental policy has evolved as the perception of the problem has become more evident. This paper examines the environmental commitments made by the European Union on the global scene to verify its involvement and responsibility in environmental policy. A comprehensive analysis of the European Union's environmental policies compared to other countries has been carried out using a comparative methodological framework of these commitments. The results confirm the European Union's leadership in promoting and implementing policies to combat climate change and environmental sustainability, which therefore opens windows of opportunity for technological development and entrepreneurship. Future lines of research are proposed following the conclusions, considering the current economic and environmental situation in an environment of energy crisis and inflation.

The Role of International Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development in the Formation of Principles of International Environmental Law

This article studies the significance and role of the regulatory activity of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in the formation of the principles of such a comparatively new field of international law as international environmental law. It is shown that although at the time of its creation in 1960, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development was in no way an international organization of environmental character, but since the early 1970s, environmental issues have become an important area of international legal cooperation under the auspices of this organization. In 1971, an Environmental Protection Committee was formed within the OECD, now called the Environmental Policy Committee. During the 1970s, under the auspices of the OECD, the Recommendations on Guiding Principles concerning International Economic Aspects of Environmental Policies of 1972 and the Recommendation on the Implementation of the Polluter-Pays Principle of 1974 were adopted, enshrining the polluter-pays principle, which imposes on the polluter the costs of implementing pollution prevention and control measures to ensure that the environment is in good condition. The provisions of the OECD Recommendation on the Implementation of the Polluter-Pays Principle of 1974 were quickly implemented in the law of the European Communities and today the Lisbon version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union contains it in paragraph 2 of Article 191, together with such principles of the European Union's environmental policy as the precautionary principle, the principles that preventive action should be taken, that environmental damage should as a priority be rectified at source. The «polluter pays» principle is normatively enshrined only in The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development of 1992, The Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents of 1992, etc. Regulatory activity under the auspices of the OECD were also essential for the establishment and formation of such principles of international environmental law as the principle of preliminary environmental impact assessment, the principle of undiminished environmental protection of other states and areas beyond national jurisdiction, etc.

The EU’s Environmental Implementation Review: An Emerging Tool for Supervising Policy Delivery.

The aim of this short article is to provide a brief overview and reflections on theUnion’s relatively recent introduction of a biennial Environmental Implementation Review (EIR) cycle as part of its activities in monitoring EU Member States’ (MS) implementation of Union environmental law and policy. The EIR reflects an increased level of interest on the part of the Union in seeking to identify ways in which MS may improve upon their track records in implementing EU environmental legislative requirements at national level. Notably, it envisages a more intense form of engagement and dialogue on the part of the European Commission with MS authorities on identifying strengths and weaknesses in terms of individual MS performance as well as identifying common challenges at national level. The article assesses what key outcomes may have emerged thus far with the two EIR cycles that have been completed and how the EIR relates to the other principal supranational supervisory tool used by the EU for the purpose overseeing compliance with the EU environmental acquis, namely the use of law enforcement action via infringement proceedings. Ultimately, the article posits the view that the tools of EIR and law enforcement may be best seen to be in a complementary and mutually supportive relationship, each needing the other to be able to make a sufficient impression and impact on MS in terms of inducing them to address the subject of implementation with the degree of importance and urgency it deserves. Environmental Implementation Review, supranational supervision, implementation, infringements, compliance assurance, European Commission, Court of Justice of the European Union.

Multi-criteria analysis of transport infrastructure projects

Planning, construction and operation of transport infrastructure are associated with a multitude of adverse effects on the environment. The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) are important legal instruments of the European Union's environmental policy that allows for identifying, predicting, preventing, and mitigating and or compensating for these adverse effects. As part of the environmental impact assessment, variants of planned activities and investment projects are considered in order to select the option, which is the most favourable from the environmental point of view. The primary goal of this work is to examine the possibility of using multi-criteria methods in order to select the route variant most favourable for the environment. In the first stage, a review of global literature from 2010 to 2019 was conducted on the subject of MCDM/MCDA (Multi-Criteria Decision Making/Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis) methods used in transportation. Based on the review, it was proven that the most popular methods used to solve multi-criteria decision problems in the field of transport are respectively: AHP with modifications, TOPSIS, DEMATEL, as well as methods encompassed in the so-called European trend, i.e. PROMETHEE and ELECTRE. Four selected methods were used in the empirical part of this work. They were used to select the variant of the expressway section in north-eastern Poland and compare the result of the analysis with the choice made in the analyzed environmental impact report.

Voluntary instruments for ambitious objectives? The experience of the EU Covenant of Mayors

ABSTRACTOver the last decade, innovative governance architectures have been progressively promoted across European Union (EU) environmental and climate policies with the purpose of improving the effectiveness of intervention through better cross-sectoral policy integration and increased involvement of sub-state and non-governmental actors in the policy process. By combining the theoretical insights of polycentric governance and the concept of usage, the case of the Covenant of Mayors (CoM) is analysed to uncover the extent to which this voluntary programme has empowered local authorities within the EU strategy for sustainable energy by encouraging coordination and learning. This illustrates how a range of policy variables determined the dynamics of the programme’s implementation in Italy and the United Kingdom.

International influences in the revision of Finnish Forest Act

ABSTRACTMajor revisions of the Finnish Forest Act were carried out in 1994–1996 and 2010–2013. The need for revision emerged from societal changes and changes in the forest sector’s operational environment that related to the globalisation of markets and influences of international policies. This study analysed the influences of global and European Union forest and environmental policies on the revision of the Forest Act by combining advocacy coalition framework with the four pathways of influence framework introduced by Bernstein and Cashore. The results show that the three identified advocacy coalitions, namely Forestry administration, Private forestry and Environmental coalition remained rather stable over the two revision processes from 1990s to 2010s. The importance of the different pathways of international influence differed between the coalitions. Private forestry and Forestry administration coalitions, which represented forestry paradigm, stressed market-related arguments, whereas Environmental coalition representing environmental paradigm mainly referred to international legally binding rules and non-legally binding initiatives. The argumentation of the actors indicated that international rules and international norms and discourse were regarded to be as equally important.

Demand Management Methods for the Environment Oriented Hybrid Traffic System to be Implemented in Istanbul

Urban transportation problem -a major issue for all metropolises- must be mitigated using “sustainable” solutions, and to this end, new methods must be developed via “Transportation Demand Management Systems”. In this context, «effective management of transport demands and efficient use of the existing transport infrastructure » has been established as a strategy that envisages a change of understanding and approach to sort out Istanbul's transport problem.The rapidly growing rate of private car ownership is one of the main reasons for the transportation problems in our city. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute, around 25% of all cars in the country are registered in Istanbul. In addition, data from Energy Market Regulatory Authority of Turkey (EPDK) suggest that around 18% of total fuel consumption in our country takes place in Istanbul. Such high prevalence of vehicle ownership has major social and economic implications while elevated levels of fuel consumption and the associated emissions make dire impacts on the environment. The foregoing study examines the practices that could be introduced to remedy the problem of intensive traffic which has enormous implications not only worldwide but particularly in Istanbul -our largest metropolis- by using urban solutions, congestion charges applied in most European countries as a means for effective management of traffic, and the practice of low emission zones which prioritizes environmental consciousness. In this context, it presents a number of comparative analyses on the practices in various countries. After reviewing these analyses in terms of the specific needs of Istanbul, the study provides a recommendation for a hybrid model involving “Low Emission Based Congestion Charging” which brings together congestion charges and environmental restrictions of the traffic demand management system planned to be implemented.What's more, traffic congestion in Istanbul is most severely experienced on the bridges which function as intercontinental connections. The main reason for that is –once again- the high rate of private vehicle ownership and inefficient use of vehicles. As a solution to this problem, introduction of a “high occupancy vehicle” practice is recommended to ensure transportation of more people rather than more vehicles in the traffic. In this framework, the study presents a recommendation for new tariff system for traffic density management based on the results of a density analysis over bridge crossings, and it provides and innovative and hybrid method for demand management with “high occupancy vehicles practice to be implemented along with alternative fares charged for bridge crossings”. Introduction of these practices would ensure effective traffic management, and provide for a reduction on emission levels by supporting the elevation of occupancy rates of private vehicles, which is expected to eventually decrease the number of vehicles in traffic. Furthermore, it is anticipated that public transport would be encouraged by ensuring public transport prioritization in the fares; and enhanced punctuality of public transport vehicles would make a major contribution for sustainable transport.The study also explores the political and legal implications associated with the implementation of the recommended practices.Last but not least, introduction of such practices in cities must be promoted through “Basic Principles of the European Union's Environmental Policy” and “Air Quality Framework Directive”. All these practices would provide for an environmentalist outlook on behalf of our country, and as the prerequisites of a livable city, these practices would facilitate the harmonization of our country with the relevant standards as part of the process of joining the European Union.

EU's Procedure for Concluding International Environmental Treaties

Abstract: An essential component of the European Union's environmental policy is its participation in international legally binding instruments. Owing to the shared nature of its competence, the Union is most commonly a party to multilateral treaties alongside the Member States. This arrangement, however, is not without its inherent difficulties. The article examines the key stages of the procedure, as laid down in the Treaties and demonstrated by practice: the Commission recommendation to open negotiations, the Council authorization, the negotiating process, and the signing and conclusion of the agreement. The study reveals that the procedure is fraught with tension on two levels. First, each of the EU institutions involved strives to maximize its influence on the final outcome. The European Parliament warrants special attention due to its newly expanded powers. Second, the Member States are unwilling to take the back seat, especially in the sphere of climate talks. As a result, the Union still has recourse to pre-Lisbon practices and is yet to resolve its internal coordination issues in order to achieve its ambition of global leadership in environmental matters.

Application of high doses of organic amendments in a Mediterranean agricultural soil: An approach for assessing the risk of groundwater contamination

Groundwater contamination by nitrate is one of the several environmental problems that may be caused by the application of organic amendments to agricultural soils, and is a key issue in the European Union's environmental policy. The use of predictive tools such as flow and transport models for soluble forms could be helpful for preventing the risk of contamination after the application of organic amendments. We investigated the dynamics of leachable inorganic nitrogen forms (NH4+-N and NO3−-N) produced by a single high-dose application of three different organic amendments (a municipal solid waste compost (MSWC), and aerobically (AES) and anaerobically (ANS) digested sewage sludge) in an agricultural soil over a two-year period and how solutes migrate through the vadose zone under a Mediterranean climate. Although the mineralization process was determined by the type of amendment, seasonal variations led to the release and transformation of leachable inorganic nitrogen forms. Sewage sludge (AES and ANS) treatments provide a higher proportion of soluble nitrogen forms than MSWC treatment, which produces a more stable organic matter. Under our field conditions, pollutants can accumulate in the vadose zone, constituting a time bomb which may lead to aquifer contamination further down the line. Hence an increase in water input would accelerate the migration of pollutants and increase the risk of groundwater contamination.

Cooperation between business and non-governmental organizations to promote sustainable development

Abstract International environmental policy has long recognized the role of both the civil and business sectors in the implementation of sustainable development, as reflected by the Earth Summit in 1992 (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro) and the resulting publication of the Agenda 21 action plan. The importance of civil organizations is also stressed by the European Union's environmental policy, as indicated by, for instance, the Sixth Environmental Action Plan, which was accepted in 2002. Nevertheless, the common understanding of how non-governmental organizations may influence corporate environmental behavior, especially that of small and medium-sized enterprises, remains limited. This paper presents the results of research examining the relationships between non-governmental organizations and businesses based on the stakeholder theory of the firm. The results show that small and medium-sized enterprises rank the importance of different stakeholders similarly to larger businesses and often engage in cooperation with non-governmental organizations. It is also demonstrated that cooperative strategies constitute an important and effective component of non-governmental organizations' behavior toward businesses and that the indirect influence of the civil sector is as important as its direct impact. The results contribute to the development of the stakeholder theory of the firm and help inform practical decision makers about how to improve relationships between business and non-governmental organizations.

Southern European Environmental Movements in Comparative Perspective

Differential national responses to the European Union's environmental policy have led to the idea that two worlds of environmentalism exist in Europe. In its harsh version, Europe is divided into North and South, with the South suffering from a Mediterranean syndrome. Southern European countries are viewed as environmental laggards, a perception attributed to, among other factors, a weak civil society intertwined with political systems characterized by patronage, clientelism, and lack of respect for public authority. This article provides new evidence documenting that civil society in Greece, Italy, and Spain appears to be much stronger on environmental matters than anticipated by the proponents of the above view. It also offers an alternative theorization of environmental politics, emphasizing aspects of organizational structures and political processes.

A multicriterion classification approach for assessing the impact of environmental policies on the competitiveness of firms

AbstractThe key objective of the European Union's environmental policy is to successfully combine environmental protection with sustainable economic growth in the long term. Nowadays, it is increasingly recognized that environmental policies, besides increasing production cost, may at the same time give incentives to firms for undertaking innovative actions and/or developing and exploiting differentiation opportunities. Both differentiation capacity and cost increase are strongly dependent on a multiplicity of internal and external factors, such as energy intensity, type of technology used, characteristics of the competitive environment etc. The present paper presents a multicriterion approach for classifying firms into discrete categories of possible impact, according to their sensitivity to cost increases and their differentiation potential. The resulting environment–competitiveness matrix can be exploited for establishing sustainability strategies and designing effective policies in the industrial sector. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

On the Regulatory Choice of Refunding Rules to Reconcile the ‘Polluter Pays Principle’ and Pigovian Taxation: An Application

The ‘polluter pays principle’ (PPP) is one of the four principles that govern the European Union's environmental policy. Although PPP justifies Pigovian taxation as a legitimate policy means to internalise externalities, there is a potential contradiction between PPP and Pigovian taxation depending upon the definition of pollution control costs. We summarise this debate and focus on the lump-sum refunding of tax revenues in order to reconcile the PPP and Pigovian taxation. We propose equity as the guiding principle to select among various refunding schemes, and empirically examine a specific application.

Environmental Sustainability and Tourism in European Policy-making

The paper analyses decision-making in the field of European environmental regulation and examines the implications for tourist policy. It is argued that European Union (EU) environmental policy is influenced by three factors: (1) the EU bureaucracy is interested in expanding its influence and power vis-à-vis national bureaucracies and polities; (2) Northern European countries have selectively recruited regulators with environmentally sympathetic ideologies; and (3) a pro-environmental attitude contributes to the societal legitimation of business. These considerations give a unique character to environmental policy-making, which over time has tended to spill over to thematically connected areas, including to tourism policy.

Analyzing mechanisms regulating diversity in rangelands through comparative studies: a case in the southwestern Pyrennees

The preservation of the floristic diversity of natural ecosystems and the maintenance of extensive livestock grazing are two of the major priorities of European Union agricultural and environmental policies. Temperate natural and seminatural grasslands are among the most threatened ecosystems in Europe. In order to establish the most appropriate management practices that prevent degradation and maintain the richness of these ecosystems, detailed analyses of the mechanisms that regulate biodiversity of the communities are particularly necessary. In this study we make a comparative analysis of the species richness and the diversity of the main rangeland communities in a widespread, heterogeneous area located in the Western Spanish Pyrennees. The nature and the contribution of perennials and annuals to the diversity patterns encountered are studied and related to the mechanisms suggested to regulate diversity in each case. Higher diversity values were reported in more environmentally stressed, xeric and moist communities. High spatial and temporal heterogeneity and low rates of competitive displacement related to the scarcity of basic resources are among the factors suggested to regulate the diversity of these communities. In areas where environmental factors are more favorable, such as perennial-dominated mesic rangelands, the enhancement of the diversity seemed more dependent on biotic disturbances, such as herbivory, that decreased the cover of perennials and favored the recruitment of short-lived species. Dispersal processes related to traditional nomadic grazing allow a flow of species from one rangeland to another but also enhance the establishment of species coming from lowland habitats. Most of the annuals enhancing the diversity of the mesic community were ruderals. The consideration of ruderals as exotics or as species belonging to this grazing ecosystem poses an interesting, controversial topic related to the ecological quality of the diversity estimated for these communities.

Task Expansion: A Theoretical Overview

In this paper the author investigates how well five theoretical approaches explain the task expansion witnessed in European Union (EU) environmental policy since the signing of the Treaty of Rome in 1957. He explores the arguments of the five perspectives and examines their utility in illuminating four chronological periods in EU environmental policy history, The author then presents an overview of key issues and processes that shed light on the merits of the analytical approaches.

European Environmental Policy by Stealth: The Dysfunctionality of Functionalism?

There are four paradoxes to be explained in respect of European Union (EU) environmental policy: how it is that a liberal policy regime makes relatively little use of economic instruments; how it is that the formally independent Commission is heavily dependent upon member states in the development of its policy proposals; how it is that a ‘weak’ European Parliament has had greater influence on environmental standard setting than have most national parliaments; and how it is that a supranational political authority regulates subnational environmental public goods so extensively. The author argues that these four features of EU environmental policy are related to one another as the effects of a common cause: the historical importance of the Monnet method of European integration. How far this method should be transcended is also discussed.

Sustainability, subsidiarity and deregulation: New directions in EU environmental policy

The adoption of sustainable development as a guiding principle in European Union (EU) environmental policy has coincided with a growing influence of the subsidiarity principle and the deregulation doctrine. Both show areas of overlap and compatibility with the basic tenets of sustainable development and could in principle contribute to a strengthening of environmental protection in the EU. However, their influence to date has mainly been negative. One problem is that while ideas such as ‘action as close to the citizen as possible’ and the application of a market‐based approach sound attractive, especially considering the shortcomings of EU environmental policy to date, political and economic realities mean that subsidiarity and deregulation are two‐edged swords, as the example of the EU's response to the climate change issue demonstrates. The subsidiarity principle is being exploited in the interest of national sovereignty, and the change to a more market‐based approach for environmental instruments has mainly focused on self‐regulatory tools with dubious effectiveness. In general, EU environmental policy has lost momentum in recent years and there has been little progress with the integration of environmental concerns into other policy areas, beyond marginal adjustments.