6th Annual Conference, Tuusula, 17–19 September 1998
of the European Environmental Advisory Councils EEACPolicy Integration and Implementation
Hosted by The Finnish Council for Environment and Natural Resources
Background Paper on Policy Integration and Implementation
by Sauli Rouhinen and Juha Kuisma
Concepts and policy tools, like sustainable development, environmental space, strategic environmental impact assessment, eco-efficiency etc. reflect the fact that things and processes are interrelated in the real world. The challenge and need for integration of environment into other policies at all levels has been recognized for some time. Integration of environment into some key policy areas is already a common practice in most European countries. But still, both the horizontal and vertical policy integration seeks for new non-mechanistic and non-bureaucratic procedures and practices.
There are always certain key policy areas, where regional (especially EU), national and local policies are under major development. In these areas there is a need to identify the principles which will ensure that environmental concerns are fully integrated into the developing policies and approaches in the implementation. The importance of integrating environmental concerns into other policies stems from the fact that the solutions of many problems can only be achieved by shifts in the policies and practices of the sectors concerned. Obviously, there is a need for strengthening the institutional mechanisms to encourage better integration of environmental concerns in sectoral policies, particularly those concerning agriculture, forestry, traffic and tourism.
But the real challenge facing the European Community and European governments is to find a way of developing action which meets all of its objectives in an integrated way. This is the challenge of sustainable development, a concept too often perceived as purely environmental, but which brings together concerns for social and economic development alongside protection of the environment. The current pattern of economic development too often entails conflicts between development and environment; this cannot be permitted to continue. Policies that result in environmental degradation and depletion of natural resources are unlikely to be sound basis for sustainable economic development.
Policy Integration at the EU Level
In its communication to the European Council (Partnership for Integration. A Strategy for Integrating Environment into EU Policies. Cardiff, June 1998) the Commission of the European Communities invited the European Council to promote a Partnership between the Council, Parliament and Commission for integration of the environment into other community policies based on the following guidelines:
Guidelines for a Partnership for Integration of Environment into Other Policies
- The Commission should ensure that all key policy initiatives integrate concern for environment. A detailed environmental assessment and a description, how the results of such assessment have been incorporated, should accompany all key proposals where an important environmental effect is expected. The Commission should refine its methodology for such assessments.
- The Commission should undertake reviews of existing policies and on that basis prepare strategies for action in key sectors. These should include the identification of policy and performance indicators and, where justified, indicative targets as a basis for monitoring.
- The Council should prepare a report for the Vienna European Council on previous experience and best practices in the Member States if integrating environmental requirements into other policies as a basis for the development of improved Community procedures.
- The Council should in key policy areas identify a set of priority actions for the incorporation of environmental requirements and foresee effective mechanisms for monitoring their implementation.
- The Council should undertake to ensure that environmental requirements are explicitly reflected in its decisions on new proposals. It should, moreover, commit itself to review its current organizational arrangements to ensure effective implementation of this integration strategy.
- The European Council should periodically review environmental integration into key sectoral policies.
- The Parliament should review its current organizational arrangements to ensure that in its decision making it takes account of the need to integrate environment into other policies.
- The Parliament should identify priorities for integrating environment into key policy areas.
- The Council, Parliament and Commission should jointly discuss the development of mechanisms for implementing these guidelines and for monitoring their implementation.
Fully integrating environment into other policy areas is a long term challenge requiring a step by step approach which builds on experience. This will eventually require consideration of its implications in all policy areas. The Commission considers that priority should be given to two important and urgent policy packages – Agenda 2000 and the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol where decisions have to be taken in the near future.
Policy Integration at the Country Level
The whole society is responsible for the substance and implementation of sustainability. This is also reflected in the new EU guidelines. National governments, parliaments or parliamentary organs are the country level actors at policy integration. The items of interest are those practices and representative bodies in which ideas and matters are to be prepared, for instance international panels of scientists, EU-programs, national environmental advisory councils, national councils for sustainable development, surveys of natural resources as budgetary annexes, all kinds of economical methods (institution design, making the markets work, negotiation systems) plus local politics and even newspapers and journals.
Yet, coming to the real world conditions, we can see many actors, producing several kinds of diverging and competing policies. Now the questions do no more cover only substance, but as well the struggle about mandatory power between different interests and organizations. In that case questions will concern the experience from coordination and integration of competing policies. The question arises, is there any role for environmental advisory bodies or a role for environmental NGO's in this entity; as hosts for discussions, for instance?
In the EU each and every DG has its own policy. Precisely in the same way in each country ministries of environment, of agriculture, of industry and of finance have their own policies. And, of course, industrial organizations, various interest groups and the environmental NGO's also have their own policies. Of importance are especially possible "round table" innovations and transparency emphasizing practices.
One paradoxical consequence is, that the more environmental aspects are to be integrated into the prevailing state division of competence, the more the role of the ministries of the environment is changing. Other actors have the competence in the field of environmental protection as well. It remains to be seen, whether the ministries of the environment will in the future turn out to be less "militant", but more with authority like the ministries of finance, focusing to follow the effectiveness of different kinds of policy instruments – yet observing the state of the environment and natural resources.
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