Suchergebnisse

A LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS OF THE TIME TAKEN TO ADOPT ENVIRONMENTAL PROPOSALS IN THE PERIOD 1967-97 IN THE EU REVEALS THAT THE POLICY PROCESS HAS BECOME SLIGHTLY FASTER THAN IN THE PAST. THIS IS DESPITE AN ENORMOUS GROWTH IN THE SCOPE AND AMBITIOUSNESS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL ACQUIS. THE CONCLUSION IS THAT ACTORS HAVE BECOME STEADILY MORE EFFECTIVE AT ACHIEVING CONSENSUS.

This paper reviews and examines the potential of systematic and formalised interdisciplinary research concepts and methods for sustainable water and wetland policy and management, as advocated by the recently adopted EuropeanWater Framework Directive. Such potential lies in the integration of insights, methods and data drawn from natural and social sciences. The concept of integrated assessment is first defined in a preliminary way and is then reviewed from a range of methodological and policy analysis viewpoints. This overview addresses issues such as (1) the need for vertical and horizontal integration when linking information demand and supply; (2) procedural steps in integrated assessment; (3) useful frameworks to structure and handle complexity and uncertainty; (4) the distinction and correlation between ecological and social values of aquatic ecosystems; (5) available evaluation methods and techniques. Socially and politically sensitised forms of integrated assessment are an important step towards: (a) increasing awareness about the complex nature of the interdependency between our physical and socially constructed environment; (b) greater recognition that uncertainties and risk of irreversible change require careful consideration (precautionary principles) in decision-making, which may be facilitated by prior agreement on a sensible, preferably social learning based, evaluation process; (c) recognition that costs and benefits in complex decision-making circumstances are dynamic, as knowledge and experiences progress; (d) increasing public support for and trust in decisions because of greater transparency in the ex ante evaluation phase.

International chemicals legislation aims at adequately controlling persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and substances of very high concern (SVHCs), such as persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) and very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB) substances, with a view to progressively substitute these substances with suitable less-hazardous alternatives. Using cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) to assess the (dis)proportionality of measures to control such substances (collectively called "PBT" in the present paper) requires benchmarks. The present paper provides building blocks for possible benchmarks by looking at the cost-effectiveness estimates for regulatory measures that have been applied or considered for various PBT substances. These cost-effectiveness estimates vary widely, and the main factors possibly explaining this variation are discussed. The available cost estimates currently do not allow deriving a value for society's willingness to pay to reduce PBT presence, use, and emissions because decisions referring explicitly to these estimates are scarce. Roughly speaking, the available evidence suggests that measures costing less than €1000 per kilogram PBT use or emission reduction will usually not be rejected for reasons of disproportionate costs, whereas for measures with costs above €50 000 per kilogram PBT such a rejection is likely. More research is needed to strengthen the evidence base and further elaborate a systematic approach toward proportionality benchmarking. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2017;13:1100–1112.

This paper aims to contribute to the debate on the feasibility of the provision of micro flood insurance as an effective tool for spreading disaster risks in developing countries and examines the role of the institutional-organisational framework in assisting the design and implementation of such a micro flood insurance market. In Bangladesh, a private insurance market for property damage and livelihood risk due to natural disasters does not exist. Private insurance companies are reluctant to embark on an evidently unprofitable venture. Testing two different institutional-organisational models, this research reveals that the administration costs of micro-insurance play an important part in determining the long-term viability of micro flood insurance schemes. A government-facilitated process to overcome the differences observed in this study between the nonprofit micro-credit providers and profit-oriented private insurance companies is needed, building on the particular competence each party brings to the development of a viable micro flood insurance market through a public-private partnership. © 2011 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2011.