|
 Prepared
by the REC, a CEE Sub-Programme Secretariat of the EAP Task Force
In
this issue:
- The EAP Task Force CEE Sub-programme
- REC documents for Kiev
- Sofia Initiative on Environmental Impact Assessment
- NGO support in the EAP
- Environmental finance in CEE– highlights from the
second half of 1990s
The
EAP Task Force CEE Sub-programme
At the Aarhus ministerial conference in 1998,
the REC was chosen to act as secretariat of the Central and Eastern European
(CEE) sub-programme of the Environmental Action Programme Task Force.
The REC brought more than a decade's worth of knowledge and experience
accumulated in serving and assisting the CEE region, along with the coordinated
efforts of its five programmes.
During the period between the Aarhus and Kiev conferences, the main driving
force for achieving higher environmental standards was the EU-accession
process. The CEE sub-programme supported this process, as well as activities
by a large number of donor countries from Western Europe, the US, Japan
and CEE that were aimed at improving the environment in various parts
of the CEE region.
Task Force activities run in two parallel sub-programmes: one administered
by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development for the
region of Eastern Europe, the Caucuses and Central Asia (EECCA) and the
other for CEE, which is administered by the REC. The work of the EAP Task
Force is carried out through consultations, workshops, conferences, roundtables
and other forums. Between the Environment for Europe (EfE) conferences
in 1993 and 2003, almost 70 workshops were organised under the EAP Task
Force umbrella, involving more than 3,000 environmental specialists and
executives in different countries of the region.
During this time, the EAP implemented two work programmes: one at the
initial stage of the 1998-2000 period, and the second in 2001-2003. The
programme activities have been summarised and are presented in a report
developed for the Kiev Conference in May 2003 (see reference list below).
A full listing of programme activities is available by request from the
Secretariat.
REC
documents for Kiev
A number of documents have being prepared for
the Kiev ministerial conference. Some of them will be presented to the
ministers for endorsement; others will be background documents on the
issues to be discussed at this milestone EfE event. The REC has prepared
five Category II documents:
Creating Congruence summarises activities that
have been conducted by the EAP Task Force CEE Sub-programme Secretariat
during the interim period between the Aarhus and Kiev conferences, focusing
on progress and particular achievements in order to provide an indication
of the way forward for the entire EAP.
Environmental Financing in Central and Eastern Europe presents
trends and levels of environmental financing from domestic and international
sources in CEE and SEE countries from 1996 to 2001. The report also discusses
future options for environmental financing in both regions, and suggests
actions that might be taken to improve the effectiveness levels of environmental
financing. An important finding is that the environmental funds already
established have played an important role in financing environmental investments
in many countries of the region.
The draft Governance Principles were formulated with the intention
of having them applied by foreign direct investors who invest in potentially
environmentally hazardous industrial activities in transition countries
throughout Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and Central
Asia. These principles have been designed to complement other voluntary
international codes of conduct, compacts, and other voluntary instruments.
The Aarhus Policy Statement on EME has resulted in a notable increase
in support for environmental management. Progress in the Implementation
of the Aarhus Policy Statement on Environmental Management in Enterprises:
Central and South-Eastern Europe summarises the progress achieved
since the Aarhus EfE conference, highlights problems, suggests solutions
and gives conclusions on issues in those areas which have been unsuccessful
during the process. For instance, larger environmental management investments
(with the exception of the energy-efficiency field) are still difficult
to realise because financing is not readily available. The establishment
of numerous regional cleaner production, pollution prevention and environmental
management centres have had a positive impact on EME.
The Regional Environmental Reconstruction Programme for South Eastern
Europe (REReP): Model for a Successful Assistance Mechanism report
has been prepared by the REReP Task Force Secretariat, which coordinates
programme implementation and ensures that projects under implementation
correspond to country needs and priorities. This report describes the
REReP initiative, presents it as a successful model for regional cooperation,
summarises lessons learned from the process and offers a good overview
of existing regional needs.
For more information about REReP, please contact the REReP Secretariat
at rerep@rec.org.
Sofia
Initiative on Environmental Impact Assessment
After the Aarhus ministerial conference, strategic
environmental assessment (SEA) systems were established by an increasing
number of countries in the CEE region. The most recent driving forces
of the process are the European Directive on SEA and the SEA Protocol
to the UNECE Espoo Convention prepared for adoption at the Kiev conference.
The SEA project implemented by the REC began in 1999 as an initial attempt
to define priorities for the development of national SEA systems. The
REC carried out pilot SEAs of various documents related to the future
use of EU Structural Funds in the Czech Republic, Poland, Estonia, Hungary
and Slovenia. In addition, extensive support was provided to the Czech
Republic to develop pilot SEA projects and SEA application guidelines
for regional development planning. The REC led a national expert group
to design the official Methodology of the Czech Ministry of Environment
for SEA of Regional Development Strategies.
A great number of national workshops and forums in the aforementioned
countries have been organised under the project umbrella. The SEA Training
Manual for South East Europe was developed, which is the result of
experience collected within the Sofia Initiative on Environmental Assessment.
A website is under development that will contain useful materials, in
addition to references accumulated by the REC during the project.
Practitioners in CEE agree that SEA needs to be carried out in tandem
with the planning process, thereby providing input during all stages of
strategic planning. As worldwide practice shows, SEA is an increasingly
important instrument for achieving sustainable development. Still, there
should be further integration of SEA into planning, programming and policy
making aimed at achieving integrated planning in CEE countries. Close
cooperation has recently been established with South Africa, Russia and
Japan, and the REC actively supports and contributes to networking and
the exchange of SEA-related experience.
Submitted by Jiri Dusik, JDusik@rec.org
Environmental Assessment team leader,
the REC
NGO
support in the EAP
NGO support is one of the first
new elements of the EAP Task Force to have been added upon a country's
request during the second work programme, following the Almaty EAP Task
Force meeting in 2000. The REC, with the support of the DANCEE programme
of the Danish Ministry of Environment, developed a special support scheme
for CEE and EECCA NGOs. It was designed to help environmental NGOs to
develop their abilities to carry out projects with environmental impact.
The scheme has two stages: a pilot and a follow-up, which is currently
under implementation. The scheme is based on three main programme groups:
nation-based granting programmes in 16 countries, a Regional Grant Programme
to support international efforts, and a programme to facilitate partnerships
between Danish NGOs and those in CEE and EECCA.
The need for funds to carry out projects and activities has been clearly
shown through NGO needs analyses. In addition, the need to support NGO
cooperation has been highlighted by the NGOs themselves. In the national
grants programme, almost 1,000 projects have been submitted and evaluated,
of which 257 have been awarded. The average amount awarded per project
in all countries was nearly EUR 2,000. Nearly a quarter of 4,000 environmental
NGOs in the CEE region participated in the competition, which highlights
the level of interest that the NGO community has in promoting public participation
in biodiversity-related issues.
In the regional grants programme, eight cooperative proposals (of 80 submitted)
were awarded a total amount EUR 182,436, and 20 concept papers were selected
during the first evaluation cycle. These grants involve 20 CEE and EECCA
and five Danish NGOs. The projects focus on such issues as GMOs, public
participation, sustainable energy use, organic farming and waste reduction.
In a dual programme between Danish and CEE/EECCA groups, five projects
with Danish-East partnerships have been awarded through the REC; and the
Danish Outdoor Council Partnership Service has awarded 44 additional grants
to Danish-East NGO partnerships. Partnerships have also been established
between UK and Austrian NGOs using the same resources.
An additional goal of the project was to update the CEE NGO Directory,
which is available online at the REC website: <http://www.rec.org/REC/Databases/NGODirectory/NGOFind.html>.
A follow-up project is on-going. It offered EUR 500,000 in national granting
programmes, though this time the focus of the grants was on “brown”
issues. The regional programme has awarded EUR 215,000 to six NGO collaborative
projects. Full details will be available by the end of 2003.
Submitted by Robert Atkinson, RAtkinson@rec.org
NGO Support and Capacity Building programme head, the REC
Environmental
finance in CEE– highlights from the second half of 1990s
Environmental improvements not
only require financial resources, but also a methodology and mechanism
for their distribution. In transition economies, the approaches and mechanisms
vary from country to country. Several questions have arisen: What has
changed in the trends in environmental expenditures in the candidate countries
since 1996? How are SEE countries recovering from the break-up of the
former Yugoslavia? What needs to be done to improve the effectiveness
of environmental financing during this unique time in history, with candidate
countries closer than ever to becoming members of the European Union,
and SEE countries facing the future prospect of becoming members under
the Stabilisation and Association process?
The report on Environmental Financing in CEE, prepared by the REC
for the Kiev conference, answers these questions. During the second half
of 1990s, candidate countries focused on further harmonisation of the
acquis communautaire and its implementation — also in relation
to the environmental field.
The estimated cost of implementing key investment-heavy directives is
within the range of EUR 80—110 billion. At the same time, the expenditures
of candidate countries vary significantly: the largest environmental markets
are Poland and the Czech Republic, while the smallest are Estonia and
Latvia. Many candidate countries involved the private sector in public-infrastructure
environmental projects through public/private partnerships. The overall
increase in levels of international assistance provided to the candidate
countries is due mainly to the launch of the Instrument
for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA) by the European Commission,
together with co-financing from international financing institutions such
as the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development.
SEE countries, on the other hand, have depended almost exclusively on
international assistance for funding environmental investment projects.
Several actions have been undertaken to strengthen financing from domestic
sources, as seen in Croatia and FYR Macedonia. The successful implementation
of REReP has assisted the donor community in its efforts to support environmental
reconstruction activities.
There remains much work to be done in both sub-regions: beginning with
further development of clearly defined financial strategies, moving through
the creation of favourable conditions for private-sector involvement,
and delivering training to all administrative levels of investment planning.
Submitted by Joanna Fiedler, JFiedler@rec.org
For more information: Environmental Financing in CEE, REC 2003
The
Newsletter of the EAP Task Force Secretariat for the CEE Sub-Programme
is funded by the Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning and the Environment
of the Netherlands
Prepared by: Oreola Ivanova, Head of Environmental Policy Department
of the REC, EAP Task Force Secretariat for CEE sub-programme, OIvanova@rec.org
and Ausra Jurkeviciute, Project Manager of the Environmental Policy
Department, Ausra@rec.org
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