Policies
National Level
All accession countries have adopted (generally within the last two-three years) or are in the process of drafting (Bulgaria, Czech Republic) environmental strategy plans. Some have also passed corresponding National Environmental Action Plans (Estonia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia). All concentrate on country-specific environmental problem areas (typically air, water, waste, landscape and biodiversity, awareness, remedation, and use of clean technologies) and frequently fix corresponding short, mid and long-term timelines (Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovenia) or annual workplans (Hungary), with clear targets, for example in terms of emission reduction (Romania). Priorities tend to aim toward implementing the policy of sustainable development and are defined in line with EU accession requirements, for instance, in approximating EU environmental standards and frameworks.Sector specific strategies are also commonplace, and of those reported include; water (Bulgaria); energy (Lithuania, Latvia and Bulgaria); and waste (Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria). Some strategies are accompanied by awareness raising campaigns, for instance, Bulgaria’s waste strategy is accompanied by a National Campaign for a Clean Environment, and is implemented in cooperation with NGOs, schools and municipalities, and accompanied by demonstration projects.
Besides responding to domestic problems, all of the above strategies
are intended to meet the requirements of international conventions and
implement EU principles, for example, within Bulgaria’s Strategy for Integrated
Water Management, river basin management plans are to be developed and
legislation consistent with EU standards is called for. Within Lithuania’s
National Waste Management Strategy, the EU’s Waste, Hazardous Waste, Package
and Packaging Waste, and Landfill Directives have already been taken into
account within a corresponding Waste Law.
Legislation
Since the political changes of the last decade, all CEE countries have been involved in comprehensively revising existing and implementing new legislation. Besides constitutional acts, which touch upon environmental issues, environmental framework acts have been implemented in all countries and in Poland amended. These acts generally look to include new enforcement requirements and economic instruments (charges, fees and fines) for environmental protection, and have established repositories for these revenues in the form of environmental protection funds (in Hungary, for example) In 1995, Estonia introduced the region’s first Act on Sustainable Development.Sector specific laws are also typical within the accession countries in traditional areas (air, water, waste, energy etc.) as well as emerging new areas such as access to information (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Latvia, Slovakia), environmental auditing, environmental impact assessment and so on. Corresponding to these laws, a host of implementing regulations (often incorporating stricter environmental standards) have also been passed or are in the process of being drafted or amended.
In all countries, this new legislation has been passed in accordance
with EU Directives, either partially or fully. Some countries have established
programmes that set a timeline for the implementation and harmonisation
of EU legislation. In Estonia for example, a workplan, timeline and
priority actions to 2005 have been established. In Bulgaria, the current
Government Program will run from 1997-2001. Among the obstacles to implementing
EU standards, the capacity of industry and the economy to comply was commonly
cited
State and Internationally Funded Projects
Domestically, projects are often funded through state environment funds, commonly found in all CEE countries (except Romania). In the Czech Republic, the State Environment Fund, established in 1991, serves as the main financial instrument for environmental investments (such as air quality projects - conversion to gas, wastewater treatment plants, and remedying flood damage). In Hungary, the equivalent "fund" has supported sewage treatment plants and pipe networks, air quality projects and construction of waste dumps that meet EU standards. Its primary sources are pollution fees and fines. Projects and activities tend to be funded consistent with policy aims and objectives and are frequently directed toward local governments (who maintain responsibility for many of these areas), and on a competitive basis.Other countries such as Latvia, note alternate domestic funding mechanisms including investment programmes, state subsidies, loans and compensation for environmental damages. Private sources are also typical, while foreign sources include grants, the latter amounting to 39 percent of environmental investments in Latvia. The EU’s PHARE Programme is a typical funding source of projects in all accession countries, including pollution studies, air quality monitoring, groundwater assessments and so on in the Slovak Republic. It has also contributed funds to transboundary projects including the Environmental Programme for the Danube and the Black Triangle border regions of Poland and Czech Republic.
Some countries note the costs of meeting policy objectives and EU accession
requirements. In Romania, for example, in order to meet its short-term
policy objectives to the year 2000, costs of approximately USD 400-750
million will be incurred, while the amount available is only around USD
250-400 million. In 1997, the country spent 0.8 percent of its GDP
on environmental investments, compared with an average of 3-5 percent in
developed countries. Other more developed countries, such as Hungary
note that 1.1 percent of its GDP was spent on environmental protection
in 1998, and even this was the lowest among the Visegrad countries (which
also includes Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia). In 1996, Latvia contributed
just 0.5 percent of the country’s GDP toward environmental expenditures.
Regional and Local Policies
Regional and local environmental policies at the self-governing level tend to be implemented rather inconsistently across CEE countries, in part owing to the unclear definition of responsibility between national and local government. While responsibilities are often awarded under legislation, the real roles tend to be limited to the management of public utility services (including wastewater treatment and collection, waste management, contaminated sites clean-up, drinking water provision) and to softening the impact of the most significant environmental problems (particularly in Estonia, Slovenia, Hungary, Latvia, Romania). In some cases, these countries are further constrained in their responsibility because utility companies are still state-owned (in Slovakia, for example). In most countries, the state, and environment ministry, through regional representatives continues to maintain the real responsibility for environmental protection.In some countries, (Hungary, Poland) municipal and county governments are required by law to adopt their own environmental protection plans. In others, there are limited rules (Slovakia) or no rules (Czech Republic, Latvia, Lithuania). Where applied, these plans must be drafted consistent with national policy.
In countries like Bulgaria, and Slovakia, legislation concerning self-governments and some sector specific acts award certain additional powers, for example in adopting stricter standards or regulations relevant to local issues, (for example, contaminated sites), and award responsibility in terms of waste management strategies (in Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia). In Lithuania, specific responsibility is assigned for monitoring air quality. In Slovenia, municipalities have the right to establish nature reserves. Some municipalities (in Bulgaria, Slovenia and Slovakia) are also expected to apply environmental impact assessment procedures, which requires the public announcement of the environmental impact of potentially damaging investments within their territories.
In Hungary, a variety of waste management projects have been implemented with varying degrees of success, (largely owing to the fact that these activities are contracted out to private enterprises). A similar obstacle was experienced in Slovenia. Elsewhere, independent local environment policies have been established (in Latvia, Poland, Slovenia), and some are even pursuing ISO 14001 certification (in Slovenia). Foreign assistance organisations like the U.S. government or the United Nations Environment Programme have also sponsored local environmental action plans or Agenda 21, in the Czech Republic, and Estonia, for example. In Kolin, Czech Republic, the former helped give rise to a waste strategy in cooperation with the public which resulted in a municipal decree related to disposal, and a waste management system which incorporated separation, recycling and disposal. The European Sustainable City Award has also drawn limited interest from central and east European countries.
Cooperative municipal projects have begun to be implemented, in some countries. In Hungary for example, 19 out of 22 municipal governments cooperated in the declaration of a local environmental reserve.
In only Bulgaria does it seem full responsibility has been passed onto
municipal governments. They have the power to define fees and fines, and
to enforce sanctions for environmental pollution, although the ability
to enforce is limited. In other countries, the right to enforce and collect
fees remains firmly with regional environmental inspectorates (in Hungary,
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania for example).
Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe
