PART I: International Dimentions
Chapter 8: Conclusion
The environment does not recognize borders. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the animals that move freely, all tie people together, wherever they live. But with shared resources comes a collective responsibility. Only through cooperation can the most urgent environmental problems be solved in an efficient and cost-effective manner. International law and international law practice, although not perfect in every sense, can be of great help. How it can help depends largely on citizens or NGOs themselves. Environmental and nature-conservation NGOs have a great responsibility to devote themselves to this task.
The use of international law instruments is not simple, all the more so because international law only recognizes public participation rights to a certain extent. In the latest, more modern treaties, these provisions are more often included. But even without these provisions NGOs can and do achieve a lot by:
- gathering information;
- publishing the information;
- referring to international law practice in other countries;
- repeatedly asking the government and the politicians what obligations they have assumed;
- repeatedly demanding the government and politicians meet these obligations;
- cooperating with similar organizations in neighboring countries;
- developing initiatives for public participation;
- taking cases to court, especially in administrative law procedures;
- informing citizens and making them aware of their international rights as they apply elsewhere in Europe;
- repeatedly pointing out to governments and politicians that if they wish to become EU members they will not only have the joys (i.e. the money) but also the burdens (i.e. the obligation of democratic decision processes);
- complaining to the European Commission or the European Parliament about state practice and state activities that have adverse effects on the environment;
- complaining to the important financing institutions, like the World Bank, the EBRD or the EIB.
The list easily can be extended. In the preceding chapters we have indicated and illustrated that it is not necessary to wait until one has international public participation rights. Already many types of national and international decision processes in a transboundary context can be influenced or started without them. For individual citizens this may be more problematic. Therefore, citizens have to cooperate as an NGO to succeed in using international law. In many CEE countries NGOs act on behalf of concerned citizens. In the preceding chapters we gave examples why NGO building and knowledge of the national and international decision processes are the most important conditions to foster public participation in a transboundary context.
It is a proven fact that interstate cooperation in joint environmental issues is most efficient and cost-effective. Many countries had to learn by experience that it is better to solve potentially thorny issues in cooperation than in a crisis that poisons relations. In this respect cooperation is an instrument both to enhance friendly relations between peoples and countries and to prevent intergovernmental
conflicts.
It is also a given fact, illustrated by the examples in the preceding chapters, that such international cooperation can only be effective if it has broad public support. This means there must be ample scope to involve the citizens and/or NGOs; in other words, a broad implementation of the national public participation rights according to the standards of international legal and quasi-legal instruments (see Appendix V).
This is especially important for the CEE countries, as most of them wish to be admitted to the EU. We have to consider that one of the conditions of admittance is the democratic content of the decision processes. It is also important to note that a country admitted to the EU must adopt all existing EU law unconditionally. This is beyond discussion. In many cases the public participation rights and provisions go beyond those in many CEE countries. Besides, EU law is directly binding and can be used in judicial courts both by the European Commission and the European Court of Justice and by citizens and/or NGOs in administrative law procedures.
The same goes for the large international funds and financing institutions, such as the World Bank, the EBRD and the EIB. They set more and more public participation and environmental preconditions when granting loans or subsidies.
The opportunities for public participation in a transboundary and international context, though modest and limited, do exist. Against this background it would be wise for states to involve the public or NGOs as much as possible in transboundary cooperation in nature conservation and environmental matters. In Part II, the present situation of how this is happening in CEE will be examined through concrete case examples.
REC * PUBLICATIONS * BEYOND BOUNDARIES * INTERNATIONAL DIMENTIONS
