92. The majority of economic decisions has a real impact on the environment. Privatization programs, pricing policies, taxation, and tariffs all influence environmental protection. Supply and demand mechanisms incorporate economic incentives into environmentally related activities. These economic activities are not dictated by environmental principles, unless full integration of environmental and economic goals is achieved.
93. There is a mutual dependence between the environment and the economy. Economic development may contribute to environmental improvement (or degradation), but the environment also is an important factor of economic development. As an example, there are proposals to use environmental protection as a vehicle for reducing unemployment. Labor intensive activities may be offered by environmental sectors (e.g., agriculture, forestry, manufacturing of environmental protection technologies).
95. There are impediments to turning "win-win" options into reality. First of all, there is simply very little precedent in the region for successful integration of environmental protection and economic development as priorities on an equal plane. It is reported that most decision-makers simply do not understand the true importance of environmental integrity and thus do not give them adequate consideration. The agendas of government officials and politicians are dominated by economic issues and to this point the pro-environment lobby has been unable to convincingly demonstrate the fundamental link between the state of the natural environment and a nation's economic well-being. This link has also not been made clear to the general public and thus public demand for the inclusion of environmental concerns in economic development programs remains weak. Other obstacles include the lack of legislative and policy mandates for such integration as well as the lack of experience and expertise in planning and designing these needed laws and policies. There are also few examples of successful environmental businesses in the region. Another reason could be the difficulty in agreeing on a "common language" for presenting economic and environmental arguments. Environmentalists are often not able (or willing) to understand the positions of businesses or government economists, while businesses and economists seldom place great value on the non-commercial use of environmental resources. A vision for a society with both prosperous citizens and a healthy environment needs to be conceptualized and gradually implemented through integrated economic and environmental policies.
97. Evidence of attempts to integrate the environment and the economy are also visible within the governments. Intergovernmental bodies (committees) are being created to establish programs that can simultaneously provide economic and environmental benefits. Initiatives such as a "green" taxes, eco-labeling, environmental impact assessments, environmental auditing, etc., are supported by governments in some CEE countries. This reveals a growing interest in integrating environmental and economic goals and activities.
98. There is also the potential for building environmental considerations into business-oriented programs initiated with the support of Western financial assistance. International treaties also impose environmental conditions on certain business projects. Environmental targets that are in line with Western standards have been established for CEE countries in order to facilitate harmonization of their environmental policies. The rapid development of Western businesses in the CEE countries should also be used to stimulate progress in integrating economic and environmental policies.