INECE - Director of the Secretariat

INECE Secretariat's Summary of Johannesburg Sustainable Development Summit
Increased Enforcement Required to Meet Targets and Timetables Set at Johannesburg Sustainable Development Summit

2. Summary
The governments of the world recommitted themselves at the Johannesburg Summit to implementing the Rio Principles and the full scope of Agenda 21, and set specific targets and timetables for several critical issues, including -

The official goal of the Summit was-not to establish new principles, commitments, or institutions-but rather to review progress towards the existing principles and commitments set at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development. [2] Also know as the Rio Earth Summit, the 1992 conference adopted the Rio Principles, [3] new conventions on climate [4] and biodiversity, [5] a set of forestry principles, [6] and created the Commission on Sustainable Development to assist with implementation. [7]

Besides the two substantive documents, seven Partnership Plenaries and four high-level Round Tables, the Summit also hosted a full program of side events in and around Johannesburg. [8] INECE was an active participant in several side events. (See Summary of INECE Summit Participation).

The Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development [9] and the Plan of Implementation [10] (hereinafter "the Plan") were the major substantive accomplishments of the Summit. The Plan, discussed in more detail below, consists of eleven chapters spelling out the framework for action to implement the commitments made at the 1992 Earth Summit.

However, the Johannesburg Summit is being criticized by some participants for merely repeating many of the commitments made in the United Nations Millennium Declaration, [11] including the various commitments dealing with income and drinking water, which are taken almost verbatim from the Millennium Declaration. Others have criticized the Summit for failing to include targets and timetables for implementing renewable energy resources, and maintaining the legitimacy of pursuing fossil fuel technologies. Additionally, many participants and observers believe that the Summit did not adequately address the $350 billion in annual agricultural subsidies paid by developed nations, and others complain that the Summit virtually overlooked education for sustainable development as a critical issue.

But many of the Summit commitments, particularly regarding biodiversity, chemicals, and fisheries, set forth for the first time, targets and timetables that present a tremendous challenge for those responsible for implementing the Rio commitments and enforcing environmental law and policy.

To assist in meeting this challenge, INECE announced at the Summit that it was launching the INECE Enforcement Indicator Project to develop a set of indicators to measure and manage enforcement and compliance efforts. In addition to assisting countries manage their enforcement resources for improved performance; INECE contemplates using the indicators to identify opportunities to expand its training and capacity building program. Other strategies for helping enforcement practitioners meet the targets and timetables set by the Summit are being considered in the development of the 2003-05 INECE strategic plan.

3. The Summit Plan of Implementation
The Johannesburg Summit reaffirmed the commitment to the Rio Principles, and to the full implementation of Agenda 21, [12] and recognized that good governance is essential to sustainable development, as is respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms (Summit Plan, Chapter I).

The means of implementation include a focus on access to environmental information as well as judicial and administrative proceedings (Chapter X.). The Summit Plan also notes the need for better market signals, including full cost internalization and the elimination of harmful subsidies, as well as regulatory frameworks for achieving a level playing field, and better assessment and reporting, including an environmental vulnerability index for Small Island States, and a comprehensive review of implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action by 2004 (Chapters III, IV, and VII).

The Summit Plan addresses poverty eradication through a commitment to cut in half by 2015 the number of people living on less than US $1/day, and agreed to establish a solidarity fund (Chapter II). In addition, it calls for action to immediately enforce national Forestry Laws and to halt illegal trade in forest products (Chapter IV), to return fisheries to maximum sustainable yield levels by 2015 (id.), to cut in half the number of people without access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015 (Chapter II), to minimize significant adverse effects on human health and the environment from chemicals by 2020 (Chapter III), and to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction in the current rate of biodiversity loss (Chapter IV), including coastal and marine biodiversity of small island states (Chapter VII), as well the negotiation of a legally binding instrument on benefit sharing (Chapter IV). The Plan also focuses on actions to limit health impacts from air pollution and from lead exposure (Chapter VI), and on the need to strengthen corporate accountability (Chapter IV).

3.1 Implementation of MEAs
The Summit Plan calls on nations to ratify and effectively implement a number of multilateral environmental instruments, including:

3.2 Targets and Timetables
The Plan also sets additional targets and timetables to assist with full implementation, including:

3.2.1 2004
· Develop a process for global reporting and assessment of the marine environment.
· Create an international plan of action to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

3.2.2 2005
· Develop integrated water resources management and water efficiency plans.
· Begin implementation of national strategies for sustainable development.
· Adopt an international plan of action for management of fishing capacity.
· Develop a strategic approach to international chemicals management.

3.2.3 2008
· Implement a globally harmonized system for the classification and labeling of chemicals.

3.2.4 2010
· Significantly reduce the rate of biodiversity loss

3.2.5 2012
· Establish marine protective areas.

3.2.6 2015
· Halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
· Return fisheries to maximum sustainable yield levels.

3.2.7 2020
· Achieve sound management of chemical use and production to minimize their significant adverse effects on health and environment.

3.3 Strengthening Implementation
The Summit Plan calls for the mobilization of financial and technological resources, including capacity-building programs, to strengthen implementation in developing countries. In addition, the Plan highlights several specific areas where assistance is needed, including the following areas relevant to the work of INECE:

4. Development Assistance
In response, a number of nations, international organizations, and stakeholders announce new or continuing funding that support implementation of the Plan's commitments, including:

The United States [13] announced:

The European Union announced:

The World Bank [15] and the International Emissions Trading Association [16] unveiled a $100 million project to encourage emission trading in developing countries.

The Asia Development Bank announced a $5 million grant to United Nations Human Settlements Program (Habitat) [17] and $500 million in fast-track credit for the Habitat Water for Asian Cities Programme.

The Global Environment Facility [18] announced an agreement totaling $3 billion to replenish its funding commitments. The GEF funds projects in four focal areas: biodiversity, climate change, international waters, and ozone. Projects to address land degradation, as it relates to the four focal areas, are also eligible for funding.

5. "Type Two" Partnerships [19]

[19]
The Political Declaration and the Plan of Implementation were "type one" outcomes agreed to by governments. "Type two" partnerships are so-called "partnerships of the willing" between various countries and stakeholders that were agreed to outside the formal Summit negotiation process. Several "type two" partnerships that may be relevant to INECE are listed below. It is anticipated that at lest some of these partnerships will receive funding in the form of the development assistance detailed above.

Other significant partnerships were formed outside the "type two" structure, reflecting the suspicion voiced by a number of developing countries at the Fourth WSSD PrepCom in Bali, Indonesia that "type two" partnerships were a distraction from the "type one" government commitments. In response, many organizations decided not to list their projects as "type two." For example, the Global Judicial Symposium announced an international effort to strengthen the environmental capacity of the judiciary, but this event and the follow up capacity building initiative is not included in the "type two" listing. Nevertheless, many of these partnerships may be relevant, and they will be reviewed separately.

The following are partnerships that are officially listed and that touch on issues of environmental implementation, enforcement and/or compliance.

7. Implications for INECE
Ensuring that the Plan of Implementation is successful, and that the specific targets and timetables are met, will require full implementation of the commitments made at the Earth Summit in 1992 and the Johannesburg Summit in 2002, as well as the rest of the body of law on environmental protection and sustainable development, at all levels of government. This in turn imposes a tremendous responsibility on those involved with the enforcement of these laws, starting with the government officials who have the primary responsibility for law enforcement, but also on NGOs, the general public, and the business sector. INECE will need to redouble its efforts to do its part in meeting this challenge