INECE Regional Network for Asia and the Pacific
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Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Netwok
 AECEN is a voluntary partnership of Asian countries committed to improving environmental compliance and enforcement through regional cooperation and information exchange.
AECEN's 2006 Annual Forum will be held on 4-5 December 4-5 at The Melia Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam. |
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Asia and the Pacific Region News
China's SEPA Releases White Paper on Environmental Protection
On 5 June 206, to coincide with World Environment Day, the State Council Information Office of China published a white paper entitled Environmental Protection in China (1996-2005). The document, composed of 10 chapters, gives a systematic introduction to the unremitting efforts made by China in environmental protection over the past ten years. The full text of the white paper in English is available online at the link above. A press release is available from SEPA.
Proposed Environmental Penalty Increase to AUS$5million
Penalties for corporations that pollute the environment will be increased five-fold to a maximum of $5 million under a plan proposed by the Carpenter Government to crack down on pollution. Environment Minister Mark McGowan said Western Australia had the nation's largest resources industry, and robust laws and strong penalties were needed to ensure the environment was protected.
Mr McGowan said the Government would also include the addition of 'civil penalties' as part of its proposed amendments to the Environmental Protection Act. "By bringing in civil penalties - as they have done in South Australia - it will be a lot easier to prosecute polluters," he said. "The standard of proof required for civil penalties is on the 'balance of probabilities' rather than 'beyond reasonable doubt'. This will mean that prosecutions can be brought against offenders without the need for lengthy and expensive hearings which tie up the court system."
Source: Western Australia Business News
Indonesia Renews Call for Global Cooperation to Prevent Illegal Trade of ODS
In January, Indonesia renewed a call for global cooperation in preventing the smuggling and trade of ozone-depleting substances and encouraging the development of hydrocarbon technology as alternative technology which is environment-friendly and has no negative impact on the ozone layer. The article below notes that "improving the know-how of customs officers ...to detect any attempt to falsify labels" as an issue of particular importance.
Source: Ozonews
Asia Pacific Jurists Association Announces Upcoming Environmental Law and Enforcement Conference
The Asia Pacific Jurists Association will hold an conference entitled "ENVIRONMENT - AWARENESS - ENFORCEMENT" on 20-22 January 2006 in New Dehli, India. The Conference will address many important topics, including (1) public awareness and NGO's role in enforcement; (2) the role of media in creating awareness enforcement of environment issue/concerns; (3) enforcement tools in urban/municipal waste, bio & hazardous waste management; and corporate role and responsibility. A preliminary conference brochure is also available. The Asia Pacific Jurists Web site also provides the text of the Justice Vijender Jain's Keynote address given at the Forum on ‘Regional Environmental Law Enforcement and Compliance,' held in Bangkok in October 2004.
Ruling Compels Philippine Government to Clean Up Manila Bay
Fifteen government agencies are now compelled to save the country’s most important coastline following a landmark decision by the Court of Appeals (CA) to favor Manila Bay area residents, who filed a class suit against the national government in 1999. The appellate court, in a resolution dated Sept. 28, 2005, cracked the whip on the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage Systems, the Local Water Utilities Administration, the Philippine Ports Authority and 12 other national government offices for being remiss in their obligation to clean up, rehabilitate, and protect Manila Bay, which has been downgraded into a virtual body of water filled with fecal coliform.
By Michael Punongbayan, The Philippine Star, 13 Oct 2005, Full Story Available
Upcoming Australian Environmental Law Enforcement and Regulators Conference
This two-day conference of the Australian Environmental Law Enforcement and Regulators Network has been organised by environmental regulators as a forum for discussing best practice in legislation, policy and proactive compliance strategies including investigation techniques and enforcement tools in the field of environmental regulation. It will bring together representatives from a wide range of agencies and jurisdictions around Australia and overseas. The conference will be held on 26-28 October in Brisbane.
Second Regional MDG Report Released for the Asia-Pacific Region
"A Future Within Reach: Reshaping Institutions in a Region of Disparities to Meet the Millennium Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific " is the second in a series of regional reports on the MDGs in the region. It was commissioned through a tripartite initiative of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The report
is intended to provide government policy makers and other development
stakeholders with the most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of
the region's progress towards the MDGs.
From UNESCAP
Launching a New Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network
INECE, the Asian Development Bank, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the  Philippine Department of Environment and Natural Resources held a workshop on 2-3 August 2005 to formally launch the Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network (AECEN) and develop the network's programs and activities. The workshop brought together over 80 environment officials, judges, lawyers, and civil society leaders from 13 Asian countries. A training workshop for senior Asian environmental officials on developing and implementing environmental compliance and enforcement indicators was held on 4 August 2005, subsequent to the regional meeting.
AECEN developed and launched a Web site, hosted on the INECE site, at http://www.inece.org/aecen/ to present the Asian Network's goals, activities, and other information.
ASEAN to Initiate Environment Fund
ASEAN Environment Ministers met at the 8th Informal ASEAN Ministerial
Meeting on the Environment on the 13 October 2004, to review and
enhance cooperation on regional
environmental issues. The Ministers supported the establishment of the
ASEAN Environment Fund and agreed to explore the
modalities for setting up the Fund. Yaacob Ibrahim, Singapore's
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, also stressed on the
need for ASEAN to strengthen environmental cooperation with the
People’s Republic of China, Japan and the Republic of Korea, by
learning from and sharing of their best practices.
From ASEAN Joint
Press Statement
INECE Releases New Edition of
Compliance and Enforcement Newsletter
The
Newsletter features articles on environmental enforcement in the
Asia/Pacific region, including: Visayan
Sea Squadron Begins Patrols in Philippines; Changing
the Face of Enforcement in the Philippines; and IUCN
Inaugurates Academy of Environmental Law in China.
First Assessment of the State of
the Environment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
The State of the
Environment report uses a "pressure-state-response" methodology and identifies priority issues
related to forests, water, air, land and biodiversity. It also
acknowledges a paucity of research and data on which to base reliable
environmental assessments. The report, which was completed in late
2003, was released on the occasion of the visit of a high level
Democratic People's Republic of Korea delegation to Nairobi.
From UNEP News Center
Taiwan's EPA to Verfy Documents to
Prevent Recurrance of Toxic Waste Exports
The Taiwanese Environmental
Protection Agency has boosted inspection efforts after a local company
allegedly shipped more than 11,000 tons of toxic industrial waste to
Malaysia last year without proper authorization from the Kuala Lumpur
government.
From Central Taiwan News Agency
Compliance with the Montreal
Protocol Within Sight in Asia-Pacific
With a dramatic backdrop of the beautiful Taj Mahal, a World Heritage
monument in Agra, India,
representatives from 22 countries in the Asia-Pacific region recently
gathered to tackle priority issues related to compliance with the
Montreal Protocol and identify the best mix of approaches that can
strengthen and sustain the phase out of ozone depleting substances
(ODS). This region produces 80 percent and consumes 65 percent of
global
production and consumption of ODS, therefore compliance with the
Protocol's phase out targets is key for ensuring the overall success of
the multilateral environmental agreement. Participants committed
themselves to meeting benchmarks and action plans to fulfill Protocol
requirements specifically relating to 15th MOP decisions with regard to
Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. Countries
also looked at opportunities to maximize recovery and reuse of
refrigerants; and retrofitting and promotion of environmentally-sound
practices, including ideas for regional policy and technical
cooperation.
From UNEP OzonAction OzoNews
South Asia Wildlife Trade
Workshops - finding the way forward for regional
co-operation
TRAFFIC, the international wildlife trade monitoring network, brought
key stakeholders together from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal,
Pakistan and Sri Lanka, as well as a delegation from China, to evaluate
wildlife trade in South Asia and seek ways that the governments of the
region can increase their collaborative efforts towards a common set of
goals. Delegates identified priority actions to be taken at national
and regional levels to mitigate illegal wildlife trade and to enhance
implementation of CITES in a region where trade is threatening the
long-term survival of some of the world’s rarest species, such as Asian
Rhino, tiger, and Tibetan Antelope (Chiru).
From: Traffic
News
Asian Development Bank (ADB) and
the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Release
Environmental Atlas for the Greater Mekong Region
The Atlas provides comprehensive environmental
information, the scarcity of which is a major constraint
on sustainable development planning and decision-making in
the subregion. About 250 million people, most of them in
rural areas, inhabit the five countries and one province of the
subregion: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the People's Republic of China,
Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam.
From: ABD News
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