Policy Integration
The EPE establishes that environmental policy should be the concern of
the entire Government and that all governmental levels should set an example
by reducing the adverse environmental impact of their own activities.
One of its key recommendations is to esure the integration of environmental
considerations into decision-making, including the consideration of environmental
costs and benefits and the assessment of risks involved and the application
of the precautionary principle in all key sectors, and take further steps
to promote partnerships between ministries, parliaments, business and
industry, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other major groups.
The Committee on Environmental Policy decided to initiate a programme
to improve the integration of environmental concerns into sectoral policies,
taking fully into account the activities of other international bodies.
At its sixth session, the Committee discussed practicalities of this programme
(English, Russian, Francais).
In the light of an informal consultation held in February 2000 in Chisinau,
Moldova (English, Russian, Francais), the Committee on
Environmental Policy, at its seventh session in September 2000, entrusted
the Committee Bureau with the implementation of the programme on integrating
environmental considerations with sectoral policies starting, as a first
step, with the evaluation of the state of the art, gaps, bottlenecks and
opportunities for policy integration.
For further information: mikhail.kokine@unece.org