Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The assessment of progress made throughout the world since the Rio Conference
reveals two main challenges for the new decade: we must speed up the concrete
implementation of Agenda 21 and subsequent commitments, and we must promote
governance practices that integrate social, economic and environmental considerations
in decision-making processes.
So has our development become more sustainable? In the environmental and
economic fields, the situation within the UNECE region is mixed. In most
of the mature market economies, pollution has been substantially cut or
stabilized. Sulphur emissions have halved since 1980, for instance. But
the increase in overall greenhouse gas emissions remains a very serious
worry. Technological innovations have helped to reduce the energy intensity
of equipment and consumer goods. However, the increasing volume of used
and discarded goods, and the changing structure of consumer demand in key
areas, such as energy and transport, have outweighed many of these gains.
The figures from countries in transition tell a different story. The old
and wasteful power plants and industries continue to operate, but the overall
degree of pollution has decreased owing to the fall in output. New investment
in less polluting production remains insufficient however, so energy intensity
is still high and any economic recovery in this part of the region may,
therefore, entail a significant rise in various forms of air, water and
soil pollution. Furthermore, the management of waste has deteriorated and,
16 years after the Chernobyl disaster, the problem of nuclear safety is
still on everyone's mind.
This overall picture allows us to identify a number of challenges for
the UNECE region. For the most economically advanced countries, these consist
mainly in decoupling economic growth from resource use, and moving towards
more sustainable patterns of production and consumption. More specifically,
this means, among other things, curbing the emission of greenhouse gases
by making industry less polluting and making more use of renewable sources
of energy, fostering sustainable transport modes and behaviours, and decreasing
the pressure of industrialized agriculture on the quality of groundwater
and soils.
For the countries in transition, the main issues are: promoting environmentally
sound technologies, investing in less energy-intensive equipment for industrial
activities and public utilities, changing behaviour in energy consumption,
and addressing the question of waste, in particular the recycling of discarded
goods, waste-water treatment and nuclear waste.
Now how does the UNECE contribute to meeting these challenges and what
lessons can be drawn from its work, in terms of both breakthroughs and limitations?
UNECE has a solid track record in developing international law in response
to environmental problems. Its five environmental conventions and nine protocols
are intended to combat air and water pollution, improve the use of water,
prevent industrial accidents, assess the cross-border effects of projects
before they are given the go-ahead, and foster public participation in decision-making.
In terms of achievements, I am proud to point out that all five conventions
have entered into force, that the number of countries that have ratified
them is steadily increasing and that new protocols are being negotiated.
The main problem now is their implementation.
Countries in South-Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent
States often lack the know-how, the funds, the enforcement mechanisms and
the infrastructure to comply. A particular case in point is the countries
that are aspiring for EU membership, as the very broad range of new legislation
that they have to absorb implies daunting legal, institutional and investment
challenges. But regardless of whether or not they are applying for membership
of the European Union, all countries in transition have to do more to ensure
better application of international environmental law. The primary responsibility
for this lies with the national and local authorities, but in many cases
such capacity building also requires external support.
However, Western countries do not have a flawless record either. They
have often been quick to sign conventions but reluctant to ratify them.
And since actions will always speak louder than words, I would urge them
to honour their promises and put the environmental conventions that they
have signed into practice.
To provide policy advice, assistance in capacity-building, etc., an in-depth
assessment of the environmental performance of individual countries is needed.
This is mainly achieved through the Environmental Performance Reviews, an
exercise in which there is a clear division of labour between UNECE and
OECD: OECD applies the associated methodology to the economically advanced
countries and UNECE to the countries in transition. In the course of the
review, consultations are held not only with all relevant ministries but
also with the business community and non-governmental organizations.
UNECE has been less involved in the social dimension of sustainable development,
because it has no specific mandate to do so. Therefore, UNECE addresses
only a limited number of social issues in such policy areas as population,
human settlements and gender. Yet such issues are important and more could
be done to mainstream the social dimension in the organization's other areas
of activity. This requires a consensus among the member States on the need
to effectively apply a strategic sustainable development approach to the
UNECE work.
You may recall that, in the run-up to this World Summit almost a year
ago, UNECE hosted a regional preparatory meeting in Geneva at which the
region's Ministers promised to work towards decoupling economic growth and
environmental degradation, and to further integrate environmental and health
strategies. They also reconfirmed the importance of strategic environmental
assessment of plans, programmes and policies, and acknowledged the need
to comply with international environmental law, and implement policies to
increase social cohesion, reduce unemployment and tackle social inequality.
What can UNECE do to move this process forward?
Concerning the Ministers' commitment to work towards decoupling economic
growth from environmental pollution and increasing the share of environmentally
sound energy production, the UNECE will further develop its work in: providing
a forum for policy discussion on reforms in the energy sector of countries
in transition; promoting investment in less resource-intensive equipment
and end-products; supporting national and local plans and policies for ensuring
sustainable transport systems through the effective implementation of the
recently adopted Pan-European Transport, Health and Environment Plan; and
organizing the sharing of experiences in the restructuring of industry and
the creation of new enterprises in line with sustainable development requirements.
Concerning their commitment to further efforts to integrate environmental
and health strategies, the contribution of the UNECE, in cooperation with
WHO, will focus not only on sustainable transport systems, as I mentioned
before, but also on the promotion and implementation of the Protocol on
Water and Health. Its adoption constituted a significant step towards improving
the quality of drinking water, and we want to make sure that its targets
for reducing harmful substances in water are met.
Ministers also confirmed the importance they attach to strategic environmental
assessment for national plans, programme and policies. One way to materialize
this commitment will be the adoption of a new UNECE protocol at the Kiev
Ministerial Conference next year. As a follow-up, linkages will have to
be developed between the recommendations resulting from the Environmental
Performance Reviews and the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment,
in terms of both consistency of legislation and coordination of capacity-building.
Another commitment made at the regional preparatory meeting was that the
UNECE member States should comply with all regional and subregional conventions
relevant to the environment and sustainable development. To support them
in this endeavour, we shall put more emphasis on identifying gaps in the
implementation of the UNECE conventions and protocols, and on mobilizing
technical assistance in order to fill these gaps especially in countries
in transition.
Finally, the Ministers made a commitment that is crucial for the stability
and harmonious integration of the whole region, namely, and I quote, "to
support countries in transition in their efforts to promote economic growth,
eradicate poverty and resolve environmental problems". Within the UNECE,
the organization of policy debate and sharing of experiences in key areas
for a successful transition towards market economies will have to take full
account of this commitment. It should apply particularly to those issues
where policy decisions have simultaneously a social, economic and environmental
impact, such as energy pricing, industrial restructuring, urban management
and infrastructure development. UNECE has shown that debate at the regional
level among countries with similar problems but also different levels of
development and constraints can indeed be very constructive in identifying
trade-offs, eliciting various policy options and creating "win-win"
situations in sustainable development terms. An example of the latter is
the promotion of new investment which increases the economic efficiency
of enterprises, brings about a better use of natural resources and creates
employment.
In summary, there are two ways in which UNECE can substantially increase
its contribution to sustainable development in the aftermath of the Summit.
It can further develop its support to the implementation of its legal agreements,
and it can adopt an integrative approach to policy debate, exchange of experiences,
assessment and monitoring, placing these activities in a truly sustainable
development perspective.
Thank you for your attention.
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