INECE Studies Alternatives to Improve Compliance with Desertification Convention

The INECE Secretariat, with financial support from the German development enterprise GTZ, is studying alternatives to improve compliance with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The study explores the possibility of introducing new compliance and enforcement strategies within the political and technical framework of the UNCCD as well as ways to effectively improve the use of existing instruments.

Desertification has become a significant concern in international environmental law. It is the subject of numerous multilateral and regional environmental law instruments and strategies as well as a wealth of scholarly articles. The risk of increased desertification affects every nation, but has a disproportionate impact on the developing world, especially Africa.

In recognition of its importance, the WSSD Johannesburg Plan of Implementation calls for the development of integrated land management plans, improving productivity of land and adoption of policies and laws that guarantee well-defined and enforceable land and water use rights and promote security of tenure. In addition to being a global issue, desertification is also multifaceted, with complex environmental, social, economic, and political pressures.

In 1999, then UNEP Director Klaus Toepfer noted that desertification contributes to, and is affected by, numerous issues, such as climate change, biodiversity, famine, refugees, and poverty. In addition to the state Parties to the UNCCD, numerous non-governmental organizations are working to address desertification directly or through its root causes. Given the large number of meetings, conferences, plans of actions and conventions, there is a growing consensus that more action, in terms of compliance with existing commitments, is needed.

Today, after 10 years of structuring and implementing the UNCCD, desertification continues, and in many areas is increasing. On possible reason for this is that the compliance strategies employed by the desertification regime may not be sufficient to truly boost the fight against desertification. Positive incentives such as cooperative strategies and the financial assistance provided (GEF etc.) has been important for pilot projects, however has not been able to trigger the needed investments from national governments or other actors. The same is true for technical assistance or capacity building exercises under the umbrella of the Convention.

The UNCCD itself refrains from committed targets and legal instruments and the IIWG agreed not to enter into any discussion on a protocol. It is believed that beside the general political obstacles to achieve committed targets, the Parties also fear the technical difficulties while negotiating such targets given the complexity of combating desertification and the problem it causes to find measurable and quantifiable indicators.

Given the challenges faced by the UNCCD, the INECE study utilizes a topology of diagnostic questions, inspired by leading compliance theories and draw from the International Regimes Database (IRD), to assess the UNCCD. The IRD is a computerized information system containing data on over 200 variables for 25 different international environmental regimes. The following are examples of the questions raised in the study:

• Does the UNCCD deter non-compliance by providing adequate monitoring of parties’ implementation and sanctions for non-compliance?
  • Is information gathering for broad assessment or for the purpose of assessing the performance of individual parties?
  • Can on party provide information on the compliance of another?
  • Can non-state actors provide information?
  • Are on-site inspections and/or other verification measures provided?
  • Is implementation and compliance information reviewed?
  • If review, is this done by the UNCCD’s supreme decision-making body (COP/MOP) or is it delegated to a subsidiary body (e.g. Implementation Committee or Secretariat)?
  • What are the possible responses to non-compliance? (e.g. Issuance of notice of violation; Suspension of membership rights; Exclusion from membership; Imposition of financial/economic punishments; Support for capacity building to enhance compliance; and Granting of a transition period to active compliance).
• Does the UNCCD promote compliance through the legalization and juridification of treaty rules and obligations?
  • Is the treaty language clear and unambiguous concerning each party’s obligations?
  • Are the obligations binding or “soft law”?
  • Is there a procedure to resolve ambiguous treaty language or good faith disputes over treaty interpretation?
  • Does the UNCCD provide a dispute resolution system?
  • Does the UNCCD have a secretariat of its own or does some other organization perform the secretariat’s function (e.g. UNEP or an NGO).
  • Does the CoP meet at regular scheduled intervals or do they meet only Ad hoc?
  • Are there standing subsidiary bodies that regularly meet?
• Does the UNCCD promote compliance by responding appropriately to unintentional non-compliance?
  • Does the regime have substantive rules that differentiate among its members in terms of requirements, prohibitions, or permission?
  • Does the UNCCD require parties to provide capacity building to other parties?
  • Is there a centralized mechanism for providing funding for, and coordinate, capacity building?

These questions address the core issues in leading compliance theory. But the focus of these theories has traditionally been the state. While not overlooking the important role of states, the INECE study seeks a broader vision, one that includes the influence of non-state actors. Increasingly, non-state actors are critical to the success of any effort to improve regime compliance and effectiveness. Given the growing role of non-state actors, the study also looks for effective strategies for leveraging the power of non-state actors to improve compliance with the UNCCD, include: improving public participation in the Convention; activating domestic pro-compliance constituencies, especially in Africa; and tapping into international networks, such as INECE.

The final study will be completed in spring 2007. For more information on the UNCCD, please visit http://www.unccd.int.

UN Reports Successes in Effort to Halt Illegal Trade in Ozone Depleting Chemicals
Reprinted from UN News Centre, 1 March 2007.

A United Nations-backed initiative to curb illegal trade in chemicals that damage the ozone layer, the naturally occurring gas that filters out cancer- and cataract-causing ultraviolet rays from the sun, has reported its first promising results ahead of today’s start of its second phase.

Up to 64.8 tons of illegal ozone depleting substance (ODS) have been recorded in China, India, Thailand and other countries following the start of Project Skyhole Patching, an initiative launched on 1 September by China Customs, coordinated by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and operated by related customs administrations and international organizations in the region.

The project seeks to combat illegal trade in ODS and hazardous waste in the Asia Pacific region and involves 20 customs and environmental authorities from 18 countries. The hazardous waste phase began on 1 March 2007.

“It is encouraging to see that our training efforts, involving customs and enforcement officers in the 18 participating countries is beginning to have payoffs,” UNEP Policy and Enforcement Officer Ludgarde Coppens said.

Since the project began, customs in Hong Kong , India and Thailand have played an active role in sharing information on ODS. Some countries like Viet Nam and Cambodia are holding bilateral discussions on illegal ODS trade.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are among ozone depleting substances targeted for phase out under the Montreal Protocol. Now entering its 20th year the Protocol, one of the most successful environmental agreements to date, has succeeded in phasing out ODS in developed countries, led to the closure of many ODS producing plants and deterred the creation of industries that use them.

But the phase-out becomes more crucial for developing countries as the date they have pledged for completion in 2010 approaches. Illegal trade in CFCs and other ODS is expected to grow as a complete ban is enforced. Studies indicate that trade in illegal ODS represents nearly 10 to 20 per cent of all trade in ODS. CFCs alone account for 7,000 to 14000 tons of this trade, valued at $25-60 million.

Project Skyhole Patching partner states are: Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Fiji, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, the Maldives, Mongolia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

UNEP and IUCN Develop Issue-based Modules for the Coherent Implementation of Biodiversity-related Conventions
By Claire Brown, Programme Officer, UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (claire.brown@unep-wcmc.org), Peter Herkenrath, Senior Programme Officer, UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (peter.herkenrath@unep-wcmc.org), and Ines Verleye, IUCN Project Coordinator, Project on Issue-based Modules (iverleye@yahoo.com).

For a variety of reasons, in particular limited financial and technical resources, the coherent national implementation of biodiversity-related multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) remains a major challenge. In order to improve this, it is necessary to make efficient use of available resources, and to coordinate efforts.  

Several of the regional and global biodiversity-related agreements relate to similar topics and themes. Based on this assumption, a more coherent approach towards implementation of the biodiversity commitments could be enhanced if structured information on issues of common concern to different MEAs is made available to national focal points and other actors.

UNEP and IUCN in cooperation with UNEP-WCMC have developed an online practical tool (http://www.svs-unepibmdb.net), which provides a logical issue-based framework on commitments and obligations from agreements concerned with a common issue. Following a thematic classification, the website offers access to major multilateral agreements and their decisions in relation to specific biodiversity issues. The modules pull together different pieces of the same puzzle by using simplified language. Five modules have been developed, namely on Inland Waters, Invasive Alien Species, Sustainable Use, Protected Areas, and Climate Change & Biodiversity. Several donors provided resources for the development of these modules, in particular Belgium, Germany, Norway, Finland, and the European Commission.

The modules have been highly appreciated by government representatives and the governing bodies of several MEAs (Convention on Biological Diversity, Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, Convention on Migratory Species and World Heritage Convention) have welcomed the modules and stressed their importance as a capacity-building tool.

Structure of the Issue-based Modules

The issue-based modules have been developed on the basis of an analysis of existing articles, decisions, resolutions and recommendations relevant to a specific issue under various agreements. Each module is essentially a dataset providing a structured overview of how a certain topic is treated across several agreements by identifying and grouping articles and decisions, resolutions and recommendations under different global and regional agreements. Grouping all decisions on a particular topic eases the formulation and implementation of coherent policies on biodiversity.  

The modules provide a short description of the articles, decisions, resolutions and recommendations from the global biodiversity conventions (CBD, CITES, CMS, Ramsar Convention, World Heritage Convention) as well as the other “Rio Conventions” (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification) and regional MEAs, currently from Europe, Africa and Latin America and shortly also Asia with a view to cover all regions. The modules also include the full text of those articles and decisions. In addition, the authors’ commentary identifies the relationship between the obligations and commitments to highlight overlaps and synergies, potential conflicts and possible gaps.

Current Use of the Issue-based Modules

Both developing and developed countries have already started to use the issue-based modules. Ways in which the issue-based modules have been used include:

• Providing a reference platform for the national coordination unit dealing with MEAs.
• Improving understanding of how regional and global commitments interact.
• Improving national communication and cooperation between biodiversity experts as well as with other sectors.
• Intervening during MEA meetings to improve coherence with previous decisions
• Developing project proposals relating to different MEAs.
• Training new professionals using a holistic approach on specific issues, instead of per convention.
• Revising and developing national legislation, programs and planning, in particular on invasive alien species.

For the issue-based modules to maintain relevance as a reliable set of tools, they need to be updated regularly with new decisions and resolutions taken by the governing bodies of both global and regional conventions. Other modules will be developed on key biodiversity topics identified by countries such as Forests and Access and Benefit-sharing. Currently only available in French, English, and Russian, in the future all modules will be made available in the six UN languages.

Finally, the use of the modules at national level is being supported through national capacity building workshops. The aim of the workshops is 1) to evaluate how the issue-based modules can best support the coherent implementation of MEAs and 2) to provide feedback on the further development of the modules to ensure they adequately address national needs.

New UN-backed Voluntary Program Seeks to Curb Toxic Mercury Pollution
Reprinted from UN News Centre, 14 February 2007.

Governments have two years to see whether a voluntary program to reduce health and environmental threats from toxic mercury is working under a new United Nations-backed initiative or if a legally-binding treaty is needed to curb the heavy metal linked with a wide range of medical problems, including neurological damage to babies.

The program, agreed to by 140 governments at the close of a gathering of environment ministers at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum in Nairobi, Kenya, calls for developing partnerships between governments, industry and other key groups to curb mercury emissions, ranging from power stations and mines to industrial and consumer products.

After two years, governments will gauge its success and reflect on whether the voluntary initiative has worked or whether negotiations should commence on a new international and legally-binding treaty.

Part of the new program may mirror a successful UNEP-coordinated partnership to clean up vehicle fuels in developing countries. In four years this voluntary partnership, launched at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, has phased out lead, another notorious heavy metal, from petrol pumps across sub-Saharan Africa.

“The mercury decision… underlines a new determination by environment ministers to rise to the challenges of our time,” UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said. “For too long environment ministers have met and spoken but their collective voice has not been loudly and decisively heard in the world. This, I believe has changed at this 24th session of the UNEP Governing Council.”

An estimated 2,000 tons of mercury are released into the environment each year, mainly from coal-fired power stations, waste incinerators and as a result of artisanal mining of gold and silver. The metal is also used in such products as fluorescent light bulbs, dental fillings and thermometers.

Action is to be taken to improve communication of the risks of mercury to vulnerable groups, including pregnant mothers who may put the fetus at risk if they eat too much mercury-contaminated fish or marine mammals such as seals.