Implementation of Environmental Policies : 2010 Environment Strategy

Triana, Ernesto Sanchez ; Ortolano, Leonard ; Ruta, Giovanni ; Dezfuli, Ghazal ; Kanakia, Rahul

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: ACCESS TO INFORMATION;    ACCOUNTABILITY;    ACCOUNTING;    ACCREDITATION;    ADB;   

RP-ID  :  68703

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

The Bank's environmental agenda hasevolved gradually since the 1970s. During the 1970s and1980s, the main focus was on mitigating the potentialenvironmental damage associated with investment projectsusing environmental impact assessments (EIA). This approachwas formalized in the Bank's environmental assessment(EA) requirements, which today consist of a set ofindividual environmental policies and procedures. Recentevaluations of the Bank's safeguards policyimplementation reveal that shortages in environmentalsafeguards specialists and inadequate skills mix, amongother factors, are affecting the quality of safeguardsimplementation. This report recommends strengthening theenvironmental safeguards career track to help elevate theprofile of safeguards specialists and provide opportunitiesfor career advancement in the course of doing safeguardswork. The report also recommends that there be anorganizational restructuring to enhance the Bank'scapabilities for conducting effective safeguards work.Furthermore, the report recommends developing acomprehensive training program that will enhance thesafeguards skill mix and increase the effectiveness ofsafeguards support at the Bank.This report also recommendsadopting a categorization methodology that reduces relianceon procedures requiring subjective judgments. Next, thereport recommends the creation of a systematic program formeasuring, reporting, and evaluating the effects ofsafeguards implementation. It also recommends a move towardssubstantive compliance and environmental sustainabilityprinciples for the safeguards framework. This report alsorecommends disseminating knowledge of policy instruments,besides environment impact assessments, that are able toproduce similar or better outcomes than the Bank'ssafeguard policy requirements. The design and implementationof instruments for environmental policy can be pursued witha more risk-based and differentiated approach, based oncountry or borrower capacity. In addition to the mitigationof negative impacts, this report recommendsinstitutionalizing the enhancement of positive impacts andclient capacity building measures into the safeguards framework.