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No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This thesis deals with the concept of compliance. Its main argument is that the concept of formal compliance has shortcomings and therefore needs to be complemented with a concept of empirical compliance. At the heart of the concept of compliance is the relationship between rules and social practices. This relationship is conceptualized as involving a "gap", in the case of formal non - compliance, or as indicating the fulfilment of legal requirements in the case of formal compliance. Instead, as the concept of empirical compliance shows, rules and social practices can be linked through a process of integration. This changes our understanding of a concept of law. Formal concepts of law which are based on formal legal rules have to be modified in order to understand empirical compliance. An empirical concept of law which is based both on enforement officers' and the regulated companies' definitions of what is considered as normative in everyday practices has to be adopted. I discuss commercial aims, technology, information ani the formal law as normative contexts which shape a notion of empirical law. The thesis adopts a social construction approach by exploring how actors in the field establish and manipulate the various normative constraints under which they work. The research explores empirical compliance in the area of waste management regulation in the U.K. and Germany. It draws on qualitative data on the implementation of waste management regulation in the everyday practices of handling waste at two waste treatment plants and the day to day enforcement activities of two waste regulation authorities. The thesis focusses on the behaviour of staff on the lowest level of the organizational hierarchy in both the waste treatment plants and the waste regulation authorities. The main research techniques employed were observation and participant observation over a three months period with each of the four organizations involved in the research.

The control of environmentally damaging activities has become one of the most important areas for concern in recent years. The amount of legislation relating to this subject area has increased several-fold, with European Directives and domestic laws being introduced in response to pressure from a variety of avenues. Key studies on the enforcement of environmental law have been carried out. However, this work was undertaken prior to the expansion of legislative provisions at the start of the 1990s. In the light of this new legislation,n ew regulatorya genciesa, ndc hangingp ublic opinion, the following researcha imsw ere formulated: 1. To assess the approach to enforcement by regulatory agencies (co-operation versus confrontation). 2. To determinet he extent and rate of utilisation of enforcemenmt ethodsb y the regulatory authorities, and the reasons for non-utilisation. 3. To determine which factors influence the strategic decision making process, and to measure the relative importance of each factor. 4. To investigate the types of enforcement policies prevalent in regulatory agencies and evaluate their varying levels of effectiveness. 5. To determine the level of consistency in the approach to enforcement within and between regulatory agencies. 6. To examine the consistency of the levels of penalties applied by the courts. 7. To suggest improvements to the system where required. The first phase of the research involved a postal questionnaire to local authorities. This was followed by structured interviews with NRA and HMIP personnel. An assessment of the consistency of the regulators' enforcement action was made through responses to a regulated community questionnaire, and an appraisal of the consistency of penalties applied by the courts was achieved by analysis of case reports. The main findings from the research were: I. Regulatory agencies adopted a co-operative enforcement approach in the first instance, followed by more stringent action if required. 2. Most regulatory bodies did not use the full array of enforcement methods at their disposal. 3. A large variety of factors relating to the incident affects the decision making process. 4. Not all local authorities had an enforcement policy. Of those that did, a wide variation in the type of enforcement policies existed. 5. Regulators were found to be inconsistent in their enforcement practices. 6. The levels of penalties applied by the courts were also found to be inconsistent. Improvements to the system were suggested as a result of these research findings.

This study aims to determine the factors that affect the implementation of marine pollution policy, especially with regard to regulation of the hazardous substances which contaminate the marine environment- The purpose is to identify weaknesses in the current regulatory regime and to propose improvements. The study also aims to develop a new strategic framework for the implementation of the recent international policy commitments, which call for the complete cessation of discharges of hazardous substances into the marine environment by the year 2020. Furthermore, the study seeks to provide evidence to support or challenge current theories relating to regulation and policy implementation. Examination was made of the attitudes of environmental managers from the UK chemical industry and inspectors from the environmental agencies towards the regulatory system. These are the key personnel who operate at the regulatory interface where the policy outcome is determined. The methodology combined both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Structured interviews helped define the issues for subsequent investigation using a questionnaire survey which was sent to over 700 key personnel. Focus groups were then used to explain the survey findings and develop solutions to key regulatory problems. Statistical analysis of the survey response data revealed similarities and significant differences between the views of industry and the regulator on the effectiveness of the current Integrated Pollution Control regime. The strength of the system was perceived as its practical and pragmatic approach, coupled with a convenient and familiar bureaucracy. The weaknesses identified related to the derivation and enforcement of standards. The Environmental Quality Standards system, which underpins the regime, was acknowledged to be flawed by both operators and regulators who agreed it should be improved by the expansion in the number of priority listed chemicals, the introduction of sediment Environmental Quality Standards and Direct Toxicity Assessment of effluents. Focus groups supported the expansion of the system, but recognised that it would create a regime that was both complex and impractical. The findings were used to construct a revised model of the existing regime. Multivariate analysis of the industry response data identified 3 cluster types and significant differences were revealed between their knowledge of policy developments, their implications and the need for changes to the current system of hazardous chemical control. Operators and regulators acknowledged the existence of the mutual interdependency which has created and maintained a tight policy network (community) at the regulatory interface. Further evidence to support the existence of this community and of regulatory capture, was provided by the study data. Focus group discussions also identified the requirement for a more fundamental reappraisal of the regulatory system in order to deliver the OSPAR strategy. A new regulatory model, which incorporates process and product substitution, is proposed as a strategic framework to ensure that future policy commitments are implemented. This approach may lead to the opening up of the current tight policy network with resultant benefits for policy implementation and reduced regulatory capture. The new model could be applied by other countries within the OSPAR region and in other regions of the world, in order to improve environmental protection.

No description available.

Depuis des années, l’environnement est devenu une préoccupation importante, voire primordiale dans la vie quotidienne du monde entier. Aujourd’hui en France, les questions environnementales s’imposent comme un élément majeur dans les orientations stratégiques, dans les évolutions subies ou choisies de la société. La France est régulièrement citée parmi les pays les plus respectueux de l'environnement. Les perspectives environnementales en Chine sont en revanche plus inquiétantes, car le développement économique est caractérisé par une forte consommation de la matière première et des énergies, et une forte pollution. C’est pourquoi la politique de modernisation et de croissance économique mise en œuvre par les autorités chinoises intègre désormais la prise en considération des contraintes environnementales comme une de ses composantes majeures. La question des déchets est devenue au fil du temps de plus en plus problématique en raison notamment de leur augmentation considérable. Cependant, la prise de conscience de la nécessité d’une gestion efficace des déchets n’est apparue que tardivement dans les esprits. Le traitement des déchets fait partie des grands problèmes environnementaux auquel chaque pays doit faire face, et la situation ne s’améliore pas avec l’augmentation du niveau de vie en Chine. Face à l’augmentation de la production de déchets, le législateur français a instauré, dès 1975, les plans départementaux et régionaux de gestion des déchets, et encouragé leur valorisation au moyen de la promotion de la collecte sélective, du recyclage et de l’incinération avec récupération d’énergie. En octobre 1995, la Chine a adopté la loi sur la prévention de la pollution causée par des déchets solides afin de résoudre les problèmes qu’ils causent. Par l’examen des réglementations françaises et chinoises, le présent ouvrage a pour objectif de conduire une étude comparative des convergences et des divergences entre les régimes juridiques des déchets en France et en Chine, pour ce qui concerne d’une part le traitement des déchets s’agissant notamment de leur transformation et de leur destruction, et d’autre part la manière dont les polices administratives et l’ordre public régissent le commerce des déchets. En droit français, nous examinerons notamment les lois n° 75-633 du 15 juillet 1975 relative à l’élimination des déchets et à la récupération des matériaux et n° 76-663 du 19 juillet 1976 relative aux installations classées pour la protection de l’environnement. En droit chinois, nous examinerons plus particulièrement la loi sur la prévention de la pollution causée par des déchets solides, adoptée le 30 octobre 1995, la loi sur l'économie circulaire du 29 août 2008, ainsi que la loi relative à la promotion de la production propre du 29 juin 2002. L’économie circulaire est un nouveau mode de fonctionnement économique, mettant en œuvre les principes de la réduction, de la valorisation et de la diminution de nocivité des déchets. Ce nouveau mode de fonctionnement a été adopté par les deux législations, française et chinoise. L’étude comparative intéresse les grands principes qui y sont consacrés, ainsi que les mesures précises de mise en œuvre de ces deux systèmes. La coopération internationale en matière de droit des déchets en France et en Chine revêt également une grande importance. L’étude des règles au niveau international a porté sur les mouvements transfrontaliers et l’élimination des déchets dangereux pour la santé humaine et pour la protection de l’environnement. De nombreuses actions sont ainsi conduites pour améliorer, restaurer ou préserver l’environnement, et pour atténuer les atteintes qui lui sont imposées par les activités humaines. / For years, the environment has become an important concern, if not a concern of paramount importance in everyday life worldwide. Today in France, ecological issues are emerging as a major element in the strategic guidelines in the losses or chosen company developments. France is regularly cited among the most environmentally friendly countries in the world. On the contrary, the environmental problems in China are alarming. Each year, the economic development is characterized by high consumption and high pollution. The policy of modernization and economic growth implemented by the Chinese authorities now includes consideration of environmental constraints as one of its main components. The issue of waste has become over time more and more problematic mainly because of their significant increase. However, awareness of the need for effective waste management only appeared late in minds. Waste treatment is one of the major environmental problems which each country in the world is facing, and the situation does not improve with the improvement of living standards. Faced with the increase in waste generation, the French legislator established in 1975 the county and regional waste management plans to encourage their recovery by means of the promotion of selective collection, recycling and incineration with energy recovery. In October 1995, China adopted a law on the prevention of pollution caused by solid waste in order to resolve the problems caused by waste. In the light of the French and Chinese regulations, this thesis aims at carrying out a comparative study of the similarities and differences in terms of waste management, namely the processing and destruction of waste and the administrative policies and public order governing trade in waste. As regards French law, we shall examine, namely, Law No 75-633 of 15 July 1975 on waste disposal and recovery of materials and Law n ° 76-663 of 19 July 1976 on classified installations for environmental protection. Concerning Chinese law, we shall examine the law on the prevention of pollution caused by solid waste was adopted on 30 October 1995; the Circular Economy Law of 29 August 2008; and the law on the promotion of clean production of 29 June 2002. Circular economy is a new mode of economic operation, implementing the principles of reduction and recovery of waste as well as the the reduction of waste harmfulness. This new mode was adopted by both the French and the Chinese laws. The comparative study focuses on the major principles and the adoption of specific measures for these two regulations. The international cooperation in terms of laws on waste in France and China is crucial. The study of the rules at international level on transboundary movements and disposal of hazardous waste has focused on human health and the environment. Many actions are performed to improve, restore or maintain the status of the various compartments of the environment and reduce the damages from human activities on the environment.