M.Sc. / Internationally, the use of Environmental Management Cooperation Agreements (EMCAs) as a policy tool to improve environmental performance has been encouraged since the 1960’s. Through the law reform process that has been underway in South Africa for the past ten years, the National Environmental Management Act (Act No.107 of 1998) has made provision for the signing of EMCAs between the South African Government and industry. Although widely utilised internationally, this approach has been criticized by NGOs internationally as communities have little interaction with the process at stages when the agreements could still be influenced. In South Africa, NGOs are also critical of the approach as they feel that this approach could distract policy makers from preparing a sound environmental management framework that can be enforced and is legally binding on polluters in the country. This study reviews the international experience of this policy approach and argues that certain specific criteria need to be in place in order to negotiate effective agreements. These criteria include: sound environmental policy and management framework; set emission reduction targets; the ability to successfully monitor progress against a predetermined baseline; compliance of industry to existing legal requirements; strong sanction for noncompliance to the agreement; and a sound and achievable agreement. Having identified the requirements for the implementation of successful EMCAs, the policy and legal setting in South Africa is explored, as well as the current environmental performance of industry in the country to determine if the criteria for the introduction of EMCAs exist. The study makes the following findings: the legal framework for environmental management is presently being strengthened; progress on developing norms and standards is being made, however, presently norms and standards are lacking; reduction targets are lacking or represent only long-term targets; based on historical enforcement discretion, there is generally poor environmental performance in South African industry; the monitoring and reporting structures are presently absent which hinders monitoring of success of interventions; and there is generally a lack of community trust in industry. The proposed Chemical and Allied Industry Association (CAIA) EMCA which was to be the blue print for EMCAs in the country is also reviewed to determine if this proposed agreement would provide the basis for sound negotiation and tangible environmentalimprovements. The review indicates that there are several shortcomings in the proposed agreement that would need to be improved should the objectives of improved environmental performance be achieved. In general, the findings of the study indicate that, should the necessary criteria be in place, EMCAs can contribute to achieving performance in excess of the required compliance, and EMCAs have been and are especially useful to achieve international reduction targets. However, the introduction of these agreements into South Africa at this crucial and delicate time in the development and implementation of environmental protection measures could distract and derail the current environmental focus and could be potentially damaging. As the environmental management framework matures in the country and the necessary criteria are realised, it is almost certain that the success that this policy approach has had internationally can be echoed in South Africa, and the country could benefit from the many advantages that the more voluntary approach to environmental management can provide. The current path of policy reform and systems development should however continue without distraction in the short term.

The San Gabriel Mountains, which frame the Los Angeles skyline and lock in the Los Angeles Basin to the north, provide the most forest land, wilderness area and open space in the Greater Los Angeles region. Since the 1800s, the federal government has managed the area as a reserve, forest and national monument. While most federally-managed lands are not located near a city, the San Gabriels are uniquely situated in close proximity to more than 15 million people. This fact has undeniably influenced the evolution of their management and the federal government's approach. This thesis analyzes the dialogue surrounding the management of the public lands in the San Gabriel Mountains and places it within broader dialogues that have taken place nationwide. Chapter One focuses on this dialogue during the Conservation Era, when the management of the mountains was in its infancy, and Chapter Two focuses on contemporary times and uses President Obama's 2014 national monument designation as a reference point. The thesis concludes that, over time, the management of this region has been crucial in the larger picture of forestry, conservation and environmental politics.

M.Sc. / The gold mining industry in South Africa is exposed to various legal issues due to the nature of its operations. Furthermore, there has been a renewed focus on environmental management in South Africa over the past decade, as well as an international focus on sustainable development. Environmental management in the gold mining industry must incorporate sustainable development, as well as the ‘cradle to grave’ concept. The gold mining industry has to ensure that its activities are compliant with environmental legislation and best practice requirements, as the increase in environmental awareness and legislated principles has escalated gold mines’ exposure to demands for the remediation and reparations of pollution and environmental degradation. No single document exists that provides the gold mining industry with detail on the environmental legislation and best practice requirements that gold mines are able to refer to in order ensure effective environmental management. Furthermore, there is no implementation plan for gold mines to implement in order to achieve compliance with environmental legislation and best practice requirements. This study has presented such a document, as it has provided the reader with detail concerning the responsibilities of the regulatory authorities, the current and new legislation, best practices, codes of practices, and offences and liabilities that gold mines will become exposed to should they not adhere to environmental legislative requirements. This detail has been used to compile an implementation programme (Chapter 4), which when implemented will ensure environmental compliance for the gold mining industry in South Africa. This mini-dissertation has thus provided the gold mining industry with an overview from which to work in order to become legally compliant with issues pertaining to environmental management in South Africa.

Magister Legum - LLM / In order to address the challenge of global environmental degradation and natural resource depletion, a complex and multi-layered environmental governance structure has materialised over the past few decades. There is widespread agreement that the current international environmental regime is too complex and inadequate to effectively address global environmental challenges. Thus, in order to control the threat of environmental degradation, many countries, authors, commentators and academics alike have opined that one centralised body be created for the effective control and governance of environmental matters on an international level. Governance is not the same as government. It includes the actions of the state and, in addition, encompasses actors such as communities, businesses, and Non-Governmental Organisations (hereafter referred to as NGOs). Within the context of the evolution of global environmental politics and policy, the end goal of global environmental governance is to improve the state of the environment and to eventually lead to the broader goal of sustainable development. The efficacy of global environmental governance will ultimately depend on implementation at global and domestic levels. National implementation is the ultimate key, both to the efficacy of the GEG system and to meaningful environmental improvements. In the following composition, I will critically analyse the concept of a Global Environmental Organisation (hereafter referred to as a GEO) and discuss whether the formation of such an establishment is indeed necessary to handle environmental matters on an international scale.

The objective of this study is to investigate the existing air and noise pollution abatement legislation in Canada as it relates to the air transportation industry, and suggest methods of improving this legislation to meet the future needs and demands of the human environment. A second objective is to provide guidelines for business and government action in the future, and to acquaint the individual with some of the issues of the "environmental era of air transportation." Based on personal interview, an extensive literature search, and the application of business principles, this study addresses the technical, economic and social problems associated with the formulation and implementation of effective environmental legislation. In addition, it discusses the roles of business and government in each of these problem areas. The thesis concludes that the Canadian legal system must undergo structural change to accommodate environmental issues; a 1973 Noise Control Act should be passed; and a federally supported environmental education program should be instituted. Other conclusions include recommendations for increased research on the effects of the sonic boom and inadvertent climate modification, increased international participation in environmental affairs, and an improved market system to reflect environmental goods as scarce resources. This thesis also recommends increased government-industry cooperation in the formulation of technical and nontechnical standards and legislation, to ensure that reasonable and specific criteria are established for noise and air pollution abatement. The most important recommendation of this thesis is that a macro system approach be adopted in environmental management. This approach, which recognizes interactions and feedback in the social, economic and political environment, is vital to the future of Air Transportation and the Human Environment. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

Over the last twenty years, international environmental law has attempted to address the global threats to the health of our planet including ozone layer depletion, climate change, global deforestation, the pollution of freshwater resources and the oceans and species extinction. Unfortunately, the state of the environment is not improving as fast as environmental conventions come forth. The premise for this thesis is therefore that international environmental law is not effective in protecting the natural environment. Responsible for the survival of their families and communities, women in developing countries are the most vulnerable to environmental degradation as dwindling natural and freshwater resources and soil erosion threaten their survival base. Unfortunately, international environmental law does little to acknowledge this vulnerability and even less to assist women in developing countries cope with environmental degradation. The vast knowledge of ecosystems held by women in developing countries is also largely ignored, thus marginalizing their way of knowing and disregarding potential solutions to environmental problems. This thesis therefore takes a critical look from an ecofeminist standpoint at the traditional characteristics of international environmental law such as states' sovereign right to exploit their natural resources, states' right to development and the emphasis of international environmental law on science and technology. The thesis also examines emerging principles of international environmental law such as sustainable development, intergenerational equity, common concern of humankind, and the precautionary principle, which attempt to address some of the concerns raised by the more traditional approach. However, the thesis concludes that despite these new developments, international environmental law is still premised on an androcentric perspective of the natural environment which impedes it from achieving true environmental protection and which serves to continue the marginalization of women. In this thesis, I argue that a new conceptualization of the relationship between humankind and the natural environment is necessary in order to save our planet from ecological disaster and that ecofeminism can offer such an alternative view. Finally, the conclusion will suggest a few concrete ways of including women's perspectives and ways of knowing into the negotiation of environmental conventions and in their implementation. / Law, Peter A. Allard School of / Graduate

As is the case with many countries, Namibia has an economy dependent on fossil fuels. The country is, however, blessed with abundant and diverse - but as yet unexploited - renewable energy (RE) resources that could be used for improving the livelihood of the vast majority of its 2.2 million people. Today the conflict between energy production from fossil fuels and protection of the environment is intensifying and this compels all countries to search for means of resolving this conflict. Developing RE through the enactment of enabling legislation and implementation of relevant policy is one important step towards attaining the ideal of an energy-secure future. This state of affairs is not unique to Namibia, as most countries with abundant RE sources are striving to promote and deploy RE in their respective regimes through appropriate policies and legal frameworks. This study examines Germany and Ghana from, respectively, the developed and developing world, as leading countries that have established a proactive RE regime. However, such a regime can only be successfully achieved if countries, including Namibia, adopt laws and policies that promote and encourage the use of RE in order to move away from fossil fuel dependence to a greener economy. Thus the study seeks to investigate RE resources in Namibia and their potential development. It outlines the current legislation pertaining to the regulation of RE in Namibia. As such, the study further examines the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) guidelines and draws examples from other regimes, particularly Germany and Ghana, in order to provide a guideline for the enactment of a general Energy Act with a particular chapter on RE. It concludes with recommendations as to how Namibia can secure a sustainable energy future.

Land contamination remains a chronic threat to environmental integrity and human health, warranting scrutiny on the effectiveness of the domestic legal regime. South Africa has still to understand the full extent to which it will undermine the country's sustainable development goals and well-being of its population. Contaminated land impacts not only the environment, but it causes socio-economic impacts. In 2009, the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (Act No. 59 of 2008) was enacted with a dedicated contaminated land regime (Part 8 of that Act). Given the importance of regulating contaminated land, a valuable analysis would be to determine whether Part 8 is legislatively adequately to enable the identification, management and rehabilitation of contaminated land. There is, however, a serious lack of information about the extent of land contamination in South Africa. This is evident from its the government's official reporting. There is also little information about the enforcement of the contaminated land regime itself and it is therefore difficult to measure its success. International studies have identified certain legislative best-practice elements for contaminated land regimes. These elements present a good yardstick against which to measure Part 8 of the Waste Act for purposes of determining whether it will enable the identification, management and rehabilitation of contaminated land. This study finds that while Part 8 contains some of the legislative best practices, it mostly falls short and various reforms are recommended.

Investment is globally considered as an expeditious and sustainable method of assuring economic growth and development. The case is no different for The Gambia who has constantly made it its priority to boost its economy and improve the standard of living of its citizens. However, recent economic downturns and global economic instabilities all indicate that The Gambia could be in need of more investment inflows, if her economy is to remain afloat. One idea that has constantly challenged the validity of investment is the sacrifice the environment is made to bear for its increase. Since 2016, this conflict has been exacerbated by the numerous environmental violations committed by investors and their investments in the country. There has been a collective outcry from the communities affected by these violations and The Gambian government seems to find some difficulty in attending to the complaints of these communities as well as pursuing its desire to increase investment inflows. This research therefore aims to discuss the need to balance investment and environmental protection. To achieve this, it specifically focuses on The Gambia’s investment and environmental regimes and examines the ways by which the government can address this conflict. The paper commences by looking into the evolution of both fields and picks out the global attempts that have been made to reconcile the two. It then analyzes the domestic and regional environmental protection regime of The Gambia and assesses its effectiveness in dealing with environmental violations committed by investors. The research further digs into the investment agreements signed by The Gambia and examines whether and how they address environmental and sustainable development considerations. In doing this, it also provides a general overview on how regional and international tribunals view environmental provisions particularly with respect to investment agreements. Finally, this research concludes by proposing recommendations on how The Gambian Government can better balance the two fields as opposed to being placed in a position of choosing one or the other. / Mini Dissertation (LLM (International Trade and Investment Law in Africa))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Centre for Human Rights / LLM (International Trade and Investment Law in Africa) / Unrestricted

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