Because environmental enforcement has its foundation in action at the national level, States can and should take into account the unique nature of their legal system, as well as their culture and institutional capacity in designing and adopting enforcement measures. An effective national environmental regime will require well-developed laws and regulations, a sufficient institutional framework, national coordination, training to enhance enforcement capabilities, and public environmental awareness and education.
There are many ways to develop an effective national environmental regime, and they can include a variety of tools advancing various objectives. The following discussion:
- surveys the general classes of environmental management tools that can be used to implement MEAs;
- discusses some of the objectives that these tools are designed to address; and
- examines how a State can develop an environmental regime that uses the different tools effectively and appropriately.
Environmental Management Tools To Implement MEAs
An environmental regime can use many different tools. As noted above, these can include binding laws and regulations, environmental taxes and subsidies, public awareness, and other tools. For the purposes of this Manual, these tools are classified into three broad groupings of tools: legal, economic, and voluntary tools. These are described in more detail below.