Abstract
Based on the review of international law and national laws relating to site contamination in earlier chapters, this chapter considers the need to promote specific legislation on the issue at the domestic level. The conclusion is drawn that existing ‘site contamination law’ does not adequately cover all aspects of site contamination management. In addition, recent changes in the approach to remediation in some countries (e.g., voluntary and ‘privatised’ cleanups, and contaminants remaining on-site) necessitate a comprehensive national framework. The case for harmonisation is considered in detail, in particular whether it is both appropriate and feasible to promote a harmonised approach to site contamination. Various types of harmonisation are identified, with reference to specific initiatives for legal harmonisation on other environmental issues.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Ancel M (1976) From the unification of law to its harmonization. Tulane Law Rev 51:108
Backer LC (ed) (2007) Harmonizing law in an era of globalization: convergence, divergence, and resistance. Carolina Academic Press, Durham
Bedner A (2008) Amalgamating environmental law in Indonesia. In: Arnscheidt J, van Rooij B, Otto JM (eds) Lawmaking for development: explorations into the theory and practice of international legislative projects. Leiden University Press, Leiden, pp 171–198
Berveling S (2005) Legal issues regarding the sustainable management of contaminated soils with examples from Australia. Paper presented to the international workshop on strategies, science and law for the conservation of the world soil resources, Selfoss, Iceland, 14–18 September 2005
Boer B, Hannam I (2011) A background paper for World Conservation Congress – IUCN Commission on Environmental Law – workshop on a soil convention. Paper presented to the 3rd worldwide conference on environmental law NGOs and Lawyers, Limoges, France, 29 September–1 October 2011
Busch PO, Jörgens H (2005) The international sources of policy convergence: explaining the spread of environmental policy innovations. J Eur Public Policy 12(5):860–884
Busch PO, Jörgens H, Tews K (2005) The global diffusion of regulatory instruments: the making of a new international environmental regime. Ann Am Acad Pol Soc Sci 598:146–167
Cairney T, Hobson DM (eds) (1998) Contaminated land: problems and solutions, 2nd edn. Routledge/Taylor & Francis, London
Connaughton JL (2002) The United States federal government and its uptake of the ISO 14000 series of environmental management standards. Office of the Federal Environmental Executive
David R (1968) The methods of unification. Am J Comp Law 16:13–27
deLisle J (1999) Lex Americana? United States legal assistance, American legal models, and legal change in the post-Communist world and beyond. Univ Pa J Int Econ Law 20:179–308
Eccleston CH (2008) NEPA and environmental planning: tools, techniques and approaches for practitioners. CRC Press, Boca Raton
Elkins Z, Simmons B (2005) On waves, clusters and diffusions: a conceptual framework. Ann Am Acad Pol Soc Sci 598:33–51
European Environment Agency (2007) CSI 015: progress in management of contaminated sites, Copenhagen
European Parliament (2006) Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a framework for the protection of soil, COM (2006) 232 final, Brussels
European Parliament (Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety) (2007) Report on the Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection. A6-0411/2007 (24 October 2007), Brussels
Fazio S (2007) The harmonization of international commercial law. Kluwer Law International, The Hague
Ferguson CC (1999) Assessing risks from contaminated sites: policy and practice in 16 European countries. Land Contam Reclam 7(2):33–54
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2000) Assessing soil contamination: a reference manual
Gerwitz P (2003) The US-China rule of law initiative. William & Mary Bill Rights J 11:603–621
Gkoutzinis A (2005) How far is Basel from Geneva? International regulatory convergence and the elimination of barriers to international financial integration. Working paper series, Social Science Research Network
GlaxoSmithKline (2002) The impact of medicines: sustainability in environment, health and safety report, in The impact of medicines: corporate social responsibility report 2002. Middlesex, United Kingdom
Guzman AT (2002) Introduction: international regulatory harmonization. Chic J Int Law 3(2):271
Guzman AT (2003) The case for international antitrust. Boalt working papers in public law no. 10. Berkeley, University of California
Hannam I, Boer B (2004) Drafting legislation for sustainable soils: a guide. IUCN Environmental policy and law paper no. 52. Gland, Switzerland: International Union for the Conservation of Nature
Harvard Kennedy School, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation (2006). Adopting ISO-9000 standards in government offices. Available at http://www.innovations.harvard.edu/awards.html?id=31061
Held M, Kümmerer K, Odendahl K (1998) Preserving soils for life: the Tutzing project “Time ecology”. In: Proposal for a convention on sustainable use of soils. Ökom Verlag, Munich
Hollins M, Percy S (1998) Environmental liability for contaminated land – towards a European consensus. Land Use Policy 15(2):119–133
International Organization for Standardization (2012) About ISO. Available at http://www.iso.org/iso/about.htm
International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission (2004). Standardization and related activities – general vocabulary, Geneva
Jörgens H (2003) Governance by diffusion – implementing global norms through cross-national imitation and learning. FFU report no. 07–2003, Environmental Policy and Research Centre, Freie Universität Berlin
Kamba WJ (1974) Comparative law: a theoretical framework. Int Comp Law Q 23(3):485–519
Knill C (2005) Introduction: cross-national policy convergence – concepts, approaches and explanatory factors. J Eur Public Policy 12(5):764–774
Lawrence D, Lee RG (2003) Permitting uncertainty: owners, occupiers and responsibility for remediation. Mod Law Revi 66:261–276
Layard A (2006) The Europeanisation of contaminated land. In: Betlem G, Brans E (eds) Environmental liability in the EU: the 2004 directive compared with US and member state law. Cameron May, London, pp 129–147
McAusland C (2005) Harmonizing tailpipe policy in symmetric countries: improve the environment, improve welfare? J Environ Econ Manage 50:229–251
North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Committee on the Challenges of Modern Society (2007) Report of the pilot study meeting: prevention and remediation in selected industrial sectors – sediments, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Pistor K (2002) The standardization of law and its effect on developing economies. Am J Comp Law 50(1):97–130
Pitt HL, Groskaufmanis KA (1990) Minimizing corporate civil and criminal liability: a second look at corporate codes of conduct. Georget Law J 78:1559–1654
Polach JG (1959) Harmonization of laws in Western Europe. Am J Comp Law 8:148–167
Raustiala K (2002) The architecture of international cooperation: transgovernmental networks and the future of international law. Working paper no. 02–005. Princeton University Program in Law and Public Affairs
Rio Tinto (2008) Environment standard E5: hazardous materials and contamination control, London
Rogers EM (2003) Diffusion of innovations. Free Press, New York
Stevens C (1993) Harmonization, trade and the environment. Int Environ Aff 5(1):42–49
Stone D (2001) Learning lessons, policy transfer and the international diffusion of policy ideas. Working paper no. 69/01. Centre for the Study of the Globalisation and Regionalisation, University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Twining W (2004) Diffusion of law: a global perspective. J Leg Plur 49:1–45
Uniform Law Commission (2012) Environmental Covenants Act – enactment status map. Available at http://uniformlaws.org/Act.aspx?title=Environmental%20Covenants%20Act
United Nations Environment Programme Governing Council (1987) Goals and principles of environmental impact assessment. UN Doc. UNEP/GC.14/25 (1987)
United Nations Environment Programme, Center for International Environmental Law (2007) Elements of good practice in legal frameworks for the implementation of the Stockholm Convention on POPs in Latin America
United Nations Environment Programme/French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) (2005) Identification and management of contaminated sites: a methodological guide, 2nd edn, ADEME Editions, Paris
United Nations Environment Programme, International Council on Metals and the Environment (2002) International cyanide management code for the manufacture, transport and use of cyanide in the production of gold
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (2010) UNIDO contaminated site investigation and management toolkit. Available at http://www.unido.org/index.php?id=1001169
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (2012) Online materials and e-learning for contaminated sites. Available at http://www.unido.org/index.php?id=5157
Wirth DA (2007) The EU’s new impact on US environmental regulation. Boston College Law School research paper no. 144, Boston College, Massachusetts
Woodman S (2003) Bilateral aid to improve human rights. China Perspectives, 51. Available at http://chinaperspectives.revues.org/document788.html
World Bank (1998) Pollution prevention and abatement handbook. World Bank, Washington, DC
World Bank (2000) Operational policy 4.02/Bank procedure 4.02: environmental action plans, Washington, DC
World Bank (2007) Bank procedure 4.01: environmental assessment Washington, DC
Legal Materials
Espoo Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (1991) Opened for signature 25 February 1991, 1989 UNTS 309 (entry into force 10 September 1997)
Executive Order No 13148 on Greening the Government Through Leadership in Environmental Management, issued by President William J Clinton on 26 April 2000, Federal Register vol 61 no 81, 24595
National Environmental Policy Act 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321–4347 (United States)
Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council, on the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals [2006] OJ L 396 (‘REACH’) (entry into force 1 June 2007)
Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, A/CONF.151/26 (vol I), United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3–14 June 1992
Toxic Substances Control Act 1976, 15 USC 2601–2692 (United States)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Brandon, E. (2013). Promoting National Site Contamination Law: The Challenge of Harmonisation. In: Global Approaches to Site Contamination Law. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5745-5_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5745-5_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-5744-8
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-5745-5
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)