Organization: Arizona State University
Date: Tuesday, 7 Apr 1992 16:21:54 MST
From: <ASPRA@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Newsgroups: talk.environment
Subject:    Kathmandu Declaration

KATHMANDU DECLARATION ON ENVIRONMENT AND LAW


We, as individual participants at this International Conference on
Environment and Law at Kathmandu on 8 March 1992, from 21
countries around the world, and especially from the Asian region


Concerned to ensure that the interests and unique problems of
lower income countries and the traditional knowledge of their
peoples will be adequately represented at the United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development; and


Further concerned to ensure that global, regional, national
and local environmental issues should be effectively addressed and
resolved through international conventions, regional initiatives
national legal systems, institutional reform and local actions,


CALL FOR


A.   AT THE INTERNATIONAL LEVEL:


1.   Opening up law-making processes, ensuring the more effective
participation of lower income countries, interested
communities, non-government organisations and individuals,
and in particular, women, indigenous peoples and youth, in
the formulation and implementation of conventions and other
international instruments.


2.   Reform of international economic, financial and trade
structures to eliminate poverty, malnutrition and
underdevelopment and to increase the capacity of lower income
countries to effectively restore and conserve their
environments.


3.   Legally binding instruments to ensure that transnational
corporations prevent environmental damage, and, in the case
of accidents, pay adequate compensation for personal injuries
and environmental damage.


4.   Strong international instruments for the preservation of
biodiversity, including provision for effective control over
biological resources, in particular by lower income
countries, the unrestricted access to and the transfer of
relevant technologies and specific additional funding
mechanisms to conserve biological diversity in lower income
countries.


5.   International instruments on the effective protection of the
atmosphere and climate change, reflecting the primary
responsibility of higher income, industrialized countries to
prevent and reduce environmental degradation and the misuse
of the world's natural resources.


6.   Steps to be taken to provide the legal basis for improvement
of improve the living conditions for all people who depend
directly on the use of natural resources to sustain life, and
to enhance the availability of renewable natural resources,
so as to lessen the economic and ecological pressure which
leads to deforestation and exhaustion of the soil, such
measures to include subsidies for relevant technologies.


B.   AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL:


7.   The development of regional treaties on the environment
reflecting the needs, aspirations and concerns of lower
income countries, based on principles of sustainable
development.


8.   The establishment of regional environmental mechanisms,
including financial, research and training facilities, to
support ecologically sustainable development projects.


9.   The establishment of regional dispute resolution mechanisms
based on mediation and cooperation.


10.  The establishment of regional dispute resolution mechanisms
based on arbitration, mediation and cooperation to address
transboundary environmental disputes.


11.  The commencement of immediate negotiations for a Convention
for the SAARC region, dealing with, among other things:


(i)  environmental cooperation;

(ii) transboundary pollution;

(iii)     transboundary environmental impact assessment;

(iv) community-based management of shared international and
national resources including equitable allocation and use of
those resources, with special attention to the concerns of
women;

(v)  mechanisms for environmental dispute resolution;

(vi) access to information and public participation;

(vii)     management of natural and human-made environmental hazards
and calamities

(viii)    mechanisms to assist in the reform of national laws,
including their implementation, monitoring and enforcement,
including the establishment of environmental study centres
within higher education institutions; and

(ix) environmental education at both formal and informal
levels.


12.  The establishment of mechanisms to assist environmental
refugees, including resettlement and safe repatriation.


C.   AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL:


13.  The inclusion in national constitutions of an enforceable
right to a clean and healthy environment, and of a
governmental duty to protect the environment and the fair and
equitable allocation and use of natural resources, taking
into special account the needs of the underprivileged.


14.  The opening-up of processes of environmental law-making by
involvement of individuals, communities and non-government
organisations, and in particular, women, indigenous peoples
and youth in the formulation, implementation and enforcement
of environmental laws.


15.  The introduction, review and reform of legislation and
establishment of effective institutions relating to
environmental planning, environmental impact assessment,
pollution control and natural and cultural heritage
conservation, including the development of minimum standards
of environmental protection, based on the principles of
sustainable development, and the inclusion in all
environmental legislation of mechanisms for formal and
informal environmental education, access to relevant
information, freedom of speech, public participation and
standing to sue.


16.  Governments of all countries to desist from initiating,
encouraging and owning industries and development projects
which may significantly damage the environment.


17.  Recognition of the important role played by customary law and
practices in the management of natural resources and the
conservation of the environment.


D.   AT COMMUNITY AND INDIVIDUAL LEVEL


18.  The recognition of the right of communities to manage their
natural and cultural resources, in a manner compatible with
principles of ecologically sustainable development and within
the framework of their national legal system as well as the
responsibility of formulating their own community codes of
conduct regarding maintenance of a healthy and clean
environment in and around residential areas and in the
locality.


19.  Environmental education at a local level, emphasising both
legal rights and responsibilities of citizens regarding the
environment.


20.  The recognition that each individual has a responsibility for
the world's environment and to assume a conscious commitment
to a lifestyle which imposes the least adverse impact on the
environment.
Newsgroups: talk.environment