Environmental Governance in China. Recommendations of a Task Force

Abstract This article is a condensed version of the report by the Task Force on Environmental Governance of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). The report was ordered by the council in 2004, prepared at numerous Task Force meetings in 2005 and 2006, and presented to the Chinese Premier, the government and the general public in Beijing in November, 2006. It consists of 25 major recommendations, elaborated in a framework of four major issue areas: improving governmental capacity to enforce environmental laws and regulations; engaging the business sector to take a proactive role in environmental management; engaging civil society in environmental observation and protection; establishing greater polity coherence and capacity vis-à-vis international environmental issues. The structure of the Task Force, its major output, and relevant literature are documented here to provide opportunities for further study and communication on an important task of our time - effective environmental governance.