Case Study of the legislative process of National Environmental Basic Act in Taiwan

• Main Authors: Teng,Ming, 鄧銘
• Other Authors: Trai Shar-Kao
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2003
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/73534803983144743713

碩士 === 臺北市立師範學院 === 環境教育研究所 === 91 === Abstract Due to Taiwan’s environmental problems emerge in an endless stream, several environmental polices have been set up since 1980s. However, it was the most changing period for Taiwan in politics, economy and society. Many new environmental problems come out one after another, and these challenged the government and civil. At that time, the authority laid particular stress on economic development and ignored the development of Taiwan’s ecological balance. Although Taiwan had the ideal to legislate the Public Nuisance Prevention Basic in 1982, it was not until the Environmental Protection Administration was established in 1987 that the Environmental Protection Basic Act was drawn up in 1988. Then it delivered to the Legislation Yuan for discussion, and finally passed under a unanimous agreement among the members of the Congress in 2002. After the National Environmental Basic Act was proposed in 1988, it procrastinated 15 years to complete the legislative procedure. It is worthy of exploring the progress and elements. The main purpose of this research is to explore the Taiwan’s National Environmental Basic Act agenda’s process for being the references of successive relative acts. Due to the characteristics and needs, this research adopts qualitative research means, including historical research, participating observation, profound interview. In order to collect the relevant data, the historical documents were arranged, classified, compared, induced and analyzed. At the same time, taking notes from participating the discussion and negotiation in the Legislative Yuan is also an important evidence for researcher’s survey. Moreover, during the interviews the researcher selected representative experts, scholars, civil environmental protection group delegates, congressmen and their assistants, key administrative directors and staff of the Environmental Protection Administration and the Legislative Yuan. After the analysis, the result found three characteristics. Firstly, in the past the content of Taiwan’s National Environmental Basic Act was altered by the domestic society and international environment transition and difference in dealing with environmental problems. Secondly, the procrastination of National Environmental Basic Act was resulted from the factor of human, such as legislators’ lack of expertise, conflicts between individual profits, flaws of system design and political considerations. Thirdly, legislators should give consideration to the difficulties of administrative units when legislating. And the administrative units should exclude every barrier while draw up the executive projects and implement all-out. In sum, 21 century is a global village era. The National Environmental Basic Act has a great influence on a nation’s image. With National Environmental Basic Act, we can connect with the international joint pledge. It also represents a maturity index of the general public’s environmental accomplishments. Finally, this research proposes several suggestions as follows. Firstly, after the law has been announced, there should be some amendments. Whatever greater or less urgency, time table should be made or it will leave empty talk. Secondly, the expertise of legislator assistants are still insufficient, the information of congress itself is also not complete. The government has the responsibility to provide the latest news for the legislators and their staff members. Thirdly, when the Legislative Yuan recruits new members, it should consider a certain ratio with dual administration and law background or law and environment in order to enhance the quality of environmental legislation. Fourthly, although the National Environmental Basic Act has announced and carried out, the relevant out-of-date clauses have caused public attention. The research suggests convening a National Environmental Basic Act amendment group for making more forward-looking and global view laws.