Issues of open government environmental information research pie

Paper Keywords: environmental Information Environmental Information Disclosure citizens environmental rights
Abstract: At present, open government environmental Information in China is lower, emphasis on confidentiality, to provide environmental Information for the public ways and means too little, lack of procedural guarantees and remedies. For this situation, our government should change aspects of Environmental Information concept, from the current revision and consolidation of information disclosure on environmental Law to start, build system, open system of government environmental information system.

Environmental information disclosure issue was formally raised, is the development of Western countries, the results of the environmental movement 40 years after the .20 century European and American environmental issues become increasingly prominent, and the mass growing environmental movement, and proposed the idea of protection of the public right to know the environment in .1992 Brazil through the <<Rio Declaration>> that: environmental issues are best in the participation of all concerned citizens, to be addressed at the relevant level. States should provide information to facilitate through extensive and encourage public awareness and participation, should be allowed to everyone the effective use of judicial and administrative proceedings, including redress and remedy. The establishment of the principle of environmental information disclosure issues have been universally recognized symbol of the international community.

In recent years, with the development of the environment, in environmental management is to meet the market demands of economic development, the establishment of government-led (mandatory controls), market to promote (market economic instruments), and public participation (public opinion supervision) of the tripartite checks and balances of the new model of environmental management, while the role of market mechanisms and public participation is a prerequisite for full enjoyment of public or social environmental information. Therefore, the environmental information disclosure issues of growing importance in all aspects of society.

First, the government's Central and Wan Yong Yong information superiority need for information disclosure
1. Government's environmental information superiority
As the main defenders of social welfare, the government has the resources and public organizations, many public systems, in terms of access to environmental information has many advantages, mainly reflected in: (1) The Government have better means of gathering environmental information, the environmental information collection can through environmental monitoring, environmental impact assessment, permit system and the specific field of the environment reporting system required by such measures, which provide access to environmental information for the government a more adequate means. (2) The Government and the environment all over the country the field of administration. these bodies is an important function of the environmental information collection and processing of a wide range of information sources to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information collected, thus the hands of the government than other sources of environmental information environment more authoritative information. (3) The Government as owner of public power, in the amount of information collected in a dominant position, and the protection of the legal system makes government more accessible to information gathering in deeper levels of information, there help the government in decisions relating to the environment were.

2. The need for open government environmental information
Government of the advantages of its own resources and have a strong position to make access to environmental information in the dominant position in the natural, this will lead to the Government and the public information in the possession of environmental imbalance. If the information held by the government to take its monopolies and closed attitude of the public will access the information in a passive situation, which negates the active public participation in environmental affairs and extensive. Meanwhile, inadequate public access to information so that the public can not make the right judgments, not Implementation and effective communication and cooperation with the government, will eventually lead to functional failure of public participation. The Government closed the information lost with the monopoly of public access to environmental information, the normal channels, between Government and the public have serious information asymmetry, public participation process which led to both a fair opportunity to state impairment. their access to information based on government monopoly, government action is also vulnerable in a closed state, thus the lack of public awareness and monitoring of the emergence of alienation. the mutual information public, especially the public government information in order to form the two sides trust each other to protect the basic equality of opportunity.

From the constitutional point of view, the Government's power comes from the public, the government used these powers to obtain the environmental information is a public property, public right of equal access. The government of public authority carried out various Environmental Protection activities, the public should also be there is a corresponding right to know. Therefore, the government information is "popular sovereignty" principle embodied the field of state administration, which collect information for the cost savings of the people and promote economic development, and monitoring the government, to ensure fair and democratic administration, particularly is to prevent government corruption will play a positive role.

Chinese industry has joined the World Trade Organization, through the <"World Trade Organization Agreement>> legal documents is an important principle that" government transparency "rule, that is, the principle of open government information. This principle includes the environmental aspects of trade-related Laws system and the relevant government information public. The Government should follow the rules and requirements of WTO and timely government information open to the public, so that a greater range of information play a role, to better serve China's economic and social development.

Second, our government the status of environmental information
1. Fundamental Analysis
In our country, especially in recent years the government has the courage or sensitive for some serious environmental problems to be disclosed, such as the increasingly serious problem of dust storms in the media have been discussed in public. At present, China government environmental information mainly in: ( 1) Public disclosure of information. If environmental quality bulletin, focusing on key river basin water quality weekly section, urban air quality weekly, daily, prediction, etc.; (2) significant pollution incident emergency communications; (3) the central and local Environmental Protection departments at all levels the implementation of the Government Online Project and government affairs. since 1998, including environmental supervision of the implementation of government affairs (including public offices and personnel as such, open work systems and work procedures, open sewage charges, public administrative punishment and public hotlines and complaints department of five) and pilot pollution charges of administrative affairs.

These practices no doubt the government the amount of information voluntarily disclosed more than in the past to promote the transparency of government operations. But on the whole, our government environmental information is only in its infancy.

2. Our government environmental information disclosure problems
(1) The emphasis on environmental information confidential, openness is low. In the United States has a relatively sound national environmental information system, open a general principle, not open is the exception, in addition to the statutory involving national security, trade secrets, and a few other environmental information In addition, most of the environmental information is public. In most of our government to grasp the information in a relatively closed environment or idle state, many involving the normative documents of public interest by the government sector as the only enforcement of internal regulations, without to the public. because of the confidential files of government environmental information other than whether the public has not been a scientific understanding and uniform requirements, resulting in a number of non-confidential documents in a timely manner through formal channels is difficult to open to the public.

(2) Government to provide environmental information for the community ways and means less, the public demand for high-quality environmental information is not effectively met, the main problem is the public free access to environmental information has not been established mechanisms for regular. In a foreign country, the Government disclosure of environmental information the way there are two categories: active disclosure by Law, the administrative organ of various regulatory documents, in accordance with legal procedures to the public; open upon application, that the public interest with their own environmental information relevant government agencies to apply to the relevant open and use. At present, China's way of open government environmental information more single, and only through the initiative of the Government Gazette, the media, conferences and other forms of information disclosure, no application for the establishment and implementation of Civil and open environment, according to information. civic and social administrative authority for organizations to provide environmental information is generally difficult to meet, which leads to high quality environmental information the public needs can not be effectively met.

(3) public access to environmental information, lack of protection and relief procedures. Abroad on government (environment) information disclosure is more stringent procedural requirements, there are procedures for citizens to apply for an open Executive Council open process, and defined the public in its access to public (environmental) information rights have been violated by administrative and judicial means to obtain relief. In our country, even in the government information disclosure provisions of the Law are also scattered few procedural requirements of information disclosure, while citizens not work for (environmental) information and no relief means and ways, the program is extremely plaque on the lack of security. reposted elsewhere in the Research Papers Download http://www.hi138.com (4) the current existence of the implementation of environmental government affairs obviously insufficient. the implementation of environmental government affairs to the administrative department of Environmental Protection work style has been greatly improved, to provide environmental information to the public on the amount of increase than in the past, but the effect is not satisfactory. administrative affairs in many parts of the environment Although the great momentum, but the lack of the basic content of environmental information disclosure, the content of all public administration to decide by the Environmental Protection, the public no choice, really want to know some of the stakeholders with their own environmental information is still difficult. Thus, the environment the one hand, government affairs to the public the benefits and convenience brought about with a wide gap between public expectations, the other hand, the public is difficult to really participate in environmental management and environmental monitoring to the public nature of their poor response. The Government Online Project for the rapid dissemination of environmental information provides advanced tools, but also for open government environmental information available to accelerate the hardware conditions. but has exposed some problems, if any, role of government environmental site dislocation, assumed the function of specialized portals; some government websites in repeated news media; from central to local government websites of Environmental Protection to varying degrees, almost all of the information age-old question exists; individual environmental government websites in addition to the website home page _ and several columns on the name, almost do not see any actual content, a "short website", and its purpose is not to open for the public to provide more environmental information services, but merely to meet the online debut of "image projects."
Overall, the current environment of administrative affairs of the environmental administrative authorities almost no binding force, either from the point of view, or from the public point of view, the government environment, government affairs are often the public "alms or gifts," a government monopoly environment the concept of information has not fundamentally changed. Therefore, the environment so that our government has not publicly open government environmental information qualitative change.


Third, to promote open government environmental information countermeasures and suggestions
1. The concept of open government environmental information and location change
(1) Government ownership of environmental information should belong to all citizens. The Government in the exercise of administrative power of Environmental Protection throughout the process of generation and collection of environmental information and environmental information collection, processing power, _L fundamentally speaking, are based on the taxpayer support for the cost, so that environmental information should be known to all citizens. From the perspective of democracy, environmental management, environment, public and elected exists between the administrative authorities of a "principal-agent" relationship. because the environment resources is a "public property", any person who is not its possession, control and damage f} l (} m), on behalf of all citizens must be the will of the institutions to manage, so as to benefit the environment to maintain the quality of public property and increase the public can process through judicial or administrative supervision of its} z7 (r} oa), which in the public and Environmental Protection between the administrative authorities for the formation of a "principal-agent" relationship, the agent (administrative department for Environmental Protection) should act as the principal (the public) are known.

Therefore, the Government has a fundamental environmental information to all citizens of all public property, citizens and therefore deserve the right to know the government environmental information, environmental information the government does not have a monopoly of legitimacy.

(2) Environmental information disclosure is the general, confidentiality is the exception. One and the aforementioned "principal-agent" relationship fit, civic and government administrative departments of Environmental Protection at all times there is a corresponding "power of a responsibility" between In this relationship is the role behind the interests and needs of citizens. Civil government entrusted the exercise of the powers of environmental management to meet the needs of their own interests, affecting the vital interests of citizens in decision-making and management activities should be aware of the meaning of nature is the question of , and the relevant government functions corresponding to the environment is the citizens right to information, environmental information and therefore the government should bear the administrative department of Environmental Protection legal responsibilities and obligations. The government should follow the confidentiality of information is beneficial to public interest purposes, mainly may harm the interests of members for various actions, such responsibility is the protection of the rights of citizens of the corresponding. However, due to both historical and traditional concept of confidentiality has been in our government (environment) information processing in the occupied primacy of the government (environment) the general principles of information processing, has become a special principle of open, causing the dislocation of government responsibilities.

(3) citizen oversight of government administrative departments of environmental protection is based on a comprehensive environmental information disclosure. Public participation in environmental management and supervision according to environmental rights acts of the executive branch must be fully acquainted with the environment can be achieved on the basis of the information. Without it, public participation in environmental management will only be in "the participation of for-nature" level [f31, without which public awareness of environmental supervision and management authorities will be unable to move. Therefore, the public participation in environmental management and monitoring of their effectiveness depends on the government the extent of environmental information disclosure, and the extent of open government environmental information also reflects the Government to accept public participation in environmental management and environmental monitoring of the initiative, thus reflecting the degree of social democracy.

2. Construction of the system of government environmental information system
The concept of change and positioning the end to the appropriate system to implement the system. China has some information about the government (environment) information disclosure requirements, scattered in a few Laws, rules, regulations and policy provisions, but has not yet formed a system of institutional system. In this sense, China's government (environment) is an information disclosure system, built the first question. in the construction process, the interests of all parties will be inevitably a difficult game and balance and ultimately the balance of interests reflected in government environmental information system, open system, open system of government the construction of environmental information will be a gradual process.

Environmental information from some developed countries, the evolution of public history and trends, build open government environmental information system for the final have shown signs of environmental information disclosure for the special laws, such as the United States <<sunlight Government Act "" and "<Information Free Law "> UK <" Environmental Information Regulations>>, Germany <"Environmental Information Act">, Canada <<Information Disclosure Act "" and "" Environmental Impact Assessment Law "> other [[4]. The China only in the "<Environmental Protection Act >>,<< Cleaner Production Promotion Law"> and a few other laws related to the content of environmental information disclosure, which can not adapt to environmental management is far from democracy, public disclosure requirements of the environment. Therefore, How to organically integrate existing scattered on environmental information disclosure law, drawing on some of the advanced countries of Western ideas in this regard, principles, technical and other experience, suitable for China to develop an open government environmental information specific law, the to open government environmental information not only as a system, but as an idea, penetrate into government operations, transparency in government and Civil environment for the implementation of the right to lay a foundation. reposted elsewhere in the Research Papers Download http://www. hi138.com