A critical review of the successful CFC phase-out versus the delayed methyl bromide phase-out in the Montreal Protocol

The Montreal Protocol is often described as an international environmental agreement par excellence. After all, it successfully led to the phase-out of almost 95% of all chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) use. A critical review of the Protocol’s history, however, suggests that its successes are deeply entrenched in the economic opportunities that were made available to phase out CFCs. The Montreal Protocol, in other words, was a “best-case scenario” for CFC producers. This may be problematic for policymakers, ecological modernization practitioners, and other scholars who look to the Montreal Protocol for guidance in phasing out other global environmentally harmful substances and practices that are not as “economically efficient.” The shift to delay the phasing out of methyl bromide (MeBr) in the Protocol, an ozone-depleting substance used to this day primarily in strawberry and tomato production, demonstrates how even this most successful of international environmental agreements can become subject to significant setbacks when economic gains and scientific evidence are not obvious to the global powers. Furthermore, changes in what constitutes a viable exemption to the phase-out of CFCs versus MeBr marks a shift away from concern for the general functioning/welfare of society, and toward concern for the market performance of specific individuals. This shift runs parallel to a lack in economic incentives to phase out MeBr in the United States. The article demonstrates how civil society representation in ozone politics is largely dominated by industry interests, especially when scientific uncertainty is high.     

The Strategic Use of Demand‐side Diversity Pressure in the Solicitors' Profession

There has been a long line of official initiatives seeking to address the poor record of the solicitors' profession on diversity. One of the latest, the Law Society's 2009 Diversity Charter and Protocol, attempts to harness client pressure as a way of bringing about change. The objective of the paper is to assess this strategic use of ‘demand‐side diversity pressure’ in the solicitors' profession, contextualizing the strategy and using different perspectives to assess it. The paper first considers the strategy as a development of ‘business case’ arguments for diversity and explores the implications of scholarly objections to this approach. Secondly, the paper uses empirical data from the City law firm sector to explore the nature and practical effects of demand‐side diversity pressures within law firms. I conclude by considering the prospects of the Law Society's scheme having a meaningful effect, factoring in the possible effects of the ongoing global economic crisis.     

Use of ozone-depleting substances; removal of essential use designations; confirmation of effective date. Direct final rule; confirmation of effective date

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is confirming the effective date of April 23, 2007, for the direct final rule that appeared in the Federal Register of December 7, 2006 (71 FR 70870). The direct final rule amends the regulation to remove beclomethasone, dexamethasone, fluticasone, bitolterol, salmeterol, ergotamine tartrate, and ipratropium bromide, used in oral pressurized metered-dose inhalers, from the list of essential uses of ozone-depleting substances. None of these products is currently being marketed. This document confirms the effective date of the direct final rule.     

Ozone Partnerships,the Construction of Regulatory Communities,and the Future of Global Regulatory Power*

This article describes our effort to understand the Montreal Protocol as an unconventional approach to regulation, one that encourages the construction of volunteer partnerships, episodic networks, and regulatory communities comprised of public and private actors criss-crossing institutional and national boundaries. We examine three provisions of the Protocol that give official governments and private global corporations latitude to create temporary arrangements that leap beyond their typical institutional constraints. The provisions that promote collaboration are the use of trade sanctions as an incentive to cooperate; the creation of the Interim Multilateral Ozone Fund (IMOF), the funding mechanism that links the fate of developed and developing nations; and, the establishment of an international clearinghouse to share technology for reducing ozone depleting substances. Singly and together these mechanisms of coercion, exchange, and normative pressure permit individual actor's interests to be pursued, bind them into ephemeral but replicable networks of action, and result in the creation of the very meaning of regulatory compliance and effectiveness. The discussion draws out the implications of a transcorporate definition of power and global problem solving as it relates to democratic reliance on the political sovereignty of individual actors and nations.     

Use of ozone-depleting substances; removal of essential-use designations. Final rule

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is amending its regulation on the use of ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) in self-pressurized containers to remove the essential-use designations for albuterol used in oral pressurized metered-dose inhalers (MDIs). Under the Clean Air Act, FDA, in consultation with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is required to determine whether an FDA-regulated product that releases an ODS is an essential use of the ODS. Two albuterol MDIs that do not use an ODS have been marketed for more than 3 years. FDA has determined that the two non-ODS MDIs will be satisfactory alternatives to albuterol MDIs containing ODSs and is removing the essential-use designation for albuterol MDIs as of December 31, 2008. Albuterol MDIs containing an ODS cannot be marketed after this date.     

Linkages between the Montreal and Kyoto Protocols – Enhancing Synergies between Protecting the Ozone Layer and the Global Climate

The international treaties for the protection of the ozone layer and the global climate are closely related. Not only has the Montreal Protocol for the protection of the ozone layer served as a useful example in developing the international climate regime, but policies pursued in both issue areas influence each other. This paper gives an overview of the many ways in which both treaty systems are linked functionally and politically. It investigates, in particular, the tension that has arisen with respect to the use of fluorinated greenhouse gases and the potential for drawing on the experience under the Montreal Protocol regarding data reporting and policy design on fluorinated greenhouse gases under the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The potentials for enhancing synergy in these areas are explored, and related options discussed. Some initiatives for exploiting these potentials are already underway, aiming in particular at enhancing learning and exchanging of information. However, political choices concerning some of the issues willeventually need to be made, if action at the international level is to contribute to their solution.     

业主撤销诉讼当事人研究——兼评最高人民法院两个司法解释的相关规定

《物权法》第78条第二款规定业主有权对业主大会或业主委员会的不当决定请求人民法院予以撤销,规定过于简单,没有明确撤销的效果、请求撤销的期限,缺乏可操作性,无法应对现实生活中复杂多变的情况。撤销诉讼中原告一般应限于具有业主身份者,但在特殊情况下也应扩及房屋所有权人的继承人以及房屋的实际管理、使用人等。作为被告的业主大会或者业主委员会的诉讼主体资格存在疑问,目前可以考虑通过司法解释来解决这个问题。     

充分发挥宪法在中国特色社会主义建设中的法制保障作用——纪念我国1982年《宪法》颁布30周年

2012年12月4日,是我国现行《宪法》颁布实施30周年的纪念日。现行宪法被公认为是新中国建立以来制定的最好的宪法,其全面规定了中国特色社会主义经济政治文化和社会建设的主要任务和基本内容,对于我们建设中国特色社会主义市场经济、社会主义民主政治、社会主义先进文化和社会主义和谐社会,具有重要的法制保障作用。     

'Alive and Kicking': The First Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol

Long confined to the realm of political uncertainty, the Kyoto Protocol finally entered into force on 16 February 2005. As for its substantive bearing, however, the Protocol is, at best, an initial framework for more detailed rules deferred to later Meetings of the Parties. Convening for the first time in Montreal, Canada, from 28 November to 9 December 2005, the Kyoto Protocol's Meeting of the Parties decided on important operational aspects of the Protocol, approving the Marrakesh Accords and thereby implementing the Protocol's flexibility mechanisms and compliance regime. Arguably of even greater magnitude was the agreement to engage in consultations on future mitigation commitments, notably with a view to the period after 2012, when current commitments expire. This article outlines principal decisions passed at the meeting in Montreal, affirming that, while daunting challenges still lie ahead, one thing has now been shown for certain: contrary to many premature obituaries, the Kyoto Protocol is anything but dead.     

论GATT 1994第20条对中国加入议定书的可适用性——由“中国原材料出口限制措施案”引发的思考

GATT 1994能否适用于成员方加入议定书是WTO当前面临的一个制度性问题。"中国原材料出口限制措施案"的专家组报告拒绝了中国将GATT1994第20条适用于中国加入WTO议定书第11条第3款的主张。专家组报告的结论存在若干可以商榷之处:采用了过于僵化、机械的文本解释规则,而忽视了其他解释规则和方法;对出口配额与出口税的区别对待损害了WTO法的统一性,也违背了WTO及其成员的基本立场;没有客观看待《议定书》与GATT1994及WTO其他协定之间的关系,错误地割裂了WTO各协定之间的逻辑联系。中国应在提出上诉的同时要求WTO部长会议或总理事会就GATT1994与成员方加入议定书的关系问题作出权威解释。     

论《私营企业暂行条例》的存与废

《私营企业暂行条例》自1988年颁布实施以来已经23年有余,其立法的背景和实施的环境早已发生了根本性的改变,更重要的是该条例的相应规定很多都已过时,且与其后出台的很多法律相矛盾、相冲突,尤其是《公司法》、《合伙企业法》和《个人独资企业法》相继单独立法并颁布施行后,《私营企业暂行条例》失去了存在的根基.因此,及时废止《私营企业暂行条例》是必然的选择.尤其是不能任“暂行”条例无限期地暂行下去,以确保立法的科学性和严肃性.     

Sources of Structural Change and Output Growth of China's Economy: 1987-92

This paper examines the sources of structural changes in output growth of China’s economy over 1987–92 using a decomposition method within the input-output (IO) framework. The model uses three comparable IO tables of 1987, 1990, and 1992 as the main data sources; it accounts for output changes from a demand side perspective and decomposes the growth of output into consumption demand, investment demand, export, import, and intermediate use (indicated by changes in IO coefficients). Special attention is given to identifying the effects of government policies on economic growth and structural change. It is found that overall output growth was multi-components driven rather than single-factor led; the share of the contribution to output growth from consumption and investment expansion declined and that from export and import increased. Whilst the efficiency of factor utilisation remains an issue of further research, a remarkable rise in IO coefficient share indicates a deepening and strong interdependence between industrial sectors over the data period.     

The Effectiveness of the EU's Ozone Policy

Has the EU's ozone policy been effective? In other words: What caused the 90 per cent phase-out of ozone depleting substances (ODS) within the EU? Was it due to an EU-wide regulatory approach, to national circumstances, or to the Montreal Protocol? As EU's environmental policy has not been overly successful so far, it would interesting to know why ozone policy is an area where the EU and its Member States have reached targets effectively over a relatively short time. We suggest that the effectiveness of EU's ozone policy is due to two factors that together secured this rapid phase-out. First, the ozone policy was enacted by means of an EU regulation – rather than by directives – which required all Member States and all larger ODS-generating corporations to implement a ban simultaneously. Second, with the US administration making a u-turn and the increased availability of ODS-substitute chemicals, Europe saw a political opportunity to speed up the phase-out process. A limited study of the phase-out of ODS in Spain supports this argument. While the EU's ozone policy has been effective, its success owes much to particular economic and political circumstances associated with the issue of ozone depletion.     

A step towards improving workflow practices for volume crime investigations: outcomes of a 90-day trial in South Australia

The provision of forensic science services in volume crime investigations works most successfully as a partnership between police agencies and external forensic laboratories as opposed to a client/provider model where unlimited demand ignores finite resources. The principles of Lean Six Sigma have been applied in various laboratories to improve workflow through identification of wasteful work practices. These strategies are aimed at process optimisation through the application of triaging, a concept that has rarely been studied yet referenced strongly in the literature. The South Australia End to End 90-Day Trial: facilitating quicker justice through timely evidence processing, is a collaborative approach between South Australia Police and Forensic Science South Australia. This trial applied evidence-based policing principles, a law enforcement philosophy that uses research undertaken with scientific processes to inform law-enforcement decision-making. The results demonstrate how a review of processes and the removal of non-value adding activities can improve service delivery while not exhausting those ‘finite resources’.     

Children’s Reports of Disclosure Recipient Reactions in Forensic Interviews: Comparing the NICHD and MoGP Protocols

Reactions from confidantes who receive children’s abuse disclosures can affect children’s well-being and the likelihood that they will recant. Disclosure recipient (DR) reactions were coded in 95 forensic interviews of 4- to 13-year-old alleged sexual abuse victims. Half of the interviews were conducted using the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Protocol (which includes a disclosure phase focused on the child’s initial abuse report) and the other half using the Memorandum of Good Practice (MoGP), a predecessor of the Achieving Best Evidence (ABE) guidelines used in the UK today (which recommends asking about children’s initial disclosures but has no designated disclosure phase). Children reported a variety of DR reactions, including supportive and unsupportive responses, and noted that many DRs questioned them about the allegations. NICHD interviews contained more references to DR reactions than MoGP interviews. NICHD interviews elicited more DR reaction information using invitations rather than more focused prompts and by asking children explicitly about their disclosures rather than relying on children to provide the information spontaneously. Findings indicated that children may be willing and able to provide disclosure information but may require prompting.     

Not biting the dust: using a tripartite model of organized crime to examine India’s Sand Mafia

India’s Sand Mafia, which illegally mines sand for construction, generates approximately USD 17 million per month in revenues. Despite the devastating environmental, physical, and economical harms caused, there is a dearth of criminological research on this organized crime group. This paper develops a tripartite model of organized crime that is used to explore the Sand Mafia’s modus operandi, modus vivendi, and modus coordināti. It conducts document analysis of 75 media and environmental documents published between 2010 and 2015. This group operates as numerous, fragmented structures with transient memberships, and uses violence, political affiliation, and regenerative properties to ensure continued operation. Other factors, such as inadequate manpower, poor enforcement, rapid economic development, and limited acceptance of alternatives to sand, collectively compound the problem of illicit sand mining. Recommendations for alleviating the problem, such as imposing stricter regulations, implementing an independent regulatory body, and empowering local residents, are also examined. Future lines of research inquiry, such as conducting harms analysis via multidisciplinary research, are also offered.     

Economic Analysis,Environmental Policy,and Intergenerational Justice in the Reagan Administration The Case of the Montreal Protocol

Economic arguments played a significant role in the decision by the Reagan Administration to lead the international effort to protect the stratospheric ozone layer from depletion caused by certain otherwise useful industrial chemicals. During the period prior to the signing of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in 1987, it was recognized within the Administration that ethical considerations (involving the valuation of risk and intergenerational equity) were essential components of the economic analysis. Adoption of a principle of intergenerational neutrality had the consequence that any reasonable comparison of the benefits of ozone layer protection to the costs of regulatory control overwhelmingly favored regulation.     

我国草原生物多样性保护立法问题研究

目前,我国草原生物多样性保护已初步进入法制化轨道。但随着全球范围内生物多样性不断丧失新形势的出现,我国现有相关法律法规已不能有效适应草原生物多样性保护的新需求,逐渐暴露出立法缺位、框架缺陷、机制缺失等不足。针对以上问题,在弥补立法漏洞、修改相关立法、健全配套机制等方面提出完善我国草原生物多样性保护立法体系的构想。     

空调业今年将面临禁氟令整顿

中国企业须谨慎对待《蒙特利尔议定书》对禁氟的要求，避免因产品技术不达标而使出口蒙受损失，或在内销市场遭遇禁氟令而被淘汰     

The European Court Implements New Rules

Protocol No. 11 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms came into force on 1 November 1998. In deference to the protocol, which has become an inseparable part of the Convention, a wide-ranging reform of the regulations governing the protection of human rights in Europe was implemented. The purpose of these changes was to improve the effectiveness of legal defense, to reduce the duration of cases, and to ensure the high-quality protection of human rights.