Environmental policies

Environmental policies

INTRODUCTION

Environmental policies are the standards established by the government to manage natural resources and environmental quality. The broad categories of ‘natural resources” and “environment quality” include such areas as air and water pollution, forest and wildlife, hazardous waste, agricultural practices, wetlands, and land use planning.

Land resources are finite, fragile and non-renewable. The land is considered a capital and asset that provides the essential services for development and human well-being. Consequently, the demand and pressure on land are ever increasing. The main driving force leading to pressure on land resources is the increasing rate of population growth; hence require more food and shelter

Nongovernmental Authorities assist the government in the implementation of the National Land Policy in a way that that will take into account sustainable conservation and management of the environment and land resources.NGos also help to promote and enhance best practices for sustainable land use through the establishment of environmentally significant areas for purposes of improving the protection and conservation of the environmental resources.NGOs worldwide help to promote sustainable urban agriculture. Through capacity building on effective enforcement of the water quality regulations.An NGOs gives guidelines and standards for the discharge of poisons, toxins, noxious, radioactive waste or other pollutants into the aquatic environment. These laws have standards for discharge of effluent into the sewer and marine environment. While it is the responsibility of the sewerage service providers to regulate discharges into sewer lines based on the given specifications, in Kenya NEMA control the discharge of all effluent into the aquatic environment.

All firms discharging effluent into the marine environment are required to submit quarterly discharge monitoring records to NGOs based on prescribed procedures of sampling and analysis.

NGOs enlighten people to refrain from any actions, which directly or indirectly cause water pollution.

The conservation and sustainable development of forest ecosystems and their associated resources are essential for lasting poverty reduction and sustainable development. Forest ecosystems are important in the preservation of soil, water and biodiversity as well as in moderation of climate. They are the terrestrial habitats for biodiversity. Maintainance of forest protects the economic potential of future opportunities for new non-timber products, such as foods and medicines, as well as social sustainability by offering beautiful, spiritual and recreational settings for people.In conserving forests, NGOs formulate an innovative strategy to increase forest and tree cover from the current to at least 10% as required by the Constitution.Develop and implement a National Strategy for Rehabilitation and Restoration of degraded forest ecosystems.Protection and conserve forests located in the major water catchment areas. Support effective implementation of the Forests Act.Develops and implements cost-effective, objective and measurable national standards, principles and criteria of sustainable forest management.

NGOs also help in teaching people on international conventions on environment

Wetlands International over 100 countries

Wetlands International’s work includes research and community-based field projects such as advocacy and partnering with governments,  international policy fora and conventions and corporates. This NGO l works through partnerships and   contributions from an extensive specialist expert network and tens of thousands of volunteers

Conservation International (CI) is an American is an environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. Its goal is to protect nature as a source of food, fresh water, livelihoods and a stable climate.

It has focused on policy , science,  and partnership with communities businesses.  CI has helped in establish 1,200 protected areas across 78 countries and protected over n730 million hectares marine, land, and resources.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN facilitate   nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Through data gathering and analysis, advocacy, lobbying, and education. Its to “influence, encourage and assist societies in the world to conserve nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.” IUCN is currently preserving ecology and incorporates issues such as gender equality and sustainable business in its projects. Unlike other international NGOs, IUCN does not itself aim to mobilize the public in support of nature conservation. It tries to influence the actions of governments, business, and other stakeholders by providing information and advice, and through lobbying and partnerships. The organization is best known to the wider public for compiling and publishing the IUCN Red List, which assesses the conservation status of species worldwide.

IUCN has a membership of over 1200 governmental and non-governmental organizations. Its headquarters are in Gland, Switzerland.

Nature Serve, Inc. is an Arlington, Virginia-based non-profit organization that provides proprietary wildlife conservation-related data, tools, and services to private and government clients, partner agencies, and the public. Nature Serve reports being “headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, with regional offices in four U.S. locations and Canada.”  In the calendar year 2011, they reported having 86 employees, six volunteers, and 15 independent officers.

The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative or Y2Y is a joint Canada-US charitable organization that connects and protects habitat along the mountain ecosystem from Yellowstone National Park to the Yukon. Y2Y works collaboratively with multiple partners – including scientists, conservation groups, landowners, businesses, government agencies and Aboriginal communities – to encourage conservation throughout the region and to highlight and support local initiatives that support its large-scale objectives.Y2Y takes a scientific approach to conservation and has been named by the IUCN-World Conservation Union as one of the planet’s leading mountain conservation initiatives. Y2Y connects and supports a network of organizations, agencies, and individuals doing on-the-ground conservation work in the region. Y2Y facilitates collaboration among those groups to advance an integrated conservation agenda for the entire region. In 2015, Y2Y provided 15 partner grants totaling $50,000 to organizations in support of their conservation efforts within the Yellowstone to Yukon region

The Plant A Tree Today Foundation (PATT) is an environmental non-governmental organization with primary operations in Thailand it attempts to raise environmental awareness and foster better practices in less developed nations around the world, planting trees as a means to combat deforestation and climate change. IDEAS for Us is an environmental organization of emerging professionals advancing sustainability throughout universities, colleges and K-12 schools. The non-governmental organization guides IDEAS (Intellectual Decisions on Environmental Awareness Solutions) chapters and affiliate partners and build on the ‘passion for change’ by providing them with consulting services, professional training programs, capacity building, leadership development, youth empowerment, peer-to-peer mentorship, and incubation. IDEAS For Us serves as an inter-generational platform for global partnerships that organizes educated young people to engage one another on real-world issues.

Though IDEAS For Us is an environmental organization, it is independent of any government, political ideology, or religious creed. The Board of Directors derives its authority from the IDEAS grassroots movement of which it oversees. This grassroots movement includes chapters and affiliate chapters, both in the United States and abroad, professionals, youth leaders, non-profit partners and member companies.

WILD is another NGOs that   inspires the world that protects at least half of all nature on Earth in a connected way for the benefit of wilderness and communities. WILD uses three policies and applied research, with decision-makers in government, business, and community; field projects that integrate the needs of wilderness, wildlife and people; and communications, through publishing, media and the arts. The WILD Foundation conservation of wilderness through training the managers of protected areas, setting approaches to conservation, establishing new organizations as well as working with the communities members to protect nature. Their work spans continents, from the Mali Elephant Project and In the Tracks of Giants in Africa to CAT in WATER, a fishing cat media project in Thailand; to the Kayapo of the Brazilian Amazon and works close to their home in Boulder.