The Benefits and Disadvantages of State-Based Environmental Management - Report Example

State-Based Environmental Management versus Stakeholder-Based Environmental Stewardship Name Course Name and Code Environmental management refers to a process through which the state, companies, individuals and even industries undertake to protect and regulate the health of the natural world. Environmental management also refers to the management of the impact of the human societies and its interaction on the environment. In essence, environmental management is aimed at ensuring the protection and management of the ecosystem for future generations of human kind through consideration of the economic, ethical and ecological or scientific variables. Environmental management can either be state-based or stakeholder-based stewardship. State-based environmental management involves the use of the government, governmental agencies and other parastatals allied to the state in the management of the environment. On the other hand, stakeholder-based environmental stewardship involves the management of the environment by various organizations and agencies, which are non-governmental and even individuals. There are both various advantages and disadvantages associated with both state- based management and stakeholder-based management. Despite the fact that all practices are aimed at management of the environment, there are various pros and cons, which need to be addressed to ensure that positive achievements are realized in all the endeavours (Meffe, Nielsen, Knight and Schenborn, 2010). In addition to that, environmental management attempts to identify all factors, which are affected through the conflicts that emerge between protecting the environmental resources and meeting the needs. In most circumstances, this process does not actually entail managing the environment itself but rather promoting behaviours and taking steps, which will have a positive impact or effect on how such environmental resources are protected and used (Harrison and Wicks, 2010). Apart from the State, private organizations and individual people also are engaged in the management of the environment for various reasons but complying with local rules and policies regarding conservation, caring for a natural world and saving money are the major goals. Environmental management can be observed in various perspectives since it comprises the management of various components in the biophysical environment. This is because of the network and interconnected relationships in all living species coupled with their habitats. State based environmental management refers to the public sector, which is made up of the general government and all the public corporations, which includes the Central Bank (Link, 2010). In environmental management, the public sector is tasked with both the administration of the natural resource management and the implementation of legislation in environmental protection (Meffe, Nielsen, Knight and Schenborn, 2010). The States’ traditional role in the management of the environment unlike in stakeholder-based environmental stewardship is therefore to provide, on behalf of the Public, professional judgment, which is reflected through skilled technicians (Wilmsen, 2008). State-based environmental management is advantageous in that state institutions can easily be used in the direct management of the environment through their own staff (Dukes, Firehock and Birkhoff, 2011). For instance, State institutions can use on their behalf, the civil servants in order to manage and the environment, framers to implement all the environmental regulations, auditors to use the law as standards and the citizens who are subject to recycling either independent or legislative policies. Military agents can also be used by the State as being environmental managers so long as their action comprises some form of planned intervention towards the environment e.g. the management of an open landscape that is to be used for military training and in their endeavour to achieve their military goals (Frantzen, 2001). Stakeholder-based environmental management may comprise the private sector, non-profit institutions and private corporations. The aim of the stakeholders of the management of the environment is for recovery of the natural resources. Stakeholder-based environmental stewardship is disadvantages as opposed to the state-based environmental management in that despite the fact that the environmental problems can easily recognized by them, production is normally seen as being legitimization of pollution. In fact, critics have suggested that various stakeholders are positioned systematically in contradictory situations that make them to become committed to both making profits and environmental protection strategies, which do not normally pay off. Stakeholder-based environmental management stewardship is advantageous because it helps in the protection of both the human health and the natural environment through the combined efforts of various parties (Meffe, Nielsen, Knight and Schenborn, 2010). Stakeholder-based environmental management stewardship are beneficial because they recognize the various choices made by individuals on a daily basis which have an impact on the environment and therefore coming up with opportunities to make them benefit from the environment (Shi, 2008). Environmental stewardship has evolved into four major steps namely compliance, continuous improvement, Goals and targets and lastly sustainability based mechanisms or strategies (Koontz, 2004). Stakeholder-based environmental management is important because it helps the private parties by giving them an opportunity or a chance to participate in the achievement of sustainable environmental results and thus reducing the costs that the government could have incurred. Stakeholder-based environmental management or stewardship is also beneficial since it focuses on key groups like for instance communities, business, individuals and other relevant stakeholders. This is through helping and encouraging such parties to make daily choices, which will result, in good health and in the sustainable management and use of natural resources like for instance water, energy, materials, land, ecosystems and air. Collaboration and time among the stakeholder-based environmental stewardship will make it possible for the achievement of both long-term and measurable improvements in water, land and air, which are essential for the protection of both the natural environment and human health. Stakeholder-based environmental stewardship is beneficial because it has the environmental quality, which is shared by all stakeholders whose actions are known to affect the environment as portrayed through the values and practices by companies, individuals, communities and even the society as a whole. It is through the positive stewardship of the stakeholders that an improvement in the environmental performance can be realized through sustainable outcomes and measurable results. Despite the fact that stakeholder-based environmental stewardship is beneficial to the society, it can also be ascertained on the other hand that stakeholder based environmental stewardship is also disadvantageous in that there's lack of clear end states and clear goals among the stakeholders thus making the achievement of their goals to become complex (McLeod and Leslie, 2009). In Addition, Stakeholder-Based environmental stewardship is disadvantageous in that there is lack of responsibility and accountability among the stakeholders since their operations are conducted without strict supervision and effective coordination (Durant, Fiorino and O’Leary, 2004). Environmental stewardship has also been hampered by a lack of trust among the concerned stakeholders since most of them are suspicious of their fellows thus making the achievement of their set objectives to become difficult. On the other hand, individuals in Stakeholder-based environmental stewardship have a feeling that the small individuals or stakeholders are not capable of making differences in the management of the environment (Meffe, Nielsen, Knight and Schenborn, 2010). There is also a lack of understanding between the environment and the people in Stakeholder-based environmental stewardship because of reluctance in making lifestyle changes aimed at accommodating the stewardship behaviours among the stakeholders. State-based environmental management is advantageous because the state is capable of coming up with beneficial policies and legislations aimed at protecting the environment for both current and future generations (Layzer, 2008). The state, unlike opposed to the stakeholder based environmental management system is capable of purchasing various tools and resources aimed at conserving and maintaining the environment over a long period. The availability of both financial and personnel resources make the state to become in a good position to adopt and implement beneficial environmental policies, which will make it possible for the environment to become protected. However, state-based environmental management can become destructive if the government becomes selective in the application of laws relating to environmental conservation. For instance, the reluctance by governments to adopt and implement legislations and policies aimed at protection of the natural resources and the general environment will make it possible for the destruction of natural resources (Meffe, Nielsen, Knight and Schenborn, 2010). Ignorance on the part of the government to mete harsh penalties on people responsible for the destruction of the environment will make the natural resources to become depleted and thus have a negative impact on the human population. Given the fact that the government or the sate is a better position to access funds and allocate the, this makes state-based environmental management to become advantageous over the stakeholder based environmental management stewardship. Conclusion Environmental management should not be the responsibility of the State or stakeholders alone but rather, it should be a collective responsibility for all the citizens. It can therefore be correctly asserted that the success in the management of the environment cannot be left to the state or the stakeholders alone but instead, it should be through the collective efforts of the state, the stakeholders and the public as well. All parties should therefore come together with a view of making policies and strategies aimed at protecting and managing the environment so that it becomes beneficial not only to the current generation of the human population but also to the future generation as well. All relevant stakeholders and the government should therefore work together to ensure that there is good sustenance of the environment. This will make the world a better place to live for both the current and future generations. The government should also put in place effective policies aimed at making all stakeholders become capable of managing the environment. References Dukes, E., Firehock, K., and Birkhoff, J. 2011. Community-based Collaboration: Bridging Socio-ecological Research and Practice. Virginia: University of Virginia Press Durant, R., Fiorino, D., and O’Leary, R. 2004. Environmental Governance Reconsidered: Challenges, Choices, and Opportunities. New York: MIT Press Frantzen, K. 2001. Risk-Based Analysis for Environmental Managers. London: Taylor & Francis Harrison, J., and Wicks, A. 2010. Stakeholder Theory: The State of the Art. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Koontz, T. 2004. Collaborative Environmental Management: What Roles for Government? London: Resources for the Future Layzer, J. 2008. Natural Experiments: Ecosystem-based Management and the Environment. London: MIT Press Link, J. 2010. Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management: Confronting Tradeoffs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press McLeod, K., and Leslie, H. 2009. Ecosystem-Based Management for the Oceans. London: Island Press Meffe, G., Nielsen, L., Knight, R., and Schenborn, D. 2010. Ecosystem Management: Adaptive, Community-Based Conservation. London: Island Press Shi, Y. 2008. Virtual Organization Based Distributed Environmental Spatial Decision Support Systems: Applications in Watershed Management. New York: ProQuest Wilmsen, C. 2008. Partnerships for Empowerment: Participatory Research for Community-based Natural Resource Management. London: Earthscan Press Read More