Organic matter decomposition and Soil Food Web

THE MALAYSIAN POLICY ON THE ENVIRONMENT (Known as The National Policy on the Environment)

The Federal Constitution and the Environment

• The Ninth Schedule - outlines Federal and State responsibilities based on subject matters listed under each category.
• The Federal List - enumerates matters with respect to which only Parliament may make laws.
• The State List - enumerates matters with respect to which only State Legislatures may make laws.
• The Concurrent List - enumerates matters with respect to which either Parliament or any State Legislature may make laws.

The Constitution and the Environment

Matters not enumerated in any of the three lists are within the competence of the State Legislatures as stipulated in Article 77 of the Constitution.

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES (Future Policy Tool: Market-Based Instruments)

• MBIs for environmental management are relatively new mechanisms in international policy context, but increasingly being considered for the management of natural resources and the environment.
• This is particularly so where regulatory approaches have failed to arrest on-going degradation or where the cost of traditional policy tools is proving prohibitive to government or society in general.
• Currently, MBIs application internationally is still in embryonic phase. 

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES (Policy Tools)

• Two major policy tools for protecting the environment are laws and inducements.
• Laws are in the form of Legislations made by legislatures in the House of Parliament / Representative .
• Under the Legislations, Rules are made for regulation of activities.
• Such Rules can come in the form of design standards and performance standards. Performance standards specify emission levels and let those covered by the Rules decide how those levels will be met.

Inducements are rewards and punishments used to influence people or groups.

Commonly adopted inducements are market reform of two major types:

• Charge System , e.g. emissions taxes;     
• Tradable Permit System, e.g. auction of pollution rights in which the amount of pollution is set and divided into units, which are then auctioned, giving environmental organizations the opportunity to     buy the units to create a cleaner environment than originally planned.

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT INSTRUMENTS AND SYSTEMS (ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES )

Definition:

• An Environmental Policy is a statement of intent or guidance that an organisation adopts for the purpose of achieving its environmental goals, such as continual improvement of environmental quality and prevention of pollution.
• For any government, its Environmental Policy is a governance to regulate activities that have environmental impacts in the country in order to fulfil its goal to protect the environment for future generations, while interfering as little as possible with the efficiency of commerce or the liberty of the people.