BRAZIL: Court of Audit tackles the deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon
A recent audit report by the Brazilian Court of Audit notes that the deforestation problem of the Brazilian Amazon is largely due to uncertainty over the ownership of the land. In past decades, little has been known about the occupation and exploration of forests resources in public lands. To address the problem, in 2006 the Government enacted the Law of Management of Public Forests, requiring that federal, state, and municipal forests be explored in accordance with strict environmental standards. These public forests can be directly explored by the different levels of governments, by the local communities, or by public concessions.
The Law's objectives, among others things, are to reduce illegal intrusions in public lands, and to encourage the use of the sustainable management plans as an economic alternative to generate employment and income for poor communities, so these communities will be less likely to engage in illegal activities related to timber exploration. In 2006, the Brazilian Court of Audit developed a methodology that will follow the whole process of public forest management authorized by this Law. This task poses a great challenge, thanks to the complexity of a process that involves environmental studies, sustainable management plans, environmental licenses, and follow-up on the exploration of the federal forests.
CHINA:
CNAO promotes environmental auditing through its work agenda
In July of 2003, the Steering Group on Environmental Auditing was established in the National Audit Office of China (CNAO), which showed that environmental auditing was recognized as a full-coverage task of CNAO in order to implement the Scientific Outlook of Development and the Strategy of Sustainable Development. All auditing departments were required to take environmental protection into account and conduct their auditing from the perspective of environmental protection. Since then, all of CNAO’s auditing branches have made efforts to promote environmental auditing in their respective areas, through which the ways in carrying out environmental auditing against different industries have been initially put into place.
ECUADOR:
Comptroller’s Office publishes a Guide on Environmental Auditing
The Office of the Comptroller of the State of Ecuador has published a Guide on Environmental Auditing in order to keep its regulations updated. The document contains not only bibliographical information, but also practical experiences in environmental management, as detailed in the execution of environmental audits of a variety of public and private sector organizations. In addition, relevant information on environmental auditing is included from the INTOSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing, as well as from the International Standards Organization (ISO--series ISO 14.010, 14.012 and 19.011).
ESTONIA: National Audit Office calls for improved national environmental monitoring
The National Audit Office of Estonia audited the activities of the Ministry of Environment for coordinating national environmental monitoring. The NAOE came to a conclusion that the poor assessment of needs is the main obstacle for efficient environmental monitoring. Moreover, the data that has been collected in the past 15 years have not been organized into one easily accessible database. Consequently the potential for analyzing present environmental conditions and future trends has not been fully used. In the opinion of the NAOE, the national environmental monitoring system needs to provide good basis for making decisions on national environmental expenditures as well as for becoming a reliable information source for the wider public. Therefore, the NAOE encouraged the Ministry of Environment's ongoing endeavors in developing further the database containing environmental monitoring information.
INDONESIA: Audit Board confronts problems arising from the decentralisation of environmental regulatory authority
Indonesia has faced increasingly difficult environmental issues in the past six years, following the nation’s move to decentralise power and give local governments more authority. Heads of local governments, in order to increase local income, were eager to give companies concessions on mining, plantation, etc. without proper evaluation of their environmental impacts. These poor environmental management practices at the local level raised the issue to one of national and international importance.
In line with this, the Audit Board of the Republic of Indonesia conducted an audit on a major forest and peatland fire in 2006. The conversion of peatlands and forest into palm plantation, using slash-and-burn tactics to clear and fertilize land, caused uncontrollable fires and haze pollution that has impacted neighbouring countries. For the years 2004-2006, the fire not only destroyed 12,620 hectares of tropical rainforest and 15,269 hectares of peatlands, but also impacted the socio-economy of the people. The objectives of the audit were to evaluate the compliance by state and regional governments and enterprises with laws and regulations on forest and peatlands fire prevention, protection, and control. The audit concluded that a lack of effort on preventing the fires through adequate early warning systems, through distribution of hotspot information, and through better familiarity with safer land-clearing methods and other practices caused the fire to become uncontrollable. Inadequate manpower and equipment contributed to the late response to the fire. Law enforcement on land management and forest fire control was also found to be weak.
Similarly, an audit was conducted in 2006-2007 on a hot mud eruption in Sidoarjo, East Java. The mud erupted on May 29, 2006, caused by procedural error during the exploration of gas. As of February 2007, the total area that had been inundated was 470 hectares. Total losses and damages were estimated at US $3.46 billion. Moreover, the disaster impacted the socio-economy and environment of the region. The audit focused on evaluating whether the approval of concessions, the exploration and the exploitation of the gas, and the response to the disaster were in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Among the significant findings were that mining concessions were approved without in-depth analysis of their environmental impacts, there was a lack of environmental monitoring during the exploration process, and a late response in handling the disaster caused additional damages and losses to the people living in the area.
NETHERLANDS: Court of Audits reports on National Ecological Network
In the past century, the total area of nature and forests in the Netherlands was halved, resulting in a loss of biodiversity. In 1990, the Dutch Government decided to preserve the country’s remaining biodiversity by establishing a National Ecological Network of existing and newly created nature areas, connected by corridors. In 2018, this network should cover about 20% of the country’s surface area. To achieve this target, 275,000 hectares of new nature have to be created.
The Netherlands Court of Audit published an audit report on the realization of the National Ecological Network in October 2006. The main conclusion of the audit is that much work still has to be done to meet the 2018 target. By the end of 2005, 38% of the planned nature expansion has been realized. The environmental conditions in the nature areas have already improved due to general environmental measures, but a good nature quality has not yet been realized. Furthermore, the cohesion of the ecological network and the protection of the nature areas have to be improved. The Netherlands Court of Audit formulated 8 recommendations for improvements.
Some methodological elements used in this audit are worth mentioning. First, the environmental conditions in the nature areas and the coherence of the ecological network were assessed with the help of a Geographical Information System (GIS) – analyses that were carried out in close cooperation with the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency. Second, two interactive workshops were organized to discuss the preliminary results and possible recommendations with the audited government departments and with other actors involved in the implementation of the policy program, such as provinces, conservation organizations, organizations of farmers. The result of this open communication was that the audit results were recognized and supported by the responsible actors.
For more information and the English version of the audit report see: http://www.rekenkamer.nl/9282400/v/ (then choose: publications --> audits --> all audits --> 5 October, 2006 National Ecological Network) or contact Sylvia van Leeuwen s.vanleeuwen@rekenkamer.nl.
NEW ZEALAND: OAG audits waste management planning by local authorities
The New Zealand Auditor-General has almost completed an audit of the usefulness of local authority waste management planning for solid waste. New Zealand local authorities are required to prepare plans for the management of waste in their districts. The plans must give priority to reducing and reusing waste over treatment and disposal. The audit has three main parts. The first is a review of all waste management plans for compliance with statutory requirements. The second is a more detailed review of how six local authorities implemented their plans, including the extent of integration with their long-term (10 year) plans for all activities. The third part of the report is more detailed case study of a joint arrangement between local authorities for waste management, generation of energy from methane gas in landfills, and a local authority with a target of “zero waste to landfill.” The audit report is due to be published in May 2007 and will be available on http://www.oag.govt.nz. For more information, contact jonathan.keate@oag.govt.nz.
NORWAY:
OAG evaluates the nation’s sustainable land use and land use planning practices
Norway's Office of the Auditor General is currently undertaking an audit of the nation's sustainable land use and land use planning practices. To analyse the sustainability of land use, statistics and maps have been generated with the use of a Geographic Information System (GIS). A GIS is a system for analyzing and disseminating information about land areas. The system has been used to gather and store information on the location of key land uses, such as buildings and roads, critical areas of natural diversity, recreation, and farming. Among other things, the statistics and maps have been invaluable in showing how many buildings are developed in important areas.
The analysis will provide findings related to the sustainability of land use. It seeks to identify the extent to which the government has mapped out the important areas that need protection. It will also be used to scrutinize how efficient land use planning has been as an instrument for achieving sustainable land use.
The OAG expects to produce the report in 2007. For more information contact Eli Skartlien at eli.skartlien@Riksrevisjonen.no.
PERU:
Audit of Rimac River Basin reveals need for more integrated management
During the first half of 2007, an important Performance Audit concerning the Rimac River Basin was concluded. The basin is the main fresh water supplier of Lima, which is the capital of Peru and the most important and populated city of the country (8 million inhabitants). A number of governmental institutions taking part in the river basin’s utilization were examined: three institutions related to the Mining and Energy Industry, Health, and Agriculture sectors; three Provincial Municipalities; and the country’s largest sanitation company. Findings disclosed a lack of integrated management of the hydrological resources amongst these players, revealing an absolutely sectoral management, as well as a need to strengthen the self-governing authority of the aforementioned basin.
SLOVENIA: Court of Audit finishes parallel audit on protection and conservation of biodiversity
The state of biodiversity in Slovenia is quite well compared to other European countries, although during past several years the situation started to worsen. In its national environmental programmes, Slovenia set the following main aims to protect biodiversity: to establish natural parks for its most important ecological areas, to preserve and protect species of three large carnivores still living on its territory (brown bear, wolf and lynx), and to protect forests.
Slovenia’s Court of Audit (CARS) found that none of the foreseen natural parks was established in due time, the strategies and action plans for the management of large carnivores were not adopted, and the natural balance in pine–forests was ruined because of the negligence of responsible authorities to suppress the spreading of the bark beetle. As the result of the CARS’s findings, audited bodies prepared detailed plans to establish protected areas by the year 2008 and adopted strategies to better manage large carnivores. CARS also recommended that they prepare a system of indicators to monitor the spreading of the bark beetle population in pine forests, and to strengthen forest inspections to ensure punishment of owners who do not carry out required measures.
The audit on protection and conservation of biodiversity in Slovenia is part of a parallel audit with the SAI of Croatia. The joint report on joint findings and recommendations of both SAIs will be published in June 2007.
SOUTH AFRICA: OAG incorporates environmental matters into regularity auditing
News from South Africa is that the development and implementation of environmental audit continues concomitant with what must be the greatest challenge to make environmental auditing an integral part of regularity auditing.
The latest execution of the audit strategy includes the identification of environmentally-related themes and appropriate legislation within the Audit Research and Development (ARD) unit. Consequently compliance procedures are developed and recorded by ARD in electronic audit software. The audit software also allows ARD to collect consolidated audit findings.
At this stage, this option is not being used, but it is envisioned that in the future, a consolidated report may be compiled for presentation to the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (which is mainly responsible for environmental conservation). The strategy is not rigid, and there are continuous initiatives to make environmental auditing a permanent part of regularity auditing and to give audit findings the widest and biggest impact possible.
Contact: Louis Heunis, Audit Research and Development, Auditor-General of South Africa
UKRAINE: Special EUROSAI WGEA Subgroup on the Audit of Natural, Man-caused Disasters Consequences and Radioactive Wastes Elimination commences its activities
On March 16, 2007, the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine conducted the first meeting of the EUROSAI WGEA Special Subgroup on the Audit of Natural, Man-caused Disasters Consequences and Radioactive Wastes Elimination, established last year in Luxembourg. The Subgroup consists of 8 permanent members, with the SAI of Albania becoming its most recent member.
The meeting was attended by 10 SAIs interested in Special Subgroup’s activities, in particular carrying out the International Co-ordinated Audit of the Chernobyl Shelter Fund. Representatives of concerned Ukrainian Government bodies, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Chernobyl Shelter Fund in Ukraine also participated in the event.
Currently, 9 SAIs (Ukraine as Audit Co-ordinator, European Court of Auditors, Germany, France, Poland, Russian Federation, Slovak Republic, Switzerland, United States of America) expressed their intention to collaborate in the Audit.
In the course of the meeting, the participants held active discussions about the Special Subgroup’s Work Plan for 2007-2008, the general principles of the Chernobyl Audit, and the Subgroup's future activities.
During 2007, the participating SAIs are likely to carry out national audits and provide the SAI of Ukraine with relevant audit summaries. As the Audit Co-ordinator, the Accounting Chamber will draft a Joint Report to be signed and distributed in 2008.
UNITED KINGDOM:
National Audit Office evaluates the nation’s new Carbon Trust
The UK National Audit Office is currently undertaking a Value for Money study of the Carbon Trust, due to publish in Autumn 2007. The Carbon Trust is an independent company limited-by-guarantee, set up and funded by Government in partnership with business in 2001. The Trust helps businesses and public sector organisations to cut their carbon emissions and also supports the development of low carbon technologies with the aim of reducing carbon emissions in the future. Our study will focus on whether the Carbon Trust has been effective at reducing carbon emissions in business and public sector organisations; whether it is running an efficient and effective innovation programme which will lead to a reduction in future carbon emissions; and whether it is running its business efficiently.
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