The role of parliaments in environmental management

and in combating global degradation of the environment

 

Ionel PALĂR

Member of the Chamber of Deputies

Inter-Parliamentary Group of ROMANIA

 

 

Mr. President, 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

The topic chosen for our debate is, I believe, of utmost relevance for all our countries, especially these days when we face unprecedented natural phenomena with devastating economic and social consequences.

 

I take this opportunity to express, on behalf of the Romanian delegation to this Assembly, our heartfelt solidarity with the people affected by the severe drought in Kenya, as well as in Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti.

 

Romania itself has been recently confronted with very heavy floods of historic dimensions, which stole lives, destroyed many settlements, left thousands of people without a shelter and caused huge economic damages.  

 

This makes us come to the point where we realize that environmental management should be approached also as a critical instrument to prevent disasters, and reduce vulnerabilities of disaster prone countries and communities. Parliamentary action should focus on integrating disaster risk reduction into sustainable development policies and on enhancing international cooperation and partnerships to support national efforts. Furthermore, we believe that the draft resolution under debate should highlight the need to fully implement the Hyogo Framework for Action, a landmark document in this area for the years to come.  

 

Environmental management is also essential for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It is our responsibility as members of Parliament to see to it that our respective countries become parties to the relevant instruments and agreements concluded at international and regional levels, in particular the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, and that their provisions be fully implemented.

 

At the same time, we need to promote renewed commitments to international cooperation based on solidarity and shared responsibility, a key instrument to reverse the continuing degradation and loss of environmental resources, all the more important as most of today’s environmental challenges are of transboundary, regional and global nature.

 

Last, but not least, parliamentary action should seek to mainstream environmental management efforts into the Millennium Development Goals, based on the understanding that environmental sustainability is essential for meeting all of the MDGs.

 

Thank you.