Krafting an agreement: Negotiations to reduce pollution from the Nordic pulp industry, 1985--1989

摘要

International environmental accords frequently contain obligations that may be easily satisfied by their signatories. Observers have speculated why it is in a state's interests to sign agreements that lack strict conditions, but policy analysts lack a coherent model explaining how such agreements are formalized. Knowledge, values, and authority are key forces that elucidate how environmental accords are developed with provisions that are easily executable. This dissertation examines the formulation of Helsinki Commission recommendations to reduce emissions of organochlorines from Nordic kraft pulp mills. The kraft pulp industry, the largest industrial pollution emitter to the Baltic Sea, is also a crucial foreign exchange earner for both Sweden and Finland. Hence, Swedes and Finns were the most active participants in regional negotiations to reduce organochlorine emissions. Key variable analysis explains how obstacles in various regional negotiations were overcome, and how parties constructed a recommendation with obligations that could be easily accommodated. The two sides never agreed about the level of risk posed by organochlorines in the marine environment. This problem influenced the strictness of pollution limits specified in the final agreement. But, the parties overcame formidable obstacles in the negotiations, including: (1) concerns about costs to industry and competitive disadvantages in the pulp and paper sector; (2) disagreement about technologies to combat the problem; and (3) domestic rule-making schedules that were out of sync.