| Popis: |
Pollution is detrimental by definition, but cheap waste disposal provides economic benefits to society. A balance is needed between protection of the environment and the level of acceptable change. Laws and regulations set out those levels and then science must monitor the environment to ensure that levels of change remain in the acceptable boundaries. Designing and implementing monitoring programmes is difficult in the marine environment as data collection is expensive and the systems are naturally highly variable, making data ‘noisy’. One of the most widely accepted axioms in international environmental protection is the polluter-pays principle. This extends to the cost of clean-up from accidental releases but also the cost of regular treatment and monitoring of the effects of routine, operational, discharges. However, as there will always remain an economic incentive to cut costs by cutting treatment, pollution regulation measures require the back-up of effective enforcement. |
