No abstract

In this paper, the adoption of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) concepts and its implementation in river basin management context in Japan and Taiwan are highlighted and critically discussed. The discussion argues that adopting a climate change adaptive watershed-based governance mechanism, focussing on lessons from the Yodo and Kaoping river basin experience, is an ideal model to achieve the goal of sustainable use of water resources. However, legal reform and institutional arrangements are needed to support the effective implementation of IWRM approaches that could tackle the problematic issues of institutional and legal fragmentation. Moreover, cooperative action among government, local residents, and NGOs to disseminate knowledge and create awareness inclusive of government and private agencies involved should also be implemented immediately.

By the Sixth IPPC Report issued in August 2021, man-made greenhouse gases emission is responsible for approximately 1.1 °C of warming between 1850 and 1900, and the global temperature is expected to reach or exceed 1.5 °C by 2041. The IPPC thus urges world leaders to adopt substantial and sustained reductions to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gas emissions to stabilize global temperature by the next 20–30 years. In East Asia, the Former Prime Minister of Japan, Yoshihide Suga, declared that Japan will become carbon–neutral by 2050. The commitment has been further endorsed by his successor Prime Minister Kishida Fumio. Korea enacted the Carbon Neutrality Act, which requires the government to cut greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 by 35% or more from the 2018 levels in August 2021. In China, President Xi Jinping committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2060 at the U.N. General Assembly in September 2020. In Taiwan, President Tsai Ing-wen announced on April 22, 2021, that Taiwan will achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The road to achieving net-zero emissions is an ambitious but challenging goal for each significant GHGs emitter in the Asia–Pacific region. Each country has its own economic, social, and technological foundation and capabilities and thus requires different approaches to achieve the same goal. This chapter explores the recent global trends with particular references to EU, U.S., and Japan’s law and policy development aiming to achieve carbon neutrality goals by 2050.

This article explores the territorial extension of the EU environmental law and how the EU uses its market powers to become global regulatory initiatives in the context of environmental protection. The legitimacy and practical influence of the global reach of the EU environmental law is first to be discussed. Taiwan, as a significant trade partner to the EU and also a critical exporting-oriented industrial entity in the world, has been heavily influenced by the EU environmental law development for the sake of gaining market access to the EU. In this regard, this article provides an overview of the EU environmental law. This article will provide a case study on the territorial effects of the EU environmental law on Taiwan and the responsive actions taken by the government and industries in Taiwan. This article recognizes the importance of the EU to achieve legitimate global values in the context of global environmental protection.