Public Participation Mechanisms in Environmental Disasters

Abstract

This paper examines the role of public participation mechanisms in certain major environmental disasters. It examines situations in which people's lifestyles or their lives have been directly threatened, and thus elicited citizen participation. Threatening issues often seem morally, physically, socially, economically, religiously, and otherwise unacceptable to a group. As will be presented in this paper, citizens voluntarily participate in a community activity when they see that their way of life has been threatened. An introductory historical perspective, the legal framework upon which it is based, and background information on the participatory mechanisms, all emphasizing the importance and need for empowering citizens with participatory skills so as to bring changes in the existing educational, legal, and social systems are presented. The major environmental accidents/disasters of Minamata, Japan; Bhopal, India; Seveso, Italy; Chernobyl, Ukraine; and Exxon-Valdez, Alaska are discussed, mainly to indicate the reaction, and the participatory mechanisms used by the affected communities in each of the sudden disasters that occurred. If citizens worldwide had been active participants in the environmental issues, it is quite possible that we would have experienced fewer environmental accidents.

Free-choice learning suited to women’s participation needs in environmental decision-making processes

“…If citizens worldwide had historically been more active participants in addressing environmental issues, it is quite possible that we would have experienced fewer environmental disasters (Skanavis, Koumouris, and Petreniti 2005a). The time has come for policy-makers, government officials, practitioners worldwide to integrate women's education and equal access to information in any project, programme or study dealing with participation in conservation area.…”

Local Health Department Capacity for Community Engagement and Its Implications for Disaster Resilience

“…[20][21][22][23][24][25][26] It parallels, too, developments in the field of emergency management to adopt a more participatory and collaborative approach to reducing the impacts of natural and technological disasters. [27][28][29][30] More broadly, the value now placed on the public's role in the public health emergency preparedness enterprise represents an additional chapter in a much longer, complex history, wherein US citizens are taking a more active role in shaping the public systems, policies, and programs that affect them-the subject of a large literature dispersed over many disciplines. [31][32][33][34][35] Enabling Health Agencies to Engage Their Partners…”

Screening for EIA in India: Enhancing effectiveness through ecological carrying capacity approach

“…The cost of developing local ecosystem databases, conducting EIA and carrying capacity studies can be further reduced by involving NGOs, research institutes and local universities and can be made more significant and participatory by incorporating Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK). This approach will definitely lead to a much effective system of environmental conservation and management as an informed citizenry is recognized of having the ability to reduce environmental disasters (Skanavis et al, 2005).…”