Quantifying pressures from Swedish industries impacting Sweden’s Environmental Quality Objectives

ABSTRACT

This study finds that industries and other permit requiring activities (PRA) exert a significant cumulative pressure on 20 out of 34 examined specifications to the Swedish Environmental Quality Objectives (EQO), affecting the fulfilment of 12 out of 16 of these EQOs. PRA undergo thorough examination before receiving permits, and the permits come with detailed conditions. The permitting process is hence an important opportunity to contribute to the achievement of the EQOs. However, this opportunity has so far not been employed to any great extent since the quantitative significance of environmental impact from PRA on the national EQOs has not been well-known or expressed. We suggest that quantification of activities that can be regulated by environmental permitting may be of importance for the achievement of other instances of management by objectives in general, such as the global sustainable development goals and the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the ecological status regulated by the European Water Framework Directive.

KEYWORDS:

• Environmental permits
• environmental impact assessment
• environmental quality objectives
• management by objectives

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (NV-03730-16). The helpful comments and suggestions from two anonymous reviewers are greatly acknowledged.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. https://www.eea.europa.eu/help/glossary/eea-glossary/dpsir

2. https://utslappisiffror.naturvardsverket.se/?epslanguage = en

3. https://viss.lansstyrelsen.se/About.aspx

4. https://www.vattenmyndigheterna.se/vattenforvaltning/forvaltningsplan.html

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by theSwedish Environmental Protection Agency [NV-03730-16].