Central American Environmental Plan

2010 - 2014
Central American Commission for Environment and Development CCAD

PARCA

November, 2009

Central American Commission for Environment and Development - CCAD

Central American Environmental Plan PARCA 2010-2014

Editor: Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD) San Salvador, El Salvador, 2009. Cover photograph: Juan Pablo Moreiras WB/CCAD Design: ImpresionArte Bibliography
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Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD) Central American Environmental Plan, PARCA: 2010 - 2014 / Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD). - - 1st ed. - - San Salvador, El Salvador: Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD), 2009. 36 p. : ill., tables, figures; 28 cm. ISBN 978-99923-52-22-9 1. Environmental policy. 2. Environmental planning - Central America. 3. Environmental protection. I. Title.

BINA/jmh

This document was published with technical and financial support from the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), Spain/SICA Fund and the European Union through the Regional Program for the Reduction of Vulnerability and Environmental Degradation (PREVDA).

The contents do not reflect the opinions of the donors.

Central American Integration System (SICA) Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD)
Executive Secretariat of the Central American Commission for Environment and Development
Address: Blvd. Orden de Malta No. 470, Santa Elena, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, El Salvador. Telephone: (503) 2248-8800. Fax: (503) 2248- 8894. www.sica.int/ccad - infoccad@sica.int

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

Index

List of acronyms Foreword from the President Pro Tempore Foreword from the Executive Secretary of CCAD Introduction Context General objective and strategic areas Strategic areas, objectives and areas of action Institutional arrangements Follow-up and updates

4 5 7 9 11 16 18 31 35

Central American Commission for Environment and Development - CCAD

List of acronyms used in the document

ACICAFOC Asociacin Coordinadora Indgena y Campesina de Agroforestera Comunitaria Centroamericana / Indigenous and Rural Association for the Central American Agro-forestry Community ALIDES: Alianza Centroamericana para el Desarrollo Sostenible / Central American Alliance for Sustainable Development CAC: Consejo Agropecuario Centroamericano / Central American Agricultural and Farming Council CAPCRM: Central American Policy for Comprehensive Risk Management CATHALAC: Centro del Agua del Trpico Hmedo de Latinoamrica y el Caribe / Water Center for the Humid Tropics of Latin America and the Caribbean CCAD: Central American Commission for Environment and Development CDM: Clean Development Mechanism CEPREDENAC: Centro de Coordinacin para la Prevencin de Desastres Naturales en Amrica Central / Central American Coordination Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters CITES: Convencin sobre el Comercio Internacional de Especies Amenazadas de Fauna y Flora Silvestres / Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora COMISCA: Consejo de Ministros de Salud de Centroamrica / Central American Council of Ministers of Health COMMCA: Consejo de Ministras de la Mujer de Centroamrica / Central American Council of Ministers of Women Institutions CRRH: Comit Regional de Recursos Hidrulicos / Regional Committee on Water Resources CWRM: Comprehensive Water Resource Management ECAGIRH: Central American Strategy on Comprehensive Water Resource Management EIA: Environmental Impact Assessment ES-CCAD: Executive Secretariat of the Central American Commission for Environment and Development FAO: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations GGE: Greenhouse Gas Effect GS-SICA: General Secretariat of the Central American Integration System GTZ: German Organization for Technical Cooperation INBio: Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad de Costa Rica / National Biodiversity Institute of Costa Rica IRBIO: Instituto Regional de Biodiversidad / Regional Biodiversity Institute ITTO: International Tropical Timber Organization IUCN: International Union for Conservation of Nature MBC: Mesoamerican Biological Corridor MRS: Mesoamerican Reef System MSES: Mesoamerican Strategy on Environmental Sustainability OSPESCA: Organizacin del Sector Pesquero y Acucola del Istmo Centroamericano / Central American Fishing and Aquaculture Organization PACAGIRH: Central American Plan for Comprehensive Water Resource Management PARCA: Central American Environmental Plan PERCON: Regional Strategic Program for Connectivity PERFOR: Regional Strategic Program for Forest Eco-system Management PERTAP: Regional Strategic Program for Protected Areas PREVDA: Program to Reduce Vulnerability from Environmental Degradation PROMEBIO: Regional Strategic Program for Biodiversity Monitoring and Evaluation PUEMBO: Puembo Initiative to Foster Dialogue on Latin America and Caribbean Forests REDD: Reduction Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation REDD-CARD Reduction Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Program in Central America and the Dominican Republic RSAH: Regional Strategy on Agro-environment and Health RSCC: Regional Strategy on Climate Change SEA: Strategic Environmental Assessment SIAM: Mesoamerican Environmental Information System SICA: Central American Integration System SIECA: Central American Secretariat for Economic Integration SISCA: Central American Secretariat for Social Integration SITCA: Central American Secretariat for Tourism Integration STRI Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute TC: Technical Committee TRAFFIC Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network UCE-SICA: Energy Coordination Unit at SICA UNCBD: United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity UNCCD: United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change WB/FLEG: World Bank Forest Law Enforcement and Governance

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

Foreword from the President Pro Tempore of CCAD

Since the Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD) was created 20 years ago, it has forged a path, showing significant progress in establishing cooperation for integrated environmental management and regional policies, as part of the Central American Integration System (SICA, for its name in Spanish). Given the transversal nature of its mission, CCAD has established joint agendas as a regional institution, involving other key actors, such as Central Americas civil society organizations, academic and scientific institutions, strategic partners and international cooperation agencies. CCAD has received international recognition as a specialist in environmental policies, which is reflected by its participation as an observer to the United Nations Social and Economic Council and the Conventions on Climate Change and Biological Diversity. CCAD has organized and institutionalized a Donor Forum, established specialized Technical Committees and regional centers and formed strategic alliances with many institutions. Internally, CCAD has worked hard on its planning processes, elaborating joint annual operations plans, and beginning in 2004, internal regulations to facilitate operations and effectively respond to the institutionalism and challenges presented by the Central American Environmental Plan (PARCA, for its name in Spanish). The first PARCA was published in 1999 and built capacity to face the regions environmental challenges. The second PARCA (2004-2009) defined strategic areas, specific objectives, results and indicators to face environmental challenges; it focused on forming and validating regional policy mechanisms. PARCA 2010-2014, presented here, focuses on environmental governance using a management model based on the implementation of and compliance with environmental policies; it emphasizes working jointly with institutions using SICAs Long-term Plan. This PARCA centers around two areas of action: policy implementation to achieve transversal environmental management and institutional coordination to influence public institutions to play a role in environmental integration. CCAD will offer technical support and management, related to its direct responsibilities of helping national environmental authorities, especially on environmental quality management, natural resource management and climate change adaptation measures. This PARCA incorporates two new support mechanisms: the Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration, as a financial tool to help national environmental authorities apply PARCA and other environmental instruments locally, and the Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance, which is a specialized policy tool that will provide the Council of Ministers and others

Central American Commission for Environment and Development - CCAD

with up-to-date and timely information to make decisions related to regional and international environmental policy agendas. Undoubtedly, PARCA is an important planning instrument to guide CCAD operations regionally

and internationally, seeking to strengthen and facilitate joint coordination and building synergies to support regional environmental integration and sustainable development in Central America.

Jorge Rodrguez Quirs Minister of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications for Costa Rica President Pro Tempore of CCAD July-December 2009

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

Foreword from the Executive Secretariat of CCAD

The third Central American Environmental Plan (PARCA III) is a five-year strategic instrument that will add value to the regions environmental management. PARCA III will help member countries implement national and regional environmental management tools and promote the development of agreements and coordination mechanisms to incorporate environmental topics in the agendas presented by the Central American Integration System (SICA) and other regional entities responsible for industry policies and strategies. PARCA III was developed with the regions environmental authorities in order to create a new management framework focused on applying and complying with environmental policies, which were developed during the first and second phases of PARCA. This new Plan is based on the Tegucigalpa Protocol, which consolidated the Central American Integration System and established several fundamental principles, including: gradual, specific, and progressive development, based on the promotion of similar and balanced regional development, equality and reciprocity, and special treatment for member countries with relatively lower levels of development, (Art. 4, Subsection E). We firmly believe that this Plans success will depend on our ability to put these principles into practice, while recognizing each countrys particularities and diversity, so that we can gradually overcome the current asymmetries found in our region. This means we must continue to identify and strengthen alliances and synergies among SICAs member countries and with other regions. This will allow us to work in areas of common interest through the strategic objectives and areas of action presented in this PARCA. We are sure that by the end of these five years, we will have been able to promote these strategic guidelines focused on environmental governance. Our end goal is to have permanent projects and programs that serve priority areas in order to build joint agreements and action plans that will allow us to have greater impact with international donors. Lastly, this third phase of PARCA presents the creation of two new tools: a Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance and the Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration. The first will help anticipate areas of risk and provide up-to-date and timely information for environmental policy-making. The second will provide financial support to national environmental authorities implementing PARCA and other mechanisms developed by SICAs environmental entities.

Central American Commission for Environment and Development - CCAD

We continue to believe that we can rethink how to build a Central America that is capable of generating answers, not only in the environ-

mental area, but also related to social, economic and cultural issues, leading us closer to sustainable development.

Roberto Rodrguez Rojas Coordinator a.i. Executive Secretariat CCAD

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

I. Introduction
The Central American Environmental Plan (PARCA) is the main mechanism used by the Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD) to coordinate actions. CCAD was created in 1989 to develop a regional cooperation agenda for the optimal and rational use of natural resources, to control pollution and to establish ecological equilibrium in order to guarantee a better quality of life for Central American inhabitants (Constitutional Convention, Art. I). CCADs Constitutional Convention is also the regions first environmental policy, whose objectives are set forth in Article II: To add value and protect natural resources; foster collaboration among countries to develop and adopt sustainable development initiatives; To promote coordination for the optimal and rational use of natural resources, to control pollution and to establish ecological equilibrium; to fundraise and access regional and international financial resources; To strengthen natural resource management in the countries; to promote compatibility with environmental policies and legislation in national development planning processes; To determine priority areas of action and promote participatory, democratic and decentralized environmental management in the countries. This Convention was initially signed by the Presidents of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Later, Belize, Panama and the Dominican Republic signed, and Mexico became an observer. The first PARCA was presented in 1999 for the 2000-2004 period. It focused on creating the Central American Alliance for Sustainable Development (ALIDES, for its name in Spanish) and began consolidating CCAD. PARCA II, which is currently in effect, was written for the 2005-2009 period. It presented a logical framework for environmental management development mechanisms and to establish joint regional alliances.

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10 This third PARCA, for the 2010-2014 period, is based on achievements made by CCAD and its member countries implementing the two previous Plans. It will help them respond to future obstacles and challenges. The main purpose of the third PARCA is to add value to regional environmental management and support countries to implement environmental management mechanisms developed during the two previous periods and comply with commitments made in regional and international agreements. The following figure illustrates how the plans focuses have evolved, responding to the needs presented during different points of CCADs consolidation and making its long-term vision and objectives reality, as expressed in the Constitutional Convention and ALIDES. This document provides a brief description of the context in which PARCA was updated for the 2010-2014 period, the general objective and the strategic areas of this period, the strategic objectives and foreseen actions for each strategic area, and the institutional arrangements that will serve as the basis for implementation.

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II. Context
In its almost twenty years of existence, CCAD has achieved regional and international recognition as an organization promoting regional and environmental cooperation and coordination, as presented in its Constitutional Convention. CCADs programs and projects have resulted in policies, strategies and agreements helping to resolve some of the regions greatest environmental challenges. After creating the Central American Alliance for Sustainable Development, all of the countries in the region named environmental authorities at the cabinet level and have implemented regulatory and institutional frameworks to serve as the basis for effective environmental and natural resource management. In addition to developing national and regional institutions, legislation and policies, CCADs member countries have stayed active signing multilateral environmental agreements and attending different international forums addressing the main environmental problems affecting humanity. Despite this progress in the area of policies and implementation mechanisms, the region faces great challenges due to economic growth and global dynamics, while trying to resolve environmental problems associated with poverty. Its valuable natural resources and environmental quality are threatened locally, by unorganized urban development and unsustainable production, and globally, by climate change. In terms of natural resources, most countries except El Salvador and the Dominican Republic have more than a third of their territory covered by forest. However, according to data from the United Nations, between 1990 and 2005, more than 50,000 km2 of forest wer lost, and deforestation rates in Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador were among the highest in Latin America. In order to find solutions to these problems, CCAD launched an ambitious initiative at the end of the nineties, the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC), with the support of international and civil society organizations. With this program, and others related to sustainable natural resource management, CCAD has helped countries approve policies, strategies and regional plans related to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, as well as the management of protected areas, forest eco-systems, wetlands and water resources. The 2008 State of the Region Report recognized significant progress made strengthening legal, institutional and political frameworks to manage protected areas and address key issues, by exploring different and new ways to achieve citizen participation; however, it also stated that there are

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12 still many challenges, especially related to current area size (83% are less than 15,000 hectares), weak institutionalism, a lack of resources, social issues, territorial zoning, population growth and unsustainable production. Even though Central America has experienced good precipitation levels and is blessed with superficial and subterranean water sources, water resources are not distributed equally. A lack of comprehensive management and growing extraction rates indicate several countries, especially El Salvador, will face serious shortages in the next decade. Some parts of Costa Rica and Guatemala could also face shortages in the medium-term1. and civil society, all of the regions countries have governance problems that prevent them from developing more comprehensive management. The water sector lacks clear policies; has out-of-date, dispersed and insufficient legislation; and doubles efforts and roles among public, private and external institutions, supervisors and implementers, making water resource management and decisionmaking at the policy level difficult2. As a way to integrate and strengthen national efforts, CCAD, CRRH and several other regional institutions have promoted the creation of regional policy and strategy mechanisms, such as the Central American Plan for Comprehensive Water Resource Management (PACAGIRH, for its name in Spanish), the Central American Strategy on Comprehensive Water Resource Management (ECAGIRH, for its name in Spanish) and more recently the Central American Water Convention. Originally, these mechanisms were not properly coordinated and integrated; therefore, the offices forming part of SICAs environmental entities, with the support of international and regional institutions, began and successfully completed a process to align and integrate the Convention, Strategy and Plan, into what is now called the Central American Plan for Comprehensive Water Resource Management (PACAGIRH, for its name in Spanish). These mechanisms will be approved by the respective institutions in the second half of 2009, forming a coherent framework to support regional institutionalism including CCAD for integrated water management. In terms of environmental management, the region faces serious problems with air, water and soil contamination, caused by a combination of population growth and increased urbanization, ineffective regulations and institutions and limited national and local governmental resources to provide basic services to all residents. Pressure from population growth and urbanization influences the regions environmental management systems, as seen by the increased presence of solid
2 Central American Strategy on Comprehensive Water Resource Management, June 2009 draft.

Most member countries of SICA have taken important steps to increase access to potable water and basic sanitation; however, despite this progress, most water resource management projects, up through the last decade, focused on providing goods and services for use (potable water, irrigation, hydro-electric generation) and lacked a vision of sustainability. Less than 25% of domestic and industrial run-off is treated. As a result, 75% of superficial water sources are polluted and vulnerable. Even though water is one of the regions most valuable, and most threatened, resources, and numerous initiatives have been implemented by national governments, international organizations
1 Central American Strategy on Comprehensive Water Resource Management, June 2009 draft.

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

1 and liquid waste products and growing vehicular traffic, which is the main cause of air pollution in the region. The agricultural sector uses insecticides and highly toxic substances excessively. In order to respond to these challenges, during the past five years CCAD has helped elaborate important public policies, such as the Regional Program to Prevent and Control Environmental Contamination, regional policies on Chemical Security and Comprehensive Solid Waste Management, and regional strategies on Comprehensive Solid Waste Management and the Prevention and Decrease of Contamination. In addition, it has worked to improve and homogenize environmental impact assessment systems and elaborate guidelines for strategic environmental assessments (SEAs), as tools to insert environmental considerations into regional and national policies, programs and plans. Important national and regional efforts have been made to promote improved environmental management in the private sector, especially through the Regional Cleaner Production Program. This Program included the development of an environmental accreditation model with the national cleaner production centers and a series of four Regional Awards for Environmental Innovation and Cleaner Production. As a result of these efforts, and the maturity of external and internal markets with consumers who are more aware of the importance of environmental responsibility, the number of companies that have certified their environmental management through independent certifications has grown in the past five years, especially in Costa Rica. Despite these achievements, however, the overall amount is still small when compared to the total number of companies operating in each country. In addition to its internal environmental issues, Central America also faces problems from the impacts of global climate change, which threatens the viability of its eco-systems and its inhabitants ways of life. Despite its minimal contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, the region is one of the most vulnerable in terms of the impact of climate change because of its geography and economic and social issues. Due to this situation, the Presidents of SICAs member countries approved the Guidelines for the Regional Strategy on Climate Change in May 2008. These Guidelines include very clear mandates for national and regional institutions to work on strategies and plans that will reduce the regions vulnerability and promote adaptation to climate change, as well as take advantage of opportunities to participate in global mitigation efforts through international carbon markets. As in the other mentioned areas, the regions main challenge with respect to climate change is the creation of public policies and national strategies that lead to concrete and coherent actions and synergies. This represents a key challenge to finding a common vision and developing new ways to work while seeking solutions that appropriately integrate all aspects of sustainable development. Discrepancies and asymmetries among policies and the regions environmental reality, clearly demonstrate the fact that environmental problems cannot be resolved independently of economic and social development processes. On the contrary, environmental considerations should be included in decision-making for all economic, social and political actors. This means that policy-makers must go from a sectorspecific approach - a remnant of the past to one seeking coherency and coordination among all sectors and actors.

Central American Commission for Environment and Development - CCAD

14 The transversal nature of environmental management, both nationally and regionally, means that new institutional arrangements are needed so that actors can share visions and coordinate efforts at all levels and stages of developing, designing and implementing policies, plans and programs. Likewise, new tools are needed to help decision-makers receive the information they need to develop a comprehensive vision to solve the regions economic, social and environmental problems. Policy-makers also need financial resources to apply these policy and management tools effectively and comply with commitments made in regional and international agreements. resource management and comprehensive risk management for natural disasters more effectively in the agendas of SICAs other entities. This Long-term Plan presented in the Presidential Summit establishes as the environmental entities objective: to consolidate a comprehensive approach among sectors in regional management for sustainable development through institutions and tools, sharing common policies and planning with a clear orientation toward implementation and compliance, as well as contributing to the entities efforts at SICA to promote social equality, governance, economic growth and comprehensive environmental, water resource and risk management. With this objective, the Plan establishes the following policy priorities: Strengthen coordination and communications mechanisms and tools among the environmental entities using common agendas and agreements. Intensify efforts to strengthen institutionalism at the Secretariats and specialized entities. Adopt water and risk reduction policies and put into practice the identified financial and institutional mechanisms. Articulate, align, update and approve the environmental entities regional strategies and plans. Define a Regional Strategy on Climate Change based on the Guidelines approved during the Presidential Summit on Climate Change and the Environment in Central America and the Caribbean in May 2008. Identify Central American criteria in order to establish specific risk, water resource and environmental coordination and management. The creation of this third PARCA has coincided with and been integrated into the process to align regional mechanisms with a shared vision and provide tools to environmental entities for environmental, water resource and risk management, as well as incorporate these topics into national

The need to have better coordination and coherency among different regional and sector policies has become apparent in SICA, where the Presidents have mandated a modernization and institutional strengthening process to achieve more efficient resource use and operational effectiveness. This has led the organization to review its organizational structure, and it has reinforced the importance of its environmental entities and has created important opportunities for dialogue and coordination within the system. During 2009, the creation of the Long-term Plan at SICA helped advance regional integration by providing coherency and coordination within the institution. In this Plan, the systems environmental entities (CCAD, CEPREDENAC and CRRH) presented objectives, challenges and common areas of action for the following three years in order to incorporate environmental considerations, water

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

1 and regional development policies. It is expected that these tools will be presented at the Presidential Summit in December 2009. PARCA 2010-2014, as used by the environmental entities at SICA, incorporates the objectives, challenges and priorities presented in the Long-term Plan in a comprehensive manner. It also complements these areas with CCADs guidelines and action areas and its interaction with other SICA entities, as described in the following sections.

PARCA is a strategic plan that presents strategies, objectives and priority areas of action for the following five years. Details of these activities, responsible parties, resources and progress indicators will be included in the Annual Operations Plans that will soon be prepared by the Executive Secretary of CCAD.

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III. General objective and strategic areas

As indicated in the previous section, the first PARCA established the principles, concepts and strategic areas needed to position and institutionalize an environmental agenda regionally and nationally. The second PARCA provided policy development tools to help promote the regions environmental integration. Once this positioning and development had been achieved, the challenge to apply and comply with the agenda remained. This required strengthening the environmental institutions and the effective incorporation of environmental management as an integral part of development policies and sector approaches, both regionally and nationally. Therefore, the third stage of the Plan should take the lessons learned from the first two phases and focus on developing institutional, regulatory and financial arrangements that allow policy tools to be implemented effectively in national environmental institutions and at SICA. This third PARCA should take advantage of the opportunities and synergies presented while formulating the Long-term Plan at SICA and strengthen the work done by the associated environmental entities. Considering this, PARCA 2010-2014 seeks to move the region from limited environmental management to an expanded form that incorporates public policy and allows each institution to assume environmental responsibilities through its mandates, policies and programs. Consequently, the main objective of the Plan is: To make value added regional environmental management a reality, supporting countries as they apply national and regional environmental management tools, and promoting the development of agreements and coordination mechanisms to incorporate environmental considerations in the agendas of SICA and regional institutions in charge of sector policies and strategies. In order to comply with this objective and based on expanded environmental management, PARCA 2010-2014 establishes two areas of action for CCAD: Policies to make environmental management and inter-institutional coordination transversal in order to influence public institutions to assume environmental responsibilities by providing them with the necessary technical support. Technical support from the Central American Commission for Environment and Development related to supporting environmental authorities with direct responsibilities, especially in the areas of environmental quality, natural resource management and climate change.

Based on experiences from the past few years, this new regional and strategic planning effort seeks to move from a project-based approach to one of stra-

Central American Environmental Plan 2010 - 2014

1 tegic programming, in order to avoid operational dispersion and concentrate efforts in areas key to the region. Therefore, the first strategic area of action relates to the incidence and transversal nature of environmental policies in regional agendas. The second action includes three strategic and technical areas: natural resource management, managing environmental quality and climate change and risk management. For each one of these three technical areas, an emblematic program should be identified to guide actions and projects and concentrate efforts. The natural resource management area emphasizes the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor, to align forest, biodiversity and protected area management and establish natural connections between these areas. It also presents an environmental perspective for zoning and territorial management. Environmental quality brings together the Regional Program to Prevent and Control Environmental Contamination and PROLEGIS, which was implemented during the last PARCA. The purpose of PROLEGIS is to improve environmental quality management in the areas of emissions, dumping and waste products. The purpose of this area is to strengthen cleaner production that is compatible with appropriate levels of competitiveness for national economies and complies with international environmental commitments, while improving environmental legislation and standards. In the area of climate change, efforts center around building and applying the Regional Strategy on Agro-environment and Health (RSAH) and the Regional Strategy on Climate Change (RSCC), using the guidelines established in the May 2008 Presidential Summit in San Pedro Sula. In order to manage risk and apply these strategies, both public and private sectors must make a social pact and become involved, and new institutional arrangements must be made to create national policies with broad citizen support. In addition, during the next five years, PARCA seeks to elevate the role of CCAD in building regional environmental policies, by creating two new support tools to apply these policies nationally within the framework of PARCAs objectives and the environmental entities Long-term Plan: The Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration is a financial tool that will establish a fund managed by the Executive Secretary for national environmental authorities to apply for financing to help them implement PARCA and other tools developed by the environmental entities at SICA. This fund will also be a new mechanism to access financing and spark policy dialogue with international cooperation agencies. Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance is a specialized policy tool for the Council of Ministers and other officials to access up-to-date and timely information to make decisions, especially related to regional and international environmental policy agendas.

The operations and structure of these two tools within the organization is detailed in Section V of this Plan. Finally, it is important to note that the Plan considers the following transversal topics. These topics have been adopted by CCAD during its years of experience and form the basis of the organizations work: Promoting sustainable development Comprehensive vision for environmental management Social participation Social equality Multiculturalism Gender perspective Decentralized environmental management Efficient and effective environmental management Reduction of social and ecological vulnerability

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IV. Strategic areas, objectives and areas of action

The following sections describe the strategic areas of PARCA 2010-2014 with its strategic objectives and corresponding areas of action, using the general objective and strategic focuses presented in the previous part. The expected result at the end of the five years of implementation is presented for each strategic area.

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Strategic Area 1. Environmental governance: the incidence and transversal nature of regional policies
Result
Regional environmental management tools are integrated and become part of national policies and sector agendas presented by the different entities at SICA.

Strategic objectives
1.1 Strengthen implementation of and compliance with regional environmental policy tools Areas of action

Review and update regional agreements related to environmental management (conservation of biodiversity and protected areas, climate change, transporting hazardous materials over borders and natural forest eco-system management and conservation). Align policies, strategies and regional programs for subsequent implementation and compliance. Work together with COMCA and SISCA to incorporate gender and multicultural focuses when creating, reviewing and implementing regional environmental policy tools. Develop appropriate structures to implement regional tools. Create, promote and strengthen the Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance and the Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration.

1.2 Promote an environmental focus and inter-institutional coordination in all actions Areas of action

Foster communication and coordination among the pertinent regional institutions in order to assure that environmental issues are considered in other regional agendas. Comply with the Long-term Plan developed by the environmental entities at SICA.

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Promote the creation of an Environmental Policy at SICA. Support the implementation of regional mechanisms that incorporate environmental topics in industry development, such as the Regional Strategy on Agro-environment and Health (RSAH), the Mesoamerican Strategy on Environmental Sustainability (MSES), the Central American Policy on Environment and Health, the Regional Strategy on Sustainable Energy and the Central American Strategy on Housing.

1.3 Promote citizen participation and public/private partnerships Areas of action

Promote mechanisms that assure the participation of men and women from civil society in decision-making and the implementation and evaluation of environmental policies. Promote the formation of public/private partnerships to assure the sustainability of environmental management. Promote equal, fair, differentiated and effective participation of women, indigenous peoples and African descendents in CCADs mechanisms and programs. Promote a regional agreement on accessing information, equal and fair public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental issues. Facilitate the creation and strengthening of regional networks and the incorporation of new civil society and private sector actors. Support the creation and dynamics of participatory mechanisms presented in regional policy and planning tools.

1.4 Strengthen international policy management Areas of action

Strengthen CCADs strategic analysis capabilities on global, regional and national issues in order to more effectively support environmental authorities with their tasks. Promote the participation of CCAD in negotiations of Central Americas policy and commercial agreements with other blocks to guarantee the inclusion of pertinent environmental topics. Identify and take advantage of synergies to strengthen negotiation capacity and compliance with the principal multilateral environmental agreements.

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Elaborate a regional environmental policy with the participation of men and women from different sectors and create a negotiation block for international forums in which environmental topics will be discussed. Establish strategic alliances with other blocks of countries.

1.5 Promote effective and coherent international cooperation management Areas of action

Apply the Paris Agenda principles in dialogue and negotiation with member countries and different international cooperation agencies. Support international cooperation agencies in developing strategies that respond to the real challenges faced in the Central American region. Provide constant follow-up on the lifecycle of regional projects financed by international cooperation agencies. Guarantee the efficient use of resources from international cooperation agencies and national and regional counterparts.

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Strategic Area 2. Strengthening national institutionalism and quality environmental management

Result
Environmental authorities in the member countries will have access to regional policy tools and apply the model tools that have been developed in regional programs nationally in order to strengthen their capacity to incorporate environmental topics in their countries.

Strategic objectives
2.1 Modernize and strengthen environmental legislation and standards Areas of action

Develop the Regional Environmental Legislation and Policy Program. Update and integrate environmental legislation in the region with a focus on diversity and gender and based on economic, social and political changes stemming from the global financial crisis, climate change and more than a decade of experience implementing current legislation. Promote the development of a Central American system for objective responsibility for environmental damages with concrete actions in each of the CCAD countries and by coordinating with what has been established in other regional mechanisms. Strengthen judicial institutions overseeing environmental conservation and quality. Elaborate a proposal to improve direct control and regulation mechanisms in order to align the regions socio-economic efficiency, effectiveness and realities. Update and integrate technical standards on emissions, dumping and waste in the regions countries. Develop legal and institutional frameworks for territorial zoning, with a focus on diversity and gender.

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2.2 Promote inter-institutional arrangements to strengthen national environmental management systems Areas of action

Build capacity of national environmental authorities. Promote institutional arrangements that avoid the duplicity and dispersion of powers and efforts related to environmental management at the national level. Promote institutional frameworks that allow for holistic, comprehensive and efficient environmental management.

2.3 Strengthen environmental assessment systems Areas of action

Continue efforts to improve the efficiency of EIA in the region. Add technical, computer and conceptual tools to EIA to increase their preventive capabilities. Promote the application of strategic environmental assessment tools for policies, plans and programs that will be developed in key sectors, both regionally and nationally. Promote the development and application of evaluation tools to measure synergic, accumulative and differentiated impacts. Promote the implementation of a common certification and registration model for environmental service providers.

2.4 Promote efforts to reduce contamination Areas of action

Promote the Regional Convention on Environmental Quality Management Indicators and Standards and its implementation in undersigning countries. Establish regional goals to reduce dumping, emissions and waste products and adopt mechanisms to force countries to meet them. Implement a Regional Registry of Contaminating Emissions and Transfer. Maintain a regional system to constantly evaluate environmental quality management systems through the Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance.

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2.5 Promote cleaner production and sustainable consumption Areas of action

Work together with SIECA and other SICA entities to support national and regional institutions to coordinate and articulate activities related to sustainable production and consumption (SPC). Promote abilities and skills for change agents of SPC (people, institutions, providers and consumers), with a focus on diversity and gender Promote a SPC approach for public policies in the member countries. Promote the use of incentives for SPC in the member countries (through voluntary agreements, awards, tax breaks, etc.). Promote the use of environmental sustainability criteria in public procurement processes.

2.6 Promote the use of economic tools in environmental management Areas of action

Develop regional and legislative models to incorporate economic and voluntary tools in environmental management. Contribute to capacity-building in areas needed to present economic tools in environmental management. Develop capacity to calculate an economic value for environmental damage. Promote the use of homogeneous economic tools to decrease dumping, emissions and waste. Promote the development of an environmental quality certification system for products to guide consumer preferences.

2.7 Strengthen urban planning and development tools Areas of action

Promote better environmental planning and zoning throughout the countries of the region. Elaborate and promote a regional policy on the use of environmental variables for territorial zoning, with a focus on diversity and gender. Develop and promote strategic environmental assessment methodologies for urban planning and territorial zoning.

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Strategic Area . Natural resource and priority eco-system management

Result
The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) concept will have been presented to institutions and communities in the region as a central focus of development based on the sustainable management of natural and cultural resources.

Strategic objectives
3.1 Promote conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity Areas of action

Update and implement the Regional Strategy on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity in Mesoamerica. Integrate or align regional policy tools related to biodiversity (PERFOR, PERCON, PROMEBIO and PERTAP). Develop and implement mechanisms to monitor regional and national commitments within the framework of UNCBD and its work programs. Rework the Mesoamerican Environmental Information System (SIAM, for its name in Spanish) and incorporate it within the Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance and promote connections to other regional centers, such as IRBio/Zamorano, STRI/Panama, INBio/Costa Rica, CATHALAC and others. Promote and foster the use of mechanisms to calculate economic values for payments for environmental services and fundraising, considering the particularities of each gender and different indigenous people and local communities. Promote synergies and inter-institutional coordination for the effective implementation of multilateral environmental agreements on related topics, such as CITES, UNCCD, RAMSAR and others. Align and coordinate international cooperation agency programs and activities related to natural resource management in the region.

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3.2 Reintroduce the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) Areas of action

Present the achievements of the MBC regional program and promote an exchange of successful experiences. Host a regional meeting for national environmental authorities, key UNCBD representatives, civil society organizations and industry associations, academic institutions and international organizations on a new, strategic MBC program. Design a second phase for the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor for the medium and long terms and incorporate transversal topics across all sectors (water, marine/coastal resources, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, risk management and cultural diversity, among others) and a clear link to industry strategies (energy, agriculture, health, housing, tourism) with inclusive planning that recognizes the needs of men, women, different indigenous people and local communities.

Design an appropriate institutional framework for the new phase of the MBC using regional and programmatic guidelines, standards and priorities that reflect national and local asymmetries and capacities. Develop mechanisms for private sector participation in the region in efforts related to the MBC.

3.3 Strengthen the Mesoamerican system of protected areas Areas of action

Develop regional guidelines to create, strengthen and provide financial sustainability to national systems of protected areas. Develop governance mechanisms for the Mesoamerican system of protected areas. Identify strategic national projects to link with the UNCBDs work plan on protected areas. Provide capacity-building in technical, administrative and financial areas to manage the regions protected areas. Support consolidation efforts for the Cacao Corridor, led by ACICAFOC.

3.4 Promote coherent policies and governance for forest eco-systems Areas of action

Analyze existing regional and strategic proposals to form a comprehensive regional proposal on inclusive policies and governance for forest eco-systems (PUEMBO, GTZ REDD/CARD, WB/ FLEG, FAO, and ITTO).

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Elaborate a new regional strategy on forestry governance based on progress with PERFOR and its links to other industry initiatives, considering the different needs of men and women. Create a regional policy on illegal logging and trade in coordination with TRAFFIC.

3.5 Promote comprehensive water resource and shared watershed management Areas of action

Support the implementation of regional tools for comprehensive water resource management: Water Convention, ECAGIRH and PACAGIRH. Support the creation of and strengthen regional institutionalism for the Water Convention, which promotes and monitors ECAGIRH and PACAGIRH. Develop regional guidelines for a protocol on shared watersheds and border commissions, using mandates from the Water Convention ECAGIRH and PACAGIRH.

3.6 Strengthen marine/coastal resource and shared marine ecosystem management Areas of action

Appropriately connect sustainable coastal/marine resource management efforts with the MBC and other initiatives related to terrestrial eco-systems. Establish regional priorities for marine/coastal eco-system conservation, including an expansion of marine protected areas as part of national protected areas systems and the consolidation of marine corridors. Develop regional guidelines for comprehensive watershed and coastal area management (ridges to reef) to decrease terrestrial sources of marine contamination. Work together with OSPESCA to create regional guidelines for an agreement on sustainable fishing. Work with SIECA and SITCA to create regional guidelines to limit the environmental impact of tourism and port infrastructure development in coastal areas, in consultation with national authorities and with the participation of men and women from different indigenous people, local communities and all involved industries.

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Strategic Area 4. Adaptation and mitigation for climate change and comprehensive risk management
Result
Citizens and governments in the region will be aware of the threats and opportunities of climate change and decrease their vulnerability to natural disasters, promoting adaptation and reducing greenhouse gas effects, based on the Regional Strategy on Climate Change.

Strategic objectives
4.1 Reduce vulnerability and promote adaptation to climate change Areas of action

Support industry associations in the evaluation of vulnerability and implementation of adaptation measures, with a focus on diversity and gender, in the most vulnerable socio-economic sectors, such as health, agriculture, water resources, tourism, energy and infrastructure. Support CEPREDENAC in developing, applying and verifying the vulnerability indicator system. Work with related SICA entities to bring together planning and financial sectors to incorporate adaptation to climate change in their industry plans and priorities for public investment, with a focus on diversity and gender. Present considerations related to adaptation to climate change in environmental impact assessment (EIA) systems, strategic environmental assessments (SEA) and other tools related to environmental management, bearing in mind the specific needs of both men and women.

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4.2 Promote greenhouse gas emissions (GGE) reductions and take advantage of opportunities in the carbon market Areas of action

Promote the implementation of programs to overcome barriers presented when developing GGE mitigation projects and commercializing emissions reductions certificates. Support UCE-SICA and national energy authorities to implement the Regional Strategy on Sustainable Energy. Support the pertinent authorities in evaluating measures to promote energy sustainability in the transportation sector. Strengthen regional and national efforts to manage forest eco-systems, watersheds and coastal/marine eco-systems sustainably, based on mitigation and adaptation to climate change efforts and differences between men and women. Promote new mechanisms to compensate for emissions reductions in the forestry and agricultural sectors, especially within the framework of Reduction Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD). Support pertinent authorities in identifying, evaluating and implementing measures to develop more effective mitigation in the agricultural, industrial and waste management sectors. Promote considerations related to GGE mitigation in environmental impact assessment systems and other tools related to environmental management.

4.3 Promote capacity-building and knowledge management Areas of action

Establish programs to strengthen international negotiation skills in the area of climate change for authorities from environmental, foreign relations and other related institutions. Promote the development of common methodologies, with a focus on diversity and gender, and build capacity among men and women to evaluate vulnerability to variation and climate change. Facilitate coordination among CEPREDENAC, CRRH and other regional research centers, national offices on climate change and associated national and regional institutions to develop studies on climate change.

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Garner support from international cooperation agencies to develop systems to monitor marine/coastal resources and generate information on developing climate change adaptation plans and measures for coastal communities and fishing and tourism activities. Promote the systematization and diffusion of successful experiences in adaptation and mitigation from countries in the region. Provide follow-up to the Central American Study on the Economics of Climate Change and work with pertinent institutions to strengthen national and regional capacity to analyze the economic impact of climate change. Establish a training plan on the topic of climate change in all sectors for regional and national government and non-governmental organizations. Promote mass education and awareness about climate change and introduce the topic into curricula at all education levels, citing consequences based on gender, ethnicity, sector, and others. Promote capacity-building to obtain financial resources from GGE mitigation projects (CDM, REDD and voluntary markets).

4.4 Promote comprehensive natural disaster risk management Areas of action

Support the General Secretariat of SICA and CEPREDENAC in implementing the Central American Policy for Comprehensive Risk Management (CAPCRM), the Strategic Framework to Reduce Vulnerabilities and Natural Disasters in Central America and the Regional Plan to Reduce Natural Disaster Risk, within the framework defined by SICAs environmental entities. Develop, within the framework defined by SICAs environmental entities, regional financial instruments for risk management and preventing associated risks for national, regional and international insurance companies. Promote considerations for comprehensive natural disaster risk management and adaptation to climate change, with a focus on diversity and gender, in territorial zoning processes and instruments, natural resource management, urban development and priority areas for public and private investment.

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V. Institutional arrangements
Over the years CCAD has consolidated its identity as an institution that promotes regional integration in the area of environmental policy-making (PARCA I, pg. 1). Beginning in 1997, CCAD was included in the first restructuring of SICA, as a regional institution with the mandate to coordinate SICAs environmental entities and oversee the GS-SICAs Environmental Office. CCADs recognition as a relevant regional and international actor has meant that most of its work during the past decade has been geared toward creating, administrating, supervising or implementing international cooperation projects, and that most of its personnel have been financed by these projects. This extreme dependence on international donors has created a complex tension among SICAs institutional identity, country demands and the objectives of the donor projects. Personnel from the Office of the Executive Secretary at CCAD must at the same time follow and implement decisions made by the Council of Ministers and respond to the needs of SICAs General Secretariat, while paying attention to the commitments and obligations the organization has with its donors. In order to apply the approaches presented in PARCA 2010-2014, CCAD, as a facilitator guiding compliance with regional agreements and the implementation of regional and national environmental mechanisms, requires ideal institutional arrangements at the Executive Secretary and policy decision-making levels. Politically, CCAD must create a sleek structure that allows it to provide technical support needed to implement decisions made by the Council of Ministers and to follow-up on mandates given by the Executive Secretary. This will be facilitated by strengthening the Connecting Committee, simplifying the Technical Committees and creating the Regional Observatory for Environmental Implementation and Compliance to provide information for strategic decision-making. By strengthening the Connecting Committee and creating three Technical Committees one for each strategic area of work and instead of the 13 existing ones CCAD will be able to provide comprehensive regional coordination instead of isolated interventions in a large number of areas. The work of the three Technical Committees, including senior level officials from each member country in each strategic area, will be complemented by help from ad-hoc expert committees that will be created when a special need arises, but will not form a permanent part of CCADs organi-

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zational structure. In terms of the Observatory, it is important to clarify that this entity is not a unit within the organizational structure, but rather a specialized tool at the ES-CCAD level to support policy-formation among the Council and environmental authorities, by providing timely and trustworthy information for analysis and reflection on the environment and

issues that affect environmental management. One fundamental part of the Observatory will be the Mesoamerican Environmental Information System (SIAM, for its name in Spanish), which will be updated with data from national environmental information systems (SINIA-SIA). The following figure shows the policy-making

entities and their relationships: This graph presents the political relationships internally at CCAD among the Council, the Committees, the Observatory and the Executive Secretary at SICAs environmental entities and at SICA, in general. SICA, and its environmental entities, are needed to implement actions described in Section III of this document and develop the areas of action in Strategic Area I of PARCA. The graph shows the Observatory to emphasize its importance as a new and specialized policy tool, which is based on analyses of international,

regional and national situations and will provide the Council of Ministers and other actors with the information they need to make decisions. In order to define an ideal organizational structure, the role of the Executive Secretary was analyzed. The Executive Secretary must act as a technical entity that implements political mandates received from the Council of Ministers, coordinates processes to strengthen and institutionalize environmental management in the region and leads CCAD programs. The following table presents a summary of this analysis.

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Function/area of work 1. Council of Ministers of Environment 2. Oversee the environmental areas of GS-SICA 3. Coordinate the environmental entities at SICA 4. Make sure environmental considerations are included in SICAs industry agendas

Required structure/officials Executive Secretariat, mainly political/economic representation and coordination Management support for daily administration

5. Promote natural resource management 6. Promote quality environmental management 7. Promote risk management and attention to climate change

Technical Offices These offices are responsible for strategic and area management. All cooperation projects and processes will be managed by these offices/technical areas to avoid individual project management. Technical and strategic monitoring for cooperation processes

8. Manage project cycles 9. Capacity-building for members 10. Strengthen SICA institutions

Administration and Finance Section Responsible for administrative operations, reporting and monitoring management in cooperation processes. Specific consulting projects to support members and technical managers

Using this analysis, the Executive Secretary, with support from his or her office, oversees a structure with two sections that coordinate strategic programs and provide administrative, financial and logistical services necessary to im-

plement, follow-up and evaluate those programs. The following figure shows the new structure, whose operations are described in detail in the corresponding Operations Manual

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When analyzing this proposed structure with the strategic areas, it becomes apparent that the Executive Secretary, with support from the Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration and following the mandates handed down by the Council of Ministers, is directly responsible for implementing the actions listed in Strategic Area 1. The Office of the Executive Secretary will provide support, such as legal, communications and public relations services, among others, to assure compliance with the mandates. Like the Observatory, the Financial Support Mechanism for Environmental Integration is not an organizational unit, but rather a specialized tool to support national environmental authorities when applying PARCA guidelines and other environmental mechanisms locally, based on requests related to specific areas of work and with previously-defined financial support, monitoring and control. This tool will be established as a fund, which will be managed by the Executive Secretary of CCAD with an independent committee governed by official regulations. This committee will award

funding to institutions that have submitted applications and are part of each countrys environmental management system to finance projects that are supported by the respective environmental authorities and whose purpose is to apply regional mechanisms locally. Each one of the three strategic areas environmental quality, natural resources and climate change is administered by a management office, which reports directly to the Strategic Program section. The purpose of this section is to help the Executive Secretary integrate all activities related to CCADs second area of action. Resources from international cooperation agencies may continue to be managed by projects, but the hope is for each project to be integrated within the institutional structure, under the supervision of one or more offices, depending on the exact topic, rather than forming parallel structures that disperse resources and do not contribute to CCADs overall vision. This will be an important point in negotiations with international cooperation agencies that support and strengthen regional environmental management.

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VI. Follow-up and updates to the plan

Since this is a strategic plan, it has been designed for a period of five years. Its strategic objectives and areas of action will become guidelines for CCADs Executive Secretary and international cooperation programs that contribute to compliance with established indicators, which are currently being implemented to develop annual operations plans. These strategic objectives and areas of action will also help define future activities that can be financed by other donors. Therefore, at least one result indicator should be defined for each strategic objective in PARCAs strategic areas. A result indicator is one that must be complied with throughout the period of the Plan, or in this case, from 2010 to 2014. The result indicators should concretely define how they will be verified, their risks and any assumptions made for compliance. However, monitoring compliance with result indicators (every five years) should be done using process indicators (verified annually), to evaluate how the annual operations plans help support compliance with PARCA. Once monitoring and evaluation has started on the results of the operations plans, CCADs Executive Secretary will prepare annual progress reports on PARCA, which will be presented to the Council of Ministers in the first regular meeting of each year, beginning in 2011. In the first half of 2014, CCADs Executive Secretary will evaluate compliance with PARCA based on annual progress reports, an analysis of the current situation and considering regional and global perspectives. This evaluation will serve as the basis for elaboration of PARCA 2015-2019, which will be presented to the Council of Ministers in the second half of 2014.

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