Managing agricultural non-point source pollution in the European Union, New Zealand, and Vietnam

Abstract

The world population explosion has led to the unprecedented demand for food. To ensure food security for more than seven billion people, the development of intensive agriculture appears to be inevitable. However, these days, excessive intensive farming becomes a leading threat to our environment as non-point sources of pollution. That situation poses an urgent need for a legal management mechanism for the pollution from intensive agriculture. In such developed countries as in the European Union, New Zealand, agricultural production shall comply with stringent environmental regulations. However, though one of the most productive agriculture baskets globally, Vietnam lacks a firm legal basis for agricultural management. The research's primary objective is to study and propose an optimal legal institution for Vietnam’s management of non-point pollution, assuring the harmonization between economic development and environmental protection. The author would respectively address key research questions, including: 1. What is agricultural non-point source pollution? How are the trends of non-point pollution in the EU, New Zealand and Vietnam? 2. What are the approaches of pollution control under international law, and the European Union, New Zealand, and Vietnam systems? 3. What is the difference between the European Union, New Zealand, and Vietnam's pollution legislation? Recommendations for Vietnam’s laws. The research scope would cover two primary fields, including livestock and crop farming, and other water polluters as well. It would then vary from international law to national laws on non-point pollution, with the focus on the European Union and New Zealand systems. Finally, the status of the current law on intensive farming in Vietnam will be concentrated. A comparison would obtain shortcomings of Vietnam’s laws compared to the other systems; thus, a feasible approach for Vietnam would be developed.