Innovative Economic Instruments of Environmental Policy. Experiences and Perspectives of Development in Poland

This article is an attempt at a compilation of world wide experiences in the scope of introduction and application of economic instruments of using the natural environment and indication of concrete conditions in which these instruments can be effectively used in Poland. The influence on users of environment can have direct or indirect character. Direct methods are the most often administrative-legal regulations characterized by standards and limits. These instruments have the character of orders and prohibitions. On one hand it decides about environment, on the other hand it means most often low economic effectiveness. Indirect influence on the users of environment are economic instruments. They are the key to balanced development and comprise the tool of optimum allocation, optimum distribution and optimum scale and scope of use. They are to stimulate economic subjects to a more economical use of environmental resources, eliminate products and services worsening its quality and finally to internalization of external costs of the interaction of production processes on the environment. The most interesting, innovative economic market instrument of environmental protection became recently transferable permissions for emissions and trade. Apart from the characteristic of this instrument the authors indicated the advantages and faults. Also the possibilities and limitations of using transferable permissions for emission in Poland were described. Against this background there were discussed a number of experiments conducted in several regions of Poland, whose role was investigation of the influence of the discussed economic instrument of environmental protection upon the effectiveness of the functioning of enterprises. Intern the analyzes of limitations in the development of the market of transferable permissions for the emission of pollutants into the atmosphere was aimed at showing the necessary changes in the Polish legislation which would lead to a higher effectiveness and propagation of the use of this instrument. At this point it should be stressed that Polish experiences and regulations in the scope are more advanced than those existing in the European Union, which means that in the field of environmental protection we can bring a valuable contribution in the accession processes.