In line with one of the major themes in
the Bank's Environment Strategy, this 2005 annual
review is devoted to the theme of environmental health.
Viewpoint articles in this edition reflect several external
perspectives: the World Health Organization (WHO) lays out
the panorama of environmental risk factors; a successful
example of combating urban air pollution is provided by the
former mayor of Bogotá; successful strategies to enhance

A tradable development rights (TDR)
program focusing on biodiversity conservation faces a
crucial problem defining which areas of habitat should be
considered equivalent. Restricting the trading domain to a
narrow area could boost the range of biodiversity conserved
but could increase the opportunity cost of conservation. The
issue is relevant to Brazil, where TDR-like programs are
emerging. Current regulations require each rural property to

This book is organized as follows:
Introduction: Is Geography Destiny? Chapter 1 discuses The
Channels of Influence of Geography: Latin America from an
International Perspective. Chapter 2 discusses The Other
Side of The Mountain: The Influence of Geography Within
Countries. Chapter 3 discusses Policies to Overcome the
Limitations of Geography

This study reviews Malawi's
policies in the biomass, rural electrification, and
non-biomass renewable energy sub-sectors to identify
problems and constraints to progress and to propose
policies, initiatives, and institutional structures to
overcome those problems and constraints. The main
recommendations of this report to the Government of Malawi
are as follows: 1) reform the present legislative and

The most traditional and widely used
farming systems in the humid upland tropics are based on
fallowing and various forms of slash-and-burn agriculture.
Their sustainability depends on the duration of the fallow;
as long as the fallow stage is longer than seven or eight
years, slash-and-burn systems usually remain efficient. They
produce a moderate yield using a low-input technology that
is especially efficient in terms of returns to labor. With a

This paper provides a simple, yet
robust, methodology for comparing proposed hydroelectric
project sites in terms of their expected negative
environmental impacts, and relating these to power
generation benefits. The paper also summarizes the
environmental mitigation options for large dams. If properly
implemented, these mitigation measures can effectively
prevent, minimize, or compensate for many (though not all)

A major section of over 720 million
rural poor in India continue to depend on biomass sources
for meeting their energy requirements. Most of these poor
people continue to burn biomass in energy-inefficient
devices, locally called Chulhas. This study report is based
on an evaluation of the National Program for Improved
Chulhas (NPIC) conducted as part of a larger Bank study
entitled India : household energy, indoor air pollution and

This book comprises two distinct
elements. The first, and major, part of the book (chapters
1-3) is a unique and essential compilation of technical
information and data on the entire Niger River system. It
presents a comprehensive overview of the physical
environment and hydrological functions of the watershed,
thus providing the necessary background for examination of
the challenges of resource management and development

China has an ancient tradition of
hydraulic engineering but in the past half century the
intensity of exploitation of water resources has accelerated
as a result of population and economic growth. The three
major issues for Chinese water management are water
shortages, flood control and pollution. The World Commission
on Dams noted that since 1949 the number of large dams in
China had increased from 22 to 22,000, almost half the

The Little Green Data Book 2004 is based
on the World Development Indicators 2004, and represents a
succinct collection of information. It is a collaboration
between the Development Economics Data Development Group,
and the Environment Department of the World Bank. Under the
headings of agriculture, forests, biodiversity, energy,
emissions and pollution, water and sanitation, and
'greener' national accounts, it presents key

The energy sector plays a significant role in the overall economy of Azerbaijan, as in other transition countries, and the World Bank's experience suggests that without energy sector reform and financial viability the transition process is much more difficult and delayed. The objective of this report, therefore, is to outline the issues and options facing Azerbaijan as it develops and implements its agenda for reform of the energy sector in order to inform the country's dialogue on this subject and the associated decision making process.

This paper looks at the evidence on the
magnitude and impacts of forest illegal acts, examines the
vulnerabilities of the forest sector, and proposes a
strategy for combating forest crime. Forest crime
prominently includes illegal logging but acts against the
law also affect other sector operations such as forest
products transport, industrial processing, and trade. Almost
universally, criminal exploitation of forest products and