ABSTRACT
Governments in the newly democratic states of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union are under pressure to deal with serious environmental problems at the same time that they are making the difficult transition from centrally planned to market-based economies. Relying on newly created environmental ministries to solve these problems is probably a mistake; instead, the governments of Central and Eastern Europe should focus their immediate environmental policies on the “win-win” opportunities created by the economic transition—opportunities to improve economic conditions and the environment at the same time. Pursuing these opportunities will require, as a first step, the maintenance of political and economic stability. It will also require development of the right incentives with respect to foreign trade and a shift to market-oriented agricultural production. The pursuit of win-win opportunities is no guarantee of long-term environmental sustainability, but it will allow breathing space in which to create environmental legislation and a cost-effective public-sector environmental regulatory institution, both of which are prerequisites for such sustainability.
