Foreword

The principal aim of the OECD Environmental Performance Review programme is to help member and selected partner countries improve their individual and collective performance in environmental management by:

• helping individual governments assess progress in achieving their environmental goals

• promoting continuous policy dialogue and peer learning

• stimulating greater accountability from governments towards each other and public opinion.

This report reviews the environmental performance of Denmark since the previous review in 2007. Progress in achieving domestic objectives and international commitments provides the basis for assessing the country’s environmental performance. Such objectives and commitments may be broad aims, qualitative goals or quantitative targets. A distinction is made between intentions, actions and results. Assessment of environmental performance is also placed within the context of Denmark’s historical environmental record, present state of the environment, physical endowment in natural resources, economic conditions and demographic trends.

The OECD is indebted to the government of Denmark for its co-operation in providing information, for the organisation of the review mission to Copenhagen (26-29 November 2018) and for facilitating contacts both inside and outside government institutions.

Thanks are also due to the representatives of the two examining countries, Andrew McNee (Australia) and Arthur ten Wolde (Netherlands).

The authors of this report were Rafal Brykowski, Nathalie Cliquot, Britta Labuhn and Simon Apelblat Thomsen from the OECD Secretariat. Nathalie Girouard and Gérard Bonnis provided oversight and guidance. Carla Bertuzzi provided statistical support, Annette Hardcastle provided administrative support and Rebecca Brite copy-edited the report. Natasha Cline-Thomas provided communications support. Preparation of this report also benefited from inputs and comments from several members of the OECD Secretariat, including Aad van Bohemen, Nils Axel Braathen, Ivana Capozza, Nathalie Delrue, Kathleen Dominique, Mikkel Hermansen, Katia Karousakis, Hannah Leckie, Xavier Leflaive, Eeva Leinala, Eugene Mazur, Will Symes, Özlem Taskin and Jonas Teusch.

The OECD Working Party on Environmental Performance discussed the draft Environmental Performance Review of Denmark at its meeting on 25 April 2019 in Paris and approved the Assessment and recommendations.