SWEDES are fond of nature.

Not only in that concerned environmentally conscious way which wants to preserve nature as a rare and often distant good, but the Swedes have a much closer and older relationship to nature. In this regard. Swedes are also quick to mention the Right of Common Access, a right that was established as long time ago as in 13th Century, which makes it possible for everyone to have a limited access to pnvate land As long as one shows consideration towards the owner of the land and avoid damaging or violating the landowner’s rights by disturbing (he peace and quiet of his home there is nothing to prevent you from stopping a while at some nice spot or having a swim in a lake.

This right has been regarded as unique to Sweden Still the Swedes' love for nature was not created by a decree — it was perhaps facilitated by it but comes from the privilege of having a vast country with few inhabitants and of having an easy access to nature, be it in central Stockholm or in a primeval forest.

Even in Stockholm, no one is more than twenty minutes from leafy parks or more that ten minutes from water. The City's waters are good for swimming, thanks to hard efforts to protect the water Irom pollution. But it is to the Stockholm archipelago, that the Stockholmers love to set out for when they want leisure and relaxing. There are some 25.000 islands in all. making Stockholm's archipelago the largest in the world! The all-encompassing environmental concerns: The great concern for the nature and the environment is also reflected in the country’s political life. Sweden actually took the initiative for the first international environmental conference to be held in Stockholm tn 1972. The Stockholm Conference signalled the start of the international struggle for a belter environment.

Today, it is well-known that environmental issues affect all aspects of society, from large production systems to the lifestyle of individuals. In Sweden the control of urban and industrial pollution has gone a long way.

— "We don’t own the earth — have borrowed It from our children" is the fundamental motto for Swedish environmental policy. Its overall objectives have been formulated as follows; We must create an environmentally oriented so< ie(V that protect human health, preserves biological cliwiMiy. manages natural resources in a sustainable way and protect-valuable natural and cultural landscapes." The next step is move towards issues concerning products, for instance recycling and waste minimisation as well as infrastructure and lifestyles of the Swedes. The challenge is to reduce the pollution from products and the agricultural and transport sectors. With their love for (heir environment, the Swedish consumers have put an Impetus on the producers to meet their demands for more environmentally sound products, so that an ecologically sustainable society is achieved.

The Swedes also have support to their environmental concerns in the new Environmental Code that came into force on January 1. 1999. It was enacted in order to make the environmental legislation easier to comprehend. Now all rules on how an operation harmful to the environment should be counteracted are gathered under only one statute. They new Code also places same fundamental requirements on all kind of environmentally destructive operations, thus enlarging the scrutiny into areas that were not regulated before. In principle the Code applies to all human activities that may harm the environment and applies to everything from major projects, such as building and operating hydroelectricity plants or motorways, to small individual measures, such as washing a car with detergents or composting household waste — an all encompassing set of rules to protect the environment'