Field vignette: Moving from prescriptive to performance-based regulation: The case of waste management

A notable exception is the Akoben program, which is an environmental performance rating and disclosure initiative of the Ghanaian Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which has potential for improving waste regulation performance. The Akoben program uses formal standards for Water Quality, but EPA guidelines for effluent quality, air pollution and dust discharge. Under the Akoben initiative, the environmental performance of mining and manufacturing operations is assessed using a gold, green, blue, orange, and red color rating scheme indicating environmental performance ranging from excellent to poor. Akoben ratings are evaluated by analyzing more than a hundred performance indicators that include quantitative data as well as qualitative and visual information. These ratings measure the environmental performance of companies based on their day-to-day operations once they have successfully cleared their Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and obtained their environmental permit to operate. Akoben complements the EIA process and serves a monitoring and verification program to ensure that companies follow environmental regulations on a continual basis.