© Richard Randall

Caribbean

Sundries

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Oceania

the party.

A significant achievement of the two successive Verhofstadt governments has been the achievement of a balanced budget; Belgium is one of the few member-states of the EU to have done so. This policy was applied by the successive governments during the 1990s under pressure from the European Council. The fall of the previous government was mainly due to the dioxin crisis,[8] a major food intoxication scandal in 1999 that led to the establishment of the Belgian Food Agency.[9] This event resulted in an atypically large representation by the Greens in parliament, and a greater emphasis on environmental politics during the first Verhofstadt government. One Green policy, for example, resulted in nuclear phase-out legislation, which has been modified by the current government. The absence of Christian Democrats from the ranks of the government has enabled Verhofstadt to tackle social issues from a more liberal point of view and to develop new legislation on the use of soft drugs, same-sex marriage and euthanasia. During the two most recent parliaments, the government has promoted active diplomacy in Africa,[10] opposed a military intervention during the Iraq disarmament crisis, and has passed legislation concerning war crimes. Both of Verhofstadt's terms have been marked by disputes between the Belgian communities. The major points of contention are the nocturnal air traffic routes at Brussels Airport and the status of the electoral district of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde.

Communities and regions

The country's constitution was revised on 14 July 1993 to create a unique federal state, based on three levels:

1. The federal government, based in Brussels.

2. The three language communities:

• the Flemish (i.e., Dutch-speaking) Community;

• the French (i.e., French-speaking) Community;

• the German-speaking Community.

3. The three regions (which differ from the language communities with respect to the German-speaking community and the Brussels region):

• the Flemish region;

• the Walloon Region; and

• the Brussels-Capital Region.

Conflicts between the bodies are resolved by the Court of Arbitration. The setup allows a compromise so distinctly different cultures can live together peacefully.

The Flemish Community absorbed the Flemish Region in 1980 to form the government of Flanders[11]. The overlapping boundaries of the Regions and Communities have created two notable peculiarities: the territory of the Brussels-Capital Region is included in both Flemish and French Communities, and the territory of the German-speaking Community lies wholly within the Walloon Region. Flemish and Walloon regions are furthermore subdivided in administrative entities, the provinces.

At the highest level of this three-tiered setup is the federal government which manages foreign affairs, development aid, defence, military, police, economic management, social welfare, social security transport, energy, telecommunications, and scientific research, limited competencies in education and culture, and the supervision of taxation by regional authorities. The federal government controls more than 90 per cent of all taxation. The community governments are responsible for the promotion of language, culture and education in mostly schools, libraries and theatres. The third tier is the Regional governments, who manage mostly land and property based issues such as housing, transportation etc. For example, the building permit for a school building in Brussels belonging to the public school system would be regulated by the regional government of Brussels. However, the school as an institution would fall under the regulations of the Flemish government if the primary language of teaching is Dutch, but under the French Community government if the primary language is French.

Geography and climate

Belgium, with an area of 30 528 square kilometres (11,787 sq. mi), has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west, the central plateau, and the Ardennes uplands in the south-east. The coastal plain consists mainly of sand dunes and polders. Polders are areas of land, close to or below sea level that have been reclaimed from the sea, from which they are protected by dikes or, further inland, by fields that have been drained with canals. The second geographical region, the central plateau, lies further inland. This is a smooth, slowly rising area that has many fertile valleys and is irrigated by many waterways. Here one can also find rougher land, including caves and small gorges.

The third geographical region, called the Ardennes, is more rugged than the first two. It is a thickly forested plateau, very rocky and not very good for farming, which extends into northern France. This is where much of Belgium's wildlife can be found. Belgium's highest point, the Signal de Botrange is located in this region at only 694 metres (2,277 ft).

The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in all seasons (K–ppen climate classification: Cfb; the average temperature is 3 ƒC (37ƒF) in January, and 18ƒ C (64 ƒF) in July; the average precipitation is 65 millimetres (2.6 in) in January, and 78 millimetres (3.1 in) in J

Environment

According to various scientific sources[citation needed], certain environmental issues in Belgium are among the worst in the world. The reasons for this are:

• Belgium is a major transit country within the European Union (EU)

• Belgium's heavy industry is a major source of income, centred around chemicals and metal

• Belgium is located between countries that do a lot of polluting themselves (Germany's Ruhr area, France and the Netherlands)

• Belgium's government lacks decisive environmental policies

• A 2003 report [13] suggested that the water in Belgium's rivers was of the lowest quality in Europe, and bottom of the 122 countries studied.

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