Participation rights and access to courts

Question 1

What is the rationale behind public participation?

Answer 1

• democratic participation
• can legitimize decisions because every piece of information is being brought to the table
• environmental/natural resources factor, they are often a matter of fairness
• thought to improve environmental quality
• can also be other rationales

Question 2

What is the objective of the Aarhus convention?

Answer 2

It presumes a right to a healthy environment, giving right to access to information, public participation in decision-making, and access to justice in environmental matters

Question 3

What sort of an instrument is the Aarhus convention?

Answer 3

It is purely a procedural instrument, meaning that it does not contain any material rules on environmental quality. It gives some of the tools to guarantee the environmental quality prescribed by other rules.

Question 4

What are the 3 pillars in the Aarhus convention?

Answer 4

• access to environmental information (Art.4) (no interest test) and collective and dissemination of environmental information (art.5)
• public participation (art.6-8)
  
  • in decisions on specific activities
  • in plans, programs and policies relating to the environment
  • in the preparation of regulations or legislation
• access to justice (art.9)

Question 5

What are the aims behind the pillars of the Aarhus convetion?

Answer 5

to improve transparency, democracy and accountability in decisions affecting the environment

Question 6

What is the function of the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committe (ACCC) given by art. 15 of the convention?

Answer 6

It is an optional arrrangement of a non-confrontational, non-judicial and consultative nature for reviewing compliance with the provision of Aarhus (not a court). To improve compliance rather then assisting parties to enforce their rights.

Question 7

Who can bring a case before ACCC?

Answer 7

• state party of the Aarhus convention against another state party
• referral by the secretariat of the convention
• a communication fron the public concerning any Party’s compliance with the Aarhus convention

Question 8

How does the EU implement the Aarhus convention?

Answer 8

• a regulation sought to apply alle 3 pillars of the convention on EU’s own institutions and bodies (exception for public participation and access to justice when acting in judicial or legislative capacity)
• secondly, the EU has passed 2 directives aimed at imposing, as a matter of EU law, certain obligations relating to the Aarhus convention on EU member states: their scope limited to access to information (2003/4/EC) and public participation and access to justice in the field of environmental impact assessment and industrial emissions (2003/35/EC)
  
  • industrial emissions directive and EIA directives also have provisions on public participation