ArmInfo. Transparency International Anti-Corruption Center has submitted comments on the draft decree of the Minister of Environment "On Approval of the Guidelines for Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)", recommending its revision.
According to a message received by ArmInfo from Transparency International, the purpose of the guidelines should be to provide a step-by-step and publicly accessible procedure for implementing EIA and EIA as a guide and tool for their initiators.
"From this point of view, it is important to make the documents as practical and accessible as possible, avoiding unnecessary theoretical material, ambiguous and incomplete provisions. The draft guidelines have been developed in a different style and spirit. The procedure and sequence for conducting SEA and EIA are not clear," the Anti-Corruption Center noted.
The Organization also drew attention to the issue of insufficient public awareness and participation.
"It is necessary to include procedures that will ensure active participation of citizens from the early stages of the process. At the same time, these procedures must comply with the obligations assumed under the Aarhus Convention (Convention of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe - ed.) ), even if they somewhat repeat the decision of the Government of Armenia of December 28, 2023, which describes in detail the procedure for notifying all beneficiaries," Transparency International explained.
As practical tips for raising public awareness, the NGO suggests avoiding holding hearings on holidays, using e-mail for notifications, or organizing online hearings for regional representatives.
Another important element, according to Transparency International, is monitoring. As noted by the Anti- Corruption Center, the methodological guidelines should outline the tools and general requirements for monitoring the implementation of SEA and EIA, as well as the general monitoring standards provided for by international obligations.
Finally, Transparency International emphasizes the need to revise the existing SEA and EIA guidelines developed by the Ministry of Environment of Armenia to comply with the requirements of the RA Law "On Environmental Impact" and international documents, including the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) on the Availability of Environmental Information, "On Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters" (Aarhus, 1998), the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (abbreviated Espoo Convention, 1991) and the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment attached thereto (Kyiv, 2003).