Some aspects of Environmental citizenship and

Justice

Outline
1.
2.
3.
4.

Introduction
Aarhus Convention
Environmental Justice
(Possible) future developments

Introduction
"The serious environmental, social and economic challenges faced
by societies worldwide cannot be addressed by public authorities
alone without the involvement and support of a wide range of
stakeholders, including individual citizens and civil society
organizations.
"Vision and Mission" of the Aarhus Convention Strategic Plan, adopted in 2008

If all the people take part in environmental decision making, will

this improve the Environment and raise awareness?

Sustainable Development = Environmental Justice ?

The UNECE Convention on Access to Information,

Public Participation in Decision-making and Access
to Justice in Environmental Matters
http://www.unece.org/env/pp/welcome.html

Signed in 1998 in Aarhus, Denmark, Entry into force on 30 October

2001
As of July 2010, 44 countries ratified the original Convention; 23
countries ratified the PRTRs to the Convention; 25 ratified the
Grandmother
provisionGMO
- Rio Declaration 1992
amendment regarding
Principle 10
Environmental issues are best handled with participation of all
concerned citizens, at the relevant level. At the national level,
each individual shall have appropriate access to information
concerning the environment that is held by public authorities,
including information on hazardous materials and activities
in their communities, and the opportunity to participate in
decision-making processes. States shall facilitate and
encourage public awareness and participation by making
information widely available. Effective access to judicial and
administrative proceedings, including redress and remedy,
shall be provided.

What is the Aarhus Convention about ?

The Convention is a new kind of environmental agreement.
Links environmental rights and human rights;
Acknowledges (again) that we owe an obligation to future
generations;
Establishes that sustainable development can be achieved only
through the involvement of all stakeholders;
Links government accountability and environmental protection;
Focuses on interactions between the public and public
authorities in a democratic context;
The subject of the Convention goes to the heart of the
relationship between people and governments. The Convention
is not only an environmental agreement, it is also a Convention
about government accountability, transparency and
responsiveness;
The Aarhus Convention grants the public rights and imposes on
Parties and public authorities obligations regarding access to
information and public participation and access to justice;
The Aarhus Convention is also forging a new process for public
participation in the negotiation and implementation of
international agreements.

Aarhus Convention- Pillars

Public
access to
environmen
tal
information

Public
participatio
n in
environmen
tally
relevant
decisionmaking

Access to
Justice in
environmen
tal matters.

AC Public Access to Information

Starting point --> the right to know: The public has the
right - without needing to prove a special interest to access
information about the state of the environment, public health and
of other factors affecting the Environment.

This right exists vis--vis authorities, in the broader definition of

the Convention of authority Authorities should in principle
provide the information requested within one month since
application;
An application for environmental information may be rejected only
for limited number of reasons, e.g. if the application is obviously
being misused or if the authority in question does not possess the
information applied for, or: if releasing the information in question
would have adverse impact on the confidentiality of the
proceedings of public authorities, of commercial and industrial
information or of personal data.
The Convention also provides for more active dissemination of
information about the environment among the general public,
accentuating on transparency and access effectiveness.

AC
Public participation in decision making (Article
Public participation in decisions on specific activities, the
6) particularly with respect to its
mechanisms of public participation,
time, form and scope.
In a separate annex it lists the activities to which public
participation applies. (art. 6(1), Annex).
Energy sector
Production and processing of metals
Mineral and chemical industries
Waste management
Industrial paper and pulp mills
Pipelines, highways and waterways.

The public concerned have to be informed in advance in a

suitable, timely and effective manner, whereby a certain
minimum amount of information about the decision-making
procedure must be provided. A reasonable timeframe shall be
planned and early public participation must be ensured. The
competent authorities must grant the public access to all
information of relevance for the decision-making procedure. At
the same time it allows the public the possibility of submitting
documents, etc. regarding the planned actions. The authorities
must take due account of the outcome of public participation, and
the public must be informed about the outcome of the decision
without delay. The signatories should strive to promote effective
public participation during the preparation of legally binding rules

AC - Access to Justice (Article 9)

Any person who considers that his or her request for information has
been wrongfully refused or inadequately answered should have access
to a review procedure. This review procedure should take place before
a court of law or another independent and impartial body established
by law.
Members of the public affected should have access to a review
procedure before a court of law or another independent and impartial
body established by law to challenge the substantive and procedural
legality of any decisions within the scope of Art. 6. The Convention
grants this right to those members of the public concerned who either
have a sufficient interest or alternatively claim impairment of
a right, where the national administrative procedural law requires
this as a precondition. The legal definitions of sufficient interest and
impairment of a right remains to be determined by each national
law. NGOs active in the area of environmental protection that meet
the preconditions specified by national law are recognized by the
Aarhus Convention as having a sufficient interest .
Members of the public, where they meet the national criteria, shall
have access to administrative or judicial procedures to challenge acts
and omissions by private persons and public authorities which
contravene national law relating to the environment .
The states will ensure that the public is informed on the access to

AC Convention further details

Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers 2003
The Protocol is the first legally binding international instrument on pollutant
release and transfer registers. Its objective is "to enhance public access to
information through the establishment of coherent, nationwide pollutant release
and transfer registers (PRTRs)." PRTRs are inventories of pollution from industrial
sites and other sources.
GMO Focus
Amendment to the Convention - Almaty Guidelines - 2005
Within the framework of their national law, the signatories shall also apply the
provisions of Art. 6 - as far as feasible and appropriate - to decisions on whether to
permit the deliberate release of genetically modified organisms into the environment.
Convention Bodies
Meeting of the parties
Expert Groups
Aarhus Clearinghouse
Compliance Committee

Environmental Justice

Definitions
An equitable spatial distribution of burdens and benefits to groups
such as racial minorities, residents of economically disadvantaged
areas, or residents of developing nations.USA

A condition of environmental justice exists when environmental

risks and hazards and investments and benefits are equally
distributed with a lack of discrimination, whether direct or indirect,
at any jurisdictional level; and when access to environmental
investments, benefits, and natural resources are equally
distributed; and when access to information, participation in
decision making, and access to justice in environment-related
matters are enjoyed by all.Central and Eastern Europe

"Environmental justice is about social transformation directed

towards meeting basic human needs and enhancing our quality of
lifeeconomic quality, health care, housing, human rights,
environmental protection, and democracy. In linking
environmental and social justice issues the environmental justice
approach seeks to challenge the abuse of power which results in

AC - effectiveness
PPRTRs although regulating information on pollution, rather than pollution directly, the
Protocol is expected to exert a significant downward pressure on levels of pollution as no
company will want to be identified as among the biggest polluters.

COM/2010/0143 EU Commission report Despite distinctly limited application at the

national level in the three years which followed the deadline for transposition by Member
States (25 June 2005), Article 2 of the Directive has had the effect of firmly establishing
the right of the public to participate in the decision-making process on plans and
programmes uniformly in the legislation of Member States. This has kindled the public's
interest in environmental issues, which has increasingly taken account at least among
those people and bodies with the greatest awareness of the sustainable development
dimension. The efforts made must be sustained in order to enhance the public's
knowledge of its rights and to achieve real participation by a larger number of people in
consultations. It will be for each State, in view of its specificities and traditions, to attain
these objectives by the most suitable means.
Members of Conventions task force might be appointed to act as a focal point for civil
society regarding any problems they may encounter regarding access to information or
public participation during the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP16 ) in
November-December, 2010.

Conclusion & Pros/Cons

Access to information, public participation and access to justice are

fundamental elements of good governance at all levels and essential for
sustainability.
As social justice is part of good governance, so should be also environmental
justice.
The engagement of the public is crucial for creating an environmentally
sustainable future. [Governments in partnership with well-informed and
empowered civil society], within the framework of good governance and
respect for human rights, can this challenge be met.

De facto effectiveness of the environmental democracy in the

collision with corporations/governments;
Willingness of the public to participate;
Proper implementation of the Convention at national level;
Raising of the corporate awareness.