Parties to the Espoo Convention have unanimously reaffirmed Belarus's violations in the development of the nuclear power plant in Astrav
The 9th Meeting of the Parties to the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo Convention) concluded on Friday, 15 December 2023, with a high-level meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. 300 participants, including representatives of government authorities from 46 countries, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations, attended the meeting.
Following intensive and constructive discussions, the Espoo Convention Parties adopted decisions of great importance to the environmental community.
For Lithuania, the most crucial decisions were the decision on Belarus's failure to comply with its obligations under the Espoo Convention in the operation of the Belarusian nuclear power plant in Astrav, and the decision on the non-compliance of Belarus's national law with the Espoo Convention.
In the decision on the Belarusian nuclear power plant in Astrav, the parties to the Espoo Convention unanimously reaffirmed Belarus's violations in the development of this project. They obliged Belarus to apply the requirements of the Convention properly in the future and noted the insufficient progress in implementing the recommendations of the Espoo Convention's Implementation Committee.
The decision on Belarus's non-compliance not only indicates a violation but also makes recommendations on what Belarus should do to properly transpose the requirements of the Espoo Convention into its national law.
"Lithuania, as a neighboring country of Belarus, welcomes these decisions of the Parties to the Espoo Convention, which aim to ensure the proper implementation of transboundary environmental impact assessment, transparent procedures, and adequate information for the public and institutions of neighboring countries. This guarantees their rights in the implementation of projects that may have transboundary impacts on neighboring countries," said Raminta Radavičienė, Vice-Minister of the Ministry of the Environment of the Republic of Lithuania, who attended this meeting.
Other decisions taken at the Espoo meeting included a decision on the financial arrangements for 2024-2026, a decision on the adoption of a long-term strategy and an action plan for the work plan of the Espoo Convention and the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Protocol.
The Handbook on Health Impact Assessment in HIA was also adopted in Geneva meeting. It sets out the criteria that will guide countries in carrying out public health impact assessments of plans or programs as an integral part of HIA.