Green democracy
Dr. KECSKÉS, Gábor PhD.
Senior lecturer (Széchenyi István University)
Research fellow (Hungarian Academy of Sciences)
February 2015
My focus
Other pillars and derivatives of green democracy
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Access to justice
Capacity building
EIA (env’l impact assessment)
„Green rights” in Strasbourg
Nuclear energy and the protection of the environment
Access to justice
Aarhus Convention (green democracy convention) – italics and underlinings are mine
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Article 4 – access to environmental information
(1) Each Party shall ensure that (…) public authorities, in response to a request for environmental information,
make such information available to the public, within the framework of national legislation, including (…)
copies of the actual documentation (…)
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Article 9 – access to justice
1. Each Party shall, within the framework of its national legislation, ensure that any person who
considers that his or her request for information under article 4 has been ignored, wrongfully
refused, whether in part or in full, inadequately answered, or otherwise not dealt with in
accordance with the provisions of that article, has access to a review procedure before a court
of law or another independent and impartial body established by law.
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Access to justice
Other requirements:
• such request shall be free of charge or inexpensive for reconsideration by a public authority or
review
• Final decisions (…) shall be binding on the public authority holding the information. Reasons
shall be stated in writing, at least where access to information is refused under this paragraph.
2. Each Party shall, within the framework of its national legislation, ensure that members of the
public concerned
(a) Having a sufficient interest
or, alternatively,
(b) Maintaining impairment of a right, where the administrative procedural law of a Party requires
this as a precondition,
have access to a review procedure before a court of law and/or another independent and impartial
body established by law, to challenge the substantive and procedural legality of any decision, act
or omission
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Access to justice
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What constitutes a sufficient interest and impairment of a right shall be determined in
accordance with the requirements of national law
the provisions shall include the possibility of a preliminary review procedure before an
administrative authority and shall not affect the requirement of exhaustion of administrative
review procedures prior to recourse to judicial review procedures, where such a requirement
exists under national law.
Para. 3: each Party shall ensure that, where they meet the criteria (upon the convention and
national law), if any, laid down in its national law, members of the public have access to
administrative or judicial procedures to challenge acts and omissions by private persons and
public authorities which contravene provisions of its national law relating to the environment.
Para. 4: the procedure shall provide adequate and effective remedies, including injunctive
relief as appropriate, and be fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive. Decisions
under this article shall be given or recorded in writing. Decisions of courts, and whenever
possible of other bodies, shall be publicly accessible.
Capacity building
4th pillar of green, environmental democracy
(not a declared but an interlinking pillar –
implicit in Aarhus?)
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in order to increase the role and efficiency of public participation within the processes mentioned before
capacity building shall be introduced by means of manpower (education, personal and professional skills)
and financial resources towards institutions, think tanks, NGOs, etc. (key activities: promotion &
monitoring of access to information, public participation and access to justice)
role of ombudsperson (green ombudsman) – Hungary (deputy commissioner for fundamental rights incharge of the interests of the future generations)
information, cooperation and campaigning for such achievements (strengthening their capacity to act or
highlight the problems)
green lobby (limited possibilities in comparison with the business lobby) - how to handle and cope with
persons and institutions (experience, differing interests, tradition of lobbying, for profit-non-profit, number
of actors from the lobbyist side)
allies on the side of the EU Commission – problem: the affected parties can over-dramatize the issue in
order to get attention (and lobby power) from the media, policymakers, stakeholders, etc.
It is a process of education, training, financing and the self-identification of green NGOs (empowerment) –
to find their voice and skills – to let the people be informed and interested – hence, CB is a crucial issue
for this century
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EIA
1991 Espoo Convention on EIA
Article 1
(vi) "Environmental impact assessment" means a national procedure for evaluating the likely impact of a proposed activity on the
environment
(vii) "Impact" means any effect caused by a proposed activity on the environment including human health and safety, flora, fauna, soil, air,
water, climate, landscape and historical monuments or other physical structures or the interaction among these factors, it also includes effects on
cultural heritage or socio-economic conditions resulting from alterations to those factors
(viii) "Transboundary impact" means any impact, not exclusively of a global nature, within an area under the jurisdiction of a Party caused by
a proposed activity the physical origin of which is situated wholly or in part within the area under the jurisdiction of another Party
Process cycle (7 elements): notification – preparation of EIA documents – consultation on this document – final
decision – post-project-analysis – cooperation – research programmes
APPENDIX I
LIST OF ACTIVITIES
2. Thermal power stations and other combustion installations with a heat output of 300 megawatts or more and nuclear power
stations and other nuclear reactors (except research installations for the production and conversion of fissionable and fertile
materials, whose maximum power does not exceed 1 kilowatt continuous thermal load).
3. Installations solely designed for the production or enrichment of nuclear fuels, for the reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuels or
for the storage, disposal and processing of radioactive waste.
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Green rights in Strasbourg
No clear recognition of green rights (expressis verbis), neither
the 1950 Convention, nor the protocols refer to explicit regulation
on this issue
But: the practice and precedents of the ECtHR (environmental
issues are drawn from the right to respect for private and family
life – Article 8) – inherent content
- López Ostra c. Spain (1994) – air pollution, Fadeyeva c.
Russia (2005) – air pollution, Deés c. Hungary (2010) – noise
„pollution”
- EctHR’s very active and has innovative interpretation
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Nuclear energy and the protection of the
environment
Nuclear safety (safety refers to environmental and technical issues, security refers to issues
attached to arms, nuclear weapons and the usage of nuclear energy by dangerous entities)
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Paris Convention on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy, Paris, 1960
Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, Vienna, 1963
Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space, and Under Water, 1963
Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency (Assistance
Convention), Vienna, 1986
Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident (Notification Convention), Vienna, 1986
Convention on Nuclear Safety, Vienna, 1994
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, 1996
Nuclear treaties – no clear and concrete reference to environment (just general prevention and
precaution requirements)
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Case study
Facts
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fictional EU-member state: Utopistan (a contracting party to Aarhus Convention, Espoo Convention)
the Utopist government desires to launch the nuclear energy project in the country (nuclear new build –
till now, Utopistan is a nuclear-free country)
Plans for the place of the power plant: Debate City (located 5 km from the border of Utopistan and
Greenland)
Simulation of negotiations among the affected parties
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Central Government of Utopistan
Local Government of Debate City
3. Green NGOs
4. Local public
5. Representative of Greenland
Aim and goal: a solution which is acceptable for all interested parties (if solution can be drawn)
be creative, ready for compromise and agreement but never give up your special interest and principles
all tools and forms of peaceful negotiations can be used (usage of language of diplomacy, etc.)
Mintacím szerkesztése
Thank You (on behalf of the affected parties)!
Comments are warmly welcome at
horvg@sze.hu
kecskesg@sze.hu