Amendments to Georgian Law on Environmental Protection Damage Environment

Tea Topuria

Georgian NGOs are opposing the draft amendments to Georgian Law on Environmental Protection. Pursuant to the scheduled amendments to the abovementioned laws, an agreement with unlimited period of time can be signed between an interested party and the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of Georgia in the field of environment protection and utilization of natural resources on the basis of a decision of the Prime Minister. In accordance with the agreement, all actions performed by the interested party throughout validity term of the agreement shall be considered legal in exchange of certain compensation payable to the State.

Aarhus Center disseminated statement regarding the amendment: “Upon commencement date of the agreement the party shall be exempted from any civil and administrative responsibility related to their actions in the field of environment protection and utilization of natural resources. At the same time the draft law excludes the possibility to inspect actions undertaken by the party in the field of environment protection and utilization of natural resources or impose any penalty or other type of liability on them.”

According to Aarhus Center and other NGOs, as a result of these amendments, the party shall be free from the responsibilities specified in the Code of Administrative Violations of Georgia for violation of a number of administrative regulations, such as:

• Unauthorized occupation of a water body and land of the State Forest Fund (including the land within protected areas)

• Noncompliance with the land protection requirements and removal of a fertile layer of the soil;

• Deterioration of land with industrial or other type of waste, pollution of land with waste water; Misusage of protected areas and the lands in their territorial and functional zones and illegal cutting and damaging the wood;

• Destruction of border signs of protected areas;

•  Deterioration of soil and water in highland regions while utilization of natural minerals;

• Extraction of minerals without an adequate license or via breaching the license conditions;

• Violation of security requirements while utilization of natural minerals;

• Violation of the regulations of water protection and the norms of water usage;

• Pollution of the sea including with chemicals and oil; Violation of forestry regulations and the requirements for fire security or planning and undertaking measures of protection of forests against fire;

• Violation of the terms of license in respect with exportation of Galanthus bulbs and Cyclamen root balls stipulated in Attachments of CITES Convention and silver-fir cone;

• Violation of the norms of environment protection; Emission of harmful substances in the air above the norms:

• Violation of the norms of application of chemicals in the environment and violation of the rules of their transportation, storage and usage;

• Importing and selling lead containing gasoline;

• Undertaking an activity without an Environment Impact Permit or violating the conditions specified in a Permit or in a decision of the ecological expertise; Violation of environmental technical regulations;

• Violation of regulation of protecting wild life habitats as well as voluntary resettlement and hybridization of wild animals;

• extermination or capture of endangered wild species that are enlisted in the “Red List” of Georgia;

• Trade with illegally obtained objects of wild life; Violation of fishing and hunting regulations;

• Illegal entry on the territories of natural reserves with guns and any type of fishing facilities;

• Maltreatment of animals and birds;

• Disfiguration of the face of a self-governing unit;

• Impede accomplishment of State supervision and surveillance, etc.

These amendments contradict the Georgian Constitution according to which “Everyone has the right to live in the healthy environment” (Article 37). In addition the draft law is not in compliance with obligations undertaken by the Government of Georgia under the different international treaties including the Aarhus Convention. Specifically, undertaking an activity without an Environmental Impact Permit and Environmental Impact Assessment (required by Permit procedures) undermines possibility of public participation in environmental decision making process which violates Article 6 of the Aarhus Convention. Obligation on ensuring access to information stipulated by the Articles 4 and 5 of the Convention is also violated so that exempting the interested party from the Environmental Impact Assessment procedures and the obligations of statistical reporting on emissions and discharges will lead to limiting information on state of the environment.

The government states that NGO sector interpreted the amendments wrongly. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources disseminated a statement which stated: “Corresponding to the legislative action “...In the period of a person’s environment and natural resources utilization all the committed/ carried out actions is considered to be legally”. First of all it should be designated that the agreement, foreseen by the legislative action, is reached not for the future period but for the past period. According to the legislative action, agreement is spread not on the future action of the person, but on the actions implemented in the past period, - the Ministry states.

Lawyer of Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA) Tatuli Todua states that despite the argument presented by the government, the text of the draft law does not give opportunity to apply it only towards the illegal acts committed in the past: “In the best scenario, the government might issue a decree which explains that this law applies the past period but we do not know for sure whether or not this happens.”

According to her, the law which is already adopted through the third hearing does not indicate anywhere that it regards only the past period.

NGOs addressed the President to veto these amendments. However, President did not react.