On 11 July 2010, the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment entered into force. It was developed under the UNECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment (Espoo Convention) and adopted in Kiyv in May 2003 at the Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference. According to the Protocol, the Parties are required to evaluate the environmental consequences of their official plans and programmes. The  Protocol also adresses policies and legislation but the application of SEA to these is not mandatory. The Protocol provides for extensive public participation in government decision-making in numerous development sectors, from land-use planning to transport and from agriculture to industry, covering from oil refinaries to ski-lifts. The public does not only have the right to know about plans and programmes but also have the right to comment, have their comments taken into account and be told of the final decision and why it was taken. This links the Protocol to the Aarhus Convention and its pillar on public participation in strategic decision-making.

The Protocol currently has 19 Parties, namely: Albania, Austria, Bulgaria,Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and European Union.

Photo by Damon Knight (Creative Commons)

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For UNECE press release, please follow the link here.

Link to the SEA Protocol in English, French and Russian.

For more information about the Espoo Convention and SEA Protocol click on link here.