The Government of Serbia recently proposed the adoption of the Bill on Amendments to the Law on Special Procedures for the Implementation of the International Specialized Exhibition EXPO BELGRADE 2027. Article 2 of the Bill departs from the principles of prevention and precaution in the environment, and introduces the possibility to obtain a building permit without consent to the environmental impact assessment study. “For buildings that have been determined to be subject to an environmental impact assessment study, the authority responsible for issuing a decision on a building permit can issue a decision on a construction permit and a work application without the consent of the competent authority for an environmental impact assessment study, with a statement responsible designer that the attached documentation complies with the environmental protection measures and conditions from the environmental impact assessment study. The consent of the competent authority to the environmental impact assessment study is submitted with the request for issuing a decision on the use permit.”
Damage caused to the environment is one of the most dangerous and complex forms of damage, primarily due to the interconnectedness of the elements of the ecosystem, as well as the often impossible return to the original state. For example, let’s imagine the situation of spilling toxic substances into a river, which results in the death of the river ecosystem, poisoning of animals that use the river as a source of water, as well as endangering the health of people who drink that water or use it for irrigation. Such damage can practically not be fully removed – it is possible to pay compensation and wait years for the river ecosystem to partially recover, but the damage can never be fully compensated. Precisely because of these reasons, global society has become aware of the need to analyze certain activities in advance, and then change or prevent them – if it is estimated that they will cause irreversible damage to the environment. The principles of prevention and precaution play a key role in environmental law, because it is only through proactive action that it is possible to effectively prevent such irreversible consequences.
The Rio Declaration of 1992 proclaimed the principles of precaution and prevention, and since then they have become internationally accepted rules in the application of environmental law. The Rio Declaration also predicted that the state will have the obligation to undertake an impact assessment study for activities that are expected to have an impact on the environment. Performing an environmental impact assessment before the start of project development has become an international standard, the importance of which is immeasurable.
Article 9 of the Domestic Law on Environmental Protection stipulates the principle of prevention and precaution. In accordance with this principle, every activity must be planned and implemented in a way that causes the smallest possible change in the environment, and thus represents the smallest risk to the environment and human health. In accordance with the law, the precautionary principle is realized by assessing the impact on the environment and using the best available and accessible technologies, techniques and equipment.
The 2010 National Environmental Protection Program also promotes the prevention of environmental pollution as a more effective solution than solving pollution problems when they occur. The program states that the precautionary principle is achieved by assessing the impact on the environment and using the best available techniques and technologies.
The Law on Environmental Impact Assessment is the key legal framework that prescribes the environmental impact assessment procedure, the authority for implementation and the activities for which the assessment is necessary. According to the provisions of the law, the Project Holder is obliged to, with the request for approval for the execution of the project (building permit, decision approving the execution of works, consent for the exploitation of river sediments, approval for the execution of geological surveys, approval for the construction of mining facilities and/or approval for the execution mining works, etc.) attach the impact assessment of the project, the consent of the competent authority to the study, or the decision of the competent authority determining that an assessment of the project’s impact on the environment is not required. In addition, this law realizes the extremely important principle of involving the interested public in the process of giving consent on the need to prepare a study, on the scope and content of the study, as well as consent to the prepared study. This way, the public can contribute their opinions, remarks and criticisms, ensuring an additional level of environmental protection.
In accordance with the above mentioned, the Environmental Impact Assessment Study is part of the important principle of prevention and precaution in environmental law. The whole purpose of the precautionary principle is to determine whether the project will have impermissible negative consequences for the environment before starting the construction of the building, that is, before starting the activities on the project.
Article 2 of the Proposal for the Law on Amendments to the Law on Special Procedures for the Implementation of International Specialized from EXPO 2027 claims are in direct contradiction to the international principles of prevention and precaution in the environment, as well as to domestic laws and strategies in the field of environmental protection. In this way, the principles aimed at preserving the environment and reducing the risk of pollution are grossly violated; and the Environmental Impact Assessment Study is unjustifiably reduced to a bureaucratic obstacle to the rapid execution of construction works.