News

Budva, Montenegro
September 11-15, 2017
Experts of the CIS Center as part of the Russian delegation participated in the 6th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention and the 3rd session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on PRTRs.
Delegates invited to these events also had a chance to participate in a high-level segment and to discuss key topics on the present and future role of the Aarhus Convention and the Kiev Protocol in achieving of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
On the 6th session of the Aarhus Convention the following items were on the agenda:
- access to information, including electronic communication tools;
- public participation in decision-making;
- access to justice;
- genetically modified organisms;
- procedures and mechanisms for the facilitation of the Convention implementation;
- promotion of the Convention;
- work program and functioning of the Convention.
The issues raised at the session and the agreed ways to approach them can be used as a model for ensuring public access to environmental impact information and public participation in the process of environmental protection decision-making..
At the High-level segment the following issues were in the focus such as relation of the Convention with the Sustainable Development Goals discussion and adoption of the Budva Declaration «"Ecological democracy in the interests of our sustainable future"» work plan for the future.
At the 3rd session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on PRTRs participants elaborated on the ratification status of the Protocol, technical resources and activities at the sub-regional and national levels, reporting and compliance mechanisms. They noted that in recent years there have been invented a lot of new technologies and activities, which resulted in the new types of environmental impact. This fact should be the subject of concern both from the Aarhus Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs. It appeared to be the potential of the Protocol on PRTRs is not fully used. And there is a need to determine the ways of development of the Protocol on PRTRs for the future and to carry out the assessment.