The Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Environmental Protection" has been adopted in a new edition

On July 17, 2023, the President of the Republic of Belarus signed the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Amendments to the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Environmental Protection" (published on the National Legal Internet Portal of the Republic of Belarus on July 25, 2023, 2/3014).

The main innovations set forth in the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Amendments to the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Environmental Protection" (hereinafter referred to as the Law).

The Law comprehensively revises the environmental protection requirements for economic activities. It establishes requirements to be observed during the development of pre-project (pre-investment) documentation for economic and other activities (requirements were previously applied only to project documentation), and clarifies the types of construction activities to which such requirements apply (construction, reconstruction, technical modernization, repair and restoration work, major repairs, demolition of facilities). Requirements are established for the commissioning and operation of facilities, and for their decommissioning (carrying out measures for the restoration of the natural environment, land reclamation, ecological rehabilitation of contaminated territories, and compensatory measures).

The objects of atomic energy use to which relevant requirements apply are clarified (installations for the production or enrichment of nuclear material, facilities for the storage of nuclear materials, facilities intended for the disposal, processing, storage, and/or disposal of radioactive waste, etc.).

In order to prevent harmful effects of waste on the environment and human health during the operation of certain waste utilization and waste disposal facilities, requirements for the operation of mobile waste utilization and/or disposal installations are introduced.

Specifically, to enable the operation of such installations, the relevant documentation must include design solutions for the arrangement of sites (storage facilities) for waste and product storage, engineering and transport communications, and other structures aimed at preventing environmental pollution and ensuring permissible environmental impact standards, as well as environmental protection measures.

Mobile waste utilization units may be operated outside the territory of the relevant waste utilization facility, for example, at construction sites in locations specified by the design documentation, for the elimination of emergency consequences, and for the utilization of wood waste during forest felling, removal of trees and shrubs outside populated areas.

The Law updates the provisions regulating environmental protection standards, which is one of the mechanisms for ensuring a favorable environment. It is defined that environmental protection standards include environmental quality standards, standards for permissible environmental impact, and nature use limits. The list of environmental quality standards is supplemented with "differentiated standards for the content of chemical substances in soils".

For reference:

Differentiated standards for the content of chemical substances in soils and requirements for their application are established by the Environmental Norms and Rules EcoNiP 17.03.01-001-2021 "Environmental Protection and Nature Management. Lands (including soils). Environmental Quality Standards. Differentiated standards for the content of chemical substances in soils and requirements for their application", approved by the Resolution of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus dated 25.11.2021 No. 13-T.

In addition, for each type of standard, its purpose, objectives, and the type of legislation regulating it are defined.

Taking into account the impact of climate change on human health, risks associated with hazardous weather events, and economic damage to various sectors of the economy, the tasks and directions of state policy in the field of environmental protection are supplemented by the formation and implementation of a unified state policy for responding to climate change. In this regard, the Law enshrines provisions on the regulation of climate impact.

The powers of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus are supplemented by the competence to establish the procedure and conditions for limiting anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the international obligations of the Republic of Belarus, and the procedure for maintaining state and industrial accounting of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and their absorption by sinks.

For the purpose of state regulation of activities related to greenhouse gas emissions and their absorption by sinks, planning measures to reduce the harmful impact of economic and other activities on the climate, and adaptation to its change for the short-term, medium-term, and long-term periods, obligations are established for legal entities and individual entrepreneurs engaged in economic and other activities related to greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, who are obliged to reduce the volumes of emissions of these gases and/or substances by implementing best available techniques.

The rights of officials of the Ministry of Natural Resources and its territorial bodies in carrying out control activities in the field of environmental protection and rational (sustainable) use of natural resources are set forth in a new version and exclude duplication of the norms of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 510 of October 16, 2009 "On improving control (supervisory) activities in the Republic of Belarus," as well as the Procedural and Executive Code of the Republic of Belarus on Administrative Offenses.

At the same time, officials of the Ministry of Natural Resources and its territorial bodies are granted the right, within the framework of administrative proceedings, to access the republican database AIS "Passport."

The Law clarifies the term "causing harm to the environment," which is supplemented by the words "pollution of lands (including soils) with chemical and other substances, littering, pollution of the environment with waste, illegal logging."

In order to ensure the completeness of the legal regulation of the norms of international treaties to which the Republic of Belarus is a party, the Law defines the possibility of preparing and submitting proposals to relevant international organizations for the inclusion of the territories of the Republic of Belarus in the lists of natural territories of international importance.

The Law improves approaches to coordinating the activities of state bodies and interacting with the public in the field of environmental protection, taking into account practical application, expands and optimizes access to environmental information, and also defines an exhaustive list of rights necessary to ensure and protect the inalienable right of citizens to a favorable environment.

Mechanisms for public participation have been established regarding the opportunity to review information related to the decision-making process before the approval of the state environmental expert review conclusion.

For documentation submitted for public environmental expert review, a requirement is established to provide it in the same composition as for the state environmental expert review.

The Law introduces a number of new terms, such as "low-carbon economy," "green" economy, and "ecosystem services."

The promotion of "green" economy principles, stimulation of the application of best available techniques, resource-saving technologies and practices, "green" procurement, and the transition to a low-carbon economy based on the principles of energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emission reduction, and increased absorption by sinks are developing components of the national economy.

"Green" economy is a model of economic organization aimed at achieving the socio-economic development goals of the country while significantly reducing environmental risks and the rate of environmental degradation. The implementation of support tools for the "green" economy and the creation of conditions for the formation of a circular economy are being carried out within the framework of the Program for Socio-Economic Development of the Republic of Belarus for 2021-2025. These models are focused on the maximum replacement of non-renewable natural resources with renewable ones, resource and energy saving, minimization of waste generation, and complete utilization of waste. Their implementation will lead to a reduction in environmental loads.

The economic valuation of ecosystem services is also one of the current areas. Its object is natural ecological systems and the services they perform, which provide society with benefits in environmental,