Principle 10 / Aarhus Convention

Aarhus Convention 1998

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan described the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters as 'the most ambitious venture in environmental democracy so far undertaken under the United Nations.' It is regional in scope and elaborates principle 10 of the Rio Declaration, which stresses the need for citizen's participation in environmental issues and for access to information on the environment held by public authorities.

The Aarhus Convention comprises three key pillars: i) securing effective access to environmental information; (ii) improving public participation in decisions relating to the environment and (iii) ensuring that there is a review procedure for any decisions, acts or omissions under the convention or in relation to other national environmental law. The procedural rights created under the convention should be regarded as a 'floor' rather than a 'ceiling'.

The convention, which entered into force on 30 October 2001, offers a new kind of international agreement linking environmental rights and human rights. It acknowledges that we owe an obligation to future generations. Although 15 EC member states and the EC have signed the convention, only a handful of them have ratified it. In order to allow the EC to ratify the Aarhus Convention, it has to align to the obligations of the Convention, not only by means of legislation directed to the Member States, but also for its own institutions.

FIELD lawyers have been working on the implementation of the Aarhus Convention at the EC and member state level.

FIELD Related Activities

Aarhus Convention International Conference: From 29-30 August 2003, FIELD Staff Lawyer, Jona Razzaque, participated in the 'Environmental Rights in Europe after the UN/ECE Aarhus Convention' Conference in Leuven, Belgium.

The conference was organised jointly by the Institute for Environmental and Energy Law, Faculty of Law, University of Leuven; Center for Environmental Law, Faculty of Law, University of Amsterdam; Maastricht European Institute for Transnational Legal Research, Faculty of Law and Ius Commune Research School (Section on Transboundary Environmental Law); Maastricht University and Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London.

The conference outlined and discussed the three pillars of the Aarhus convention, i.e., access to information, public participation in the decision making and access to justice in environmental matters. It examined various directives that implement the Aarhus convention at EC and at Member State level. The conference brought in experts from the EU and Central and Eastern Europe and was attended by academics, practitioners, policy makers and NGO community.

Jona presented a paper at the conference, entitled ‘Access to Justice in the Environmental Matters at EU Member State Level’. The paper analysed the EU second working document on access to justice in environmental matters and explored some of the concerns related to the access to environmental justice in the UK

The Conference Programme, Abstract of Jona's Paper and her Powerpoint Presentation are all available online.

For more information:

Aarhus Secretariat website

Aarhus Convention

European Community website on the Aarhus Convention

Public Participation Campaign website

Partnership for Principle 10 (PP10)

In 1992 Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration articulated public access to information, participation in decision-making and access to justice as key principles of environmental governance. The Partnership for Principle 10 (PP10), launched at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, aims to translate these principles into action. It provides a platform for governments, civil society organisations, donors and other stakeholders to work together to develop practical solutions that provide the public with access to information, participation, and justice for environmentally sustainable decisions.

The partnership builds on The Access Initiative (TAI), a global coalition of civil society organisations to improve implementation of principle 10. TAI has developed a set of indicators as a common tool for assessing the performance of governments in ensuring the Principle 10.

FIELD is involved with the work of the PP10 in the UK which, at present, is in the process of identifying UK partners and new commitments in support of Principle 10.

FIELD Related Activities

Upon joining the initiative all PP10 partners agree to support the implementation of Principle 10 and make specific commitments. FIELD has contributed to the work of the partnership since its inception and became a full member in November 2006. As part of its commitments it will continue to assist developing countries in international negotiations on biodiversity and climate change and build local capacity on the implementation of Principle 10. On 20th November 2006 a delegation of the Chilean Commission for the Environment (CONAMA) visited FIELD. The delegation was in the UK to examine strategies and methods for access to environmental information, public participation and dispute settlement in environmental cases. Their visit was part of a project funded by the European Union to modernize public administration in Chile and organise stakeholder consultations leading to the establishment of a Ministry of Environment. Before talking to several UK government departments and NGOs, the delegation started its fact finding mission by meeting with FIELD lawyers to learn more about governments' international obligations and good practice in other jurisdictions.

FIELD lawyers Linda Siegele (front row left) and Christoph Schwarte (back, right) at the PP10 Committee of the Whole meeting in London, October 2005

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