Approval Procedure of Environmental Impact Assessment in the Legislation of Ukraine

Abstract

The article is devoted to the institute of environmental impact assessment and the procedure for approval of this impact assessment in the legislation of Ukraine. The author singles out the subject of regulation of the institute and its tasks, which encompass clear and proper regulation of the environmental impact assessment procedure. The provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine related to this issue and the main directions of the state’s environmental policy formulated in it are being analyzed. The article highlights the legal and organizational principles of environmental impact assessment aimed at preventing environmental damage, ensuring environmental safety, environmental protection, and rational use and reproduction of natural resources, which are regulated by the special Law of Ukraine “On Environmental Impact Assessment” and are in the process of adoption decisions on conducting business activities. The subjects of legal relations participating in the impact assessment procedure are determined and the scope of application of the impact assessment is defined. Special attention is paid to the procedure for approval of environmental impact assessment, which is multi-staged and consists of several steps defined by legislation. The article emphasizes ensuring transparency and public access to each of the stages of approval of the impact assessment, the need for timely, adequate, and effective public information in order to identify, collect, and take into account comments and suggestions of the public to the planned activity, funding public consultations.