1. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Environmental Assessment in Federations Current Dynamics and Emerging Issues Environmental Assessment in Federations Current Dynamics and Emerging Issues Ottawa, Canada, September 13 – 15, 2009 Environmental Assessment in Austria The Province (Länder) Governments as Players in a Team Play

2. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Contents Introduction, overview  Competencies  Procedures  Collaboration Experience  Procedures  Technical aspects  Quality assurance SEA Trends and challenges Flash lights EIA (focus) and SEA: procedural and technical aspects

3. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Austria and its 9 Länder

4. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Competencies European Union  Directives (EIA and SEA) and amendments (e.g. UN ECE Aarhus Convention)  Representation by member states  federation Role of the Länder  When affected: information, possibility of statements (similar procedures for the representation of the municipalities)  By means of the “Länder connecting body”  Possibility of “unitary statements”  binding for the federation (e.g. for the SEA Directive)  Possibility of the nomination of Länder representatives  Problem: time !

5. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Competencies, cont.´d EIA in Austria: Legislation: federal responsibility Transposition  Consideration of European legislation requirements  Discretion of the member states vs. “word by word” Enforcement: Länder responsibility  All projects except highways and high speed railroads

6. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Competencies, cont.´d 2 Competent authorities  Länder governments  Federal Minister of Transport Provisions for delegation  Länder governments  district administrative authorities (99 in Austria)  Federal Minister of Transport  Governors of the Länder  Occurs rarely focus

7. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Procedures Subject to EIA  List with thresholds as well as  Case by case examinations (screening against criteria) Highways and high speed railroads  Partly consolidated procedure  Minister: responsible for coordination  In addition: procedures by Länder Governors (federal law) and other Länder authorities (provincial law, e.g. on nature protection)

8. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Procedures, cont.´d Projects listed in Annex I of the Austrian EIA Act  Consolidated (“concentrated”) development consent procedure  EIA procedures  Simplified procedures  Preliminary procedures: outline of project and EI statement (not mandatory)  (Plus possibly: declaratory procedures, amendment procedures, acceptance inspection procedures...)

9. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Procedures, cont.´d 2 (Some) specific requirements and aspects Consideration of  Sensitive areas (5 types)  Cumulation of effects (inter alia to avoid “salami slicing”) EI statement (by the applicants)  Additional aspects, e.g. traffic induced impacts, impact interactions  Possibility of “No impact statements” Time schedules: published on the internet, justification Comprehensive EIA review report (by the authorities)  Including discussion of comments (mandatory) Post-project analysis

10. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Procedures, cont.´d 3 Coordinators  Both at the authorities' and the applicants' side “Inspection catalogues“  Explicit questions to the experts  Systematic structure  In order to ensure integrative assessment  Basis of the Comprehensive EIA review report Guidance documents, check-lists Some established approaches and instruments (“good practice”)

11. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Collaboration Länder governments  Cooperating authorities (provincial as well as federal authorities)  Experts: engaged by authorities (most of them)  External experts: have to be paid by applicants Federal Minister of Environment  Statements to EI statement (as well as host municipality and ombudsman for the environment) Projects crossing more than one Land (e.g. linear projects):  Coordinated decisions

12. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Procedure 2 Evaluations: 2000 and 2006 Some numbers (mainly between 2000 and 2009): 595 declaratory procedures finished (administrative orders)  For 81 % no EIA necessary 218 development consent procedures  (All in all) 71 % approved so far  (All in all) 42 % with simplified procedure  167 Annex I projects  51 highways and high speed railroads

13. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Procedure, cont.´d Appeals  Provisions for locus standi, right of participation, right of appeal  Locus standi for different parties  e.g. for development consent procedures: applicant, neighbours, parties stipulated by the applicable administrative provisions, host municipality, ( affected) directly adjoining municipalities, ombudsman for the environment, water management planning body, citizens´ groups, environmental organisations. For Annex I procedures:  (I ndependent) Environmental Senate (federal authority)  approx. 50 % of decisions

14. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Procedure, cont.´d 2 Transboundary impacts  Espoo convention: ratified in 1994, into force in 1997  Bilateral agreements  Foreign projects: 16 procedures; Austrian projects: 6 procedures Public participation  Placement of documents, public hearing (authorities responsible)  Environmental organisations: registered (29)  Citizens´ groups: 200 persons  Ombudsman for the environment  Mediation

15. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Possibly necessary permits without EIA project water waste mining railroad air nature protection forest industry construction monuments road energy event aviation... industrial safety ?

16. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Consolidated EIA Procedure 1 authority procedure permit project 1 The consolidated procedure is the most frequently expressed advantage of the EIA in Austria

17. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: technical aspects List approach  Charming: “simple”  Problems: justification for thresholds Integrative assessment  Systematic approach  Comprehensive assessment, e.g. interactions and interrelations  Contributes significantly to the acceptance by the public Practice in Salzburg  Additional check-lists, e.g. for scoping

18. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer competent authority EIA coordination applicant coordination of experts assess technical standards clarify domains, define scope technical trade-off, methodology final comprehensive report... conduct the procedure assure compliance with formal permit requirements involve coperating authorities, third parties, Federal Ministry announcements administrative order... expert domain 1 expert domain 2 expert domain n coop. authority 1 coop. authority 2 coop. authority n expert 1 expert 2 expert n EIA coordination (in Salzburg) § €

19. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Experiences: Quality assurance Environmental Council Reports of the Minister of Environment to the National Council  Every 3 years EIA documentation (Federal Environmental Agency)  Publicly available Environmental Senate: Analysis of legal rules Working group  Federal and provincial units  Sup-groups  Guidance documents  Web platform: documents, links Exchange of knowledge and: networking !

20. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer And SEA ? (Much) less experience Competences: more complicated Different implementation (federal and provincial level):  Integrated into existing legislation  New SEA legislation (procedural) Different sectors affected  Federal level: waste, noise, air pollution, transport, water (plus: European structural funds programmes)  Länder level: (in adition) land use planning, nature protection, hunting, fishing, agriculture mainly affected

21. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer SEA, cont.´d Procedures  Federal level: 3  Länder level: some dozen  (Screenings: some hundreds) Working group  Federal and provincial units involved Support  Guidance documents  Tool kit on the internet  Collection of good practice examples

22. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Emerging trends and challenges Avoiding duplication  e.g. when both EIA and SEA procedures are required  Joint or coordinated procedures  In practice: a long way Post-project analysis and monitoring  Question of consequences (e.g. with regard to legal certainty) Public participation  “NIMBY” (in Austria called the “Floriani principle”)  Mixture with political interests  NGOs, citizen groups: overburdened, claim for funding

23. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Emerging trends and challenges, cont.´d “Priority” projects  Attempts for special facilities (e.g. infrastructure, energy) Economic situation  Pressure and the “balance of bureaucracy”: no “golden plating” vs. additional duties  Shortage of resources (staff) – e.g. no access rights for authorities  Public service unit vs. “always at service” (easy and expeditious) What federations (might) face in addition: More governments/parliaments  more elections (and campaigns)  less space for decisions...

24. Comprehensive list of all accepted standard solutions („magic bullets“):

25. AMT DER SALZBURGER LANDESREGIERUNG ABTEILUNG 16: UMWELTSCHUTZAndreas Sommer Thank you for your attention !