E104: Aarhus Convention

EA 1:

I.
Access to information, including electronic information tools:

Widen the range of environmental information made available to the public, including product information, and exchange of information and good practices, with a focus on several issues, including: 
(a) The distribution, quality and comparability of environmental information through the effective use of electronic information tools and sharing of good practice; 
(b) The further improvement of the implementation of the existing information obligations under the Convention; 
(c) The scope of environmental information, the provision of environmental information from different public authorities, associated costs, and the quality and comparability of the environmental information;
(d) The application of the restrictions on access to environmental information in accordance with the Convention’s provisions.

Monitor implementation of the Recommendations on the More Effective Use of Electronic Information Tools to Provide Public Access to Environmental Information (ECE/MP.PP/2005/2/Add.4, annex).

Provide policy and guidance for the Aarhus Clearinghouse. Upgrade and use the Clearinghouse to facilitate the collection, dissemination and exchange of information related to the national implementation of the Convention and relevant global and regional developments on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. 
Continue cooperation with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) Working Group on Environmental Monitoring and Assessment and the European Environment Agency towards supporting a Shared Environment Information System.

Monitor technical developments in information and communication technology.

A1.1 

 
Task Force meetings and workshops; survey(s); participation in other relevant regional initiatives, as appropriate, through development of sector-based partnership approaches; pilot projects and capacity-building activities at the subregional and national level, which are expected to be funded by partners. 

Central management of the Aarhus Clearinghouse and promotion through online social media; provision of advice to and coordination of national and information nodes of the clearinghouse mechanism; information sharing and promotion of electronic tools through maintaining online databases for jurisprudence and national implementation reports, and maintaining online case studies on (a) public participation at the national level, and (b) public participation in international forums.

In the reporting period, numerous activities were focused on improving public access to environmental information, as required by articles 4 and 5 of the Convention, and its active dissemination to the public, including through electronic information tools.

At its third meeting (Geneva, 3–5 December 2014),  the Task Force on Access to Information discussed a number of issues, including the scope, quality and comparability of information to be provided in accordance with the Convention. It also deliberated on the application of certain restrictions on access to environmental information in accordance with the Convention’s provisions and shared recent relevant developments in information and communication technology in relation to environmental information.
In the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention, the secretariat promoted the first pillar of the Convention at a side event on dissemination of environmental information and public participation through electronic information tools organized by the European Environment Agency (Maastricht, 1 July 2014).
The secretariat has continued managing the Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy  and the PRTR.net global portal.  The two portals were used in the reporting period to facilitate the collection, dissemination and exchange of information related to national implementation of the Convention and relevant global and regional developments regarding implementation of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, as well as information regarding pollutant release and transfer registers (PRTRs).
The secretariat also continued to maintain and populate a jurisprudence database accessible through the Convention’s web page and the Aarhus Clearinghouse. The database promotes the exchange of jurisprudence concerning the Convention and facilitates the work on access to justice. It includes decisions issued by courts of law or other bodies that make reference to the Convention or its principles, and includes summaries in English and decisions in the original language and in English, when available. The database includes case summaries in Russian as well. To date, there are more than 70 cases in the database. Maintaining the jurisprudence database is an ongoing activity. The secretariat also completed development of the Aarhus Good Practice online database.
A number of inputs related to the development of the shared environmental information system (SEIS) across the pan-European region were provided, including the participation of the Convention secretariat in the first meeting of the Group of Friends of SEIS (Geneva, 12 May 2014).
The secretariat furthermore provided a substantive contribution to the workshop “Improving online information on the implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives” organized by the European Commission on 24 October 2014.

In the reporting period  numerous activities were focused on improving public access to environmental information and its active dissemination to the public, including through electronic information tools.
At its fourth meeting (Geneva, 8–10 December 2015),  the Task Force on Access to Information continued its discussion on a number of issues, including the scope of information, its quality and associated costs. It also took stock of good practices and challenges in the application of certain restrictions on access to environmental information in accordance with the Convention’s provisions, and exchanged information on the recent trends in the dissemination of environmental information through electronic information tools and the further development of the Aarhus Clearinghouse and national nodes.
In consultation with the Chair of the Task Force, the secretariat finalized and distributed a questionnaire to Parties in February 2016 as part of a survey to monitor progress in the implementation of the recommendations on the more effective use of electronic information tools to provide public access to environmental information (ECE/MP.PP/2005/2/Add.4, annex), adopted by the Meeting of the Parties at its second session (Almaty, Kazakhstan, 25–27 May 2005).
The secretariat has continued managing the Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy  and the PRTR.net global portal.  The two portals were used in the reporting period to facilitate the collection, dissemination and exchange of information related to national implementation of the Convention and relevant global and regional developments regarding implementation of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (Rio Declaration), as well as information regarding pollutant release and transfer registers (PRTRs). In addition, the secretariat has started preparations for upgrading these two websites to make them more appealing and user-friendly. by integrating new technologies, web features and search options.
The secretariat also continued to maintain and populate a jurisprudence database accessible through the Convention’s web page and the Aarhus Clearinghouse. The database promotes the exchange of jurisprudence concerning the Convention and facilitates the work on access to justice. It includes decisions issued by courts of law or other bodies that make reference to the Convention or its principles, and includes summaries in English and decisions in the original language and in English, when available. The database includes case summaries in Russian as well. To date, there are more than 90 cases in the database. Maintaining the jurisprudence database is an ongoing activity.
The secretariat also contributed to the work of other international forums dealing with access to environmental information and electronic information tools. For instance, a number of inputs related to the development of the Shared Environmental Information System across the pan-European region were provided, including for consideration by the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy at its special session (Geneva, 23–25 February 2016).
The secretariat also provided a number of inputs for documents produced by the Conference of European Statisticians, raising awareness about the relevance of the Convention and the Protocol with regard to the production of official statistics in environmental matters.
In addition, the secretariat contributed a summary of the Convention’s and Protocol’s activities for inclusion in the report on the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society.
 

In the reporting period numerous activities were focused on improving public access to environmental information and its active dissemination to the public, including through electronic information tools.
At its fifth meeting (Geneva, 10–11 October 2016),  the Task Force on Access to Information continued the exchange of information, good practices and recent legislative, policy and practical developments on promoting public access to environmental information. In particular, the Task Force continued to focus on: the scope of environmental information and information on emissions; the application of restrictions to access to environmental information; the use of public registers and other electronic information tools; and the further development of the Aarhus Clearinghouse and national nodes.
In consultation with the Chair of the Task Force, in February 2016 the secretariat finalized and distributed a questionnaire to Parties with a view to monitoring their progress in implementing the recommendations on the more effective use of electronic information tools to provide public access to environmental information (ECE/MP.PP/2005/2/Add.4, annex).
The Task Force took note of the “draft summary report on the results of the survey on the implementation of the recommendations on electronic information tools (decision II/3)” (AC/TF.AI-5/Inf.3) and its accompanying document (AC/TF.AI-5/Inf.5/Add.1). The finalized document will be annexed to the report of the Task Force on its fifth meeting.
The survey resulted in a collection of case studies on promoting use of electronic information tools. The Task Force invited Parties and stakeholders to continue submitting case studies to the collection, using the template developed for that purpose.
The secretariat continues to manage the Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy  and the PRTR.net global portal.  The two portals were used in the reporting period to facilitate the collection, dissemination and exchange of information related to national implementation of the Convention and relevant global and regional developments regarding implementation of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (Rio Declaration), as well as information regarding pollutant release and transfer registers (PRTRs). In addition, the secretariat has been coordinating the upgrade of these two websites to make them more appealing and user-friendly, by integrating new technologies, web features and search options.
The secretariat also continued to maintain and populate a jurisprudence database accessible through the Convention’s web page and the Aarhus Clearinghouse. The database promotes the exchange of jurisprudence concerning the Convention and facilitates the work on access to justice. It includes decisions issued by courts of law or other bodies that make reference to the Convention or its principles, and includes summaries in English and decisions in the original language and in English, when available. The database includes case summaries in Russian as well. To date, there are up to 100 cases in the database. Maintaining the jurisprudence database is an ongoing activity.
The secretariat also contributed to the work of other international forums dealing with access to environmental information and electronic information tools. For instance, the secretariat briefed the ECE Joint Task Force on Environmental Statistics and Indicators at its twelfth meeting (Geneva, 17–18 November 2016) on relevant activities under the Convention and the Protocol.
The secretariat also continued providing a number of inputs for documents produced by the Conference of European Statisticians, raising awareness about the relevance of the Convention and the Protocol with regard to the production of official statistics in environmental matters.
In addition, the secretariat contributed a summary of the activities of the Convention and the Protocol for inclusion in the report on the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society.
 

EA 2: 

II.
Public participation:

Identify common difficulties and the main obstacles to effective public participation in all types of decision-making and at all levels (national, provincial, local) within the scope of articles 6, 7 and 8 of the Convention; and coordinate the collection and exchange of good practices to address the common difficulties and the main obstacles identified, including through the further development of the online compendium of case studies in public participation in decision-making.

In order to inform the future work of the Task Force on Public Participation, review the application of the recommendations on public participation in decision-making, including through written surveys to Parties and stakeholders. 

In addition to considering public participation in environmental decision-making generally, focus on public participation in decision-making in such fields as decision-making for sustainable development; climate-change related decision-making, the nuclear domain; energy-related planning and policymaking, and the extractive sector; and if resources allow, decision-making on chemicals; food and agriculture; emerging technologies (e.g., nanotechnology) and product-related decision-making.

Provide advisory assistance to partner organizations on training of public officials involved in the day-to-day task of carrying out public participation procedures covered by the Convention; provide a forum for sharing the results of researchers focusing on participatory processes and environmental decision-making; and assess, keep under review and explore further possibilities for development of the provisions of the Convention relating to public participation.

A2.1

Task Force meetings; workshops; collection of case studies; exploring synergies and possibilities for cooperation with relevant bodies under other multilateral environmental agreements and partner organizations.

Participation in other relevant regional initiatives as appropriate; pilot projects and capacity-building activities at the subregional and national levels, which are expected to be funded by partners.
 

With regard to implementation of activities related to participation in decision-making during the reporting period, the recommendations on improving the implementation of the provisions of the Aarhus Convention on public participation in decision-making were issued in English, French and Russian, as an addendum to the report of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties (ECE/MP.PP/2014/2/Add.2).  The secretariat is also planning to issue the recommendations as a publication.
Participants at the fifth meeting of the Task Force on Public Participation in Decision-making (Geneva, 23–24 February 2014)  discussed the main challenges and obstacles to effective public participation with a focus on: (a) identification and notification of the public concerned; (b) early public participation; (c) the role of private actors and project developers; and (d) taking due account of comments and outcomes of public participation. Innovative practices of public participation in decision-making were also discussed. The meeting included a thematic session on public participation in climate change-related decision-making at the domestic level.
A call for case studies on public participation in environmental decision-making is ongoing and an online compendium of the case studies is currently being populated.

With regard to the implementation of activities related to participation in decision-making during the reporting period, the Maastricht Recommendations on Promoting Effective Public Participation in Decision-making in Environmental Matters (Maastricht Recommendations) were issued as a publication in English, French and Russian.  Hard copies have been distributed to national focal points and stakeholders.
At the sixth meeting of the Task Force on Public Participation in Decision-Making (Geneva, 10–11 February 2016)  participants discussed good practices and the main challenges to effective public participation with a focus on: (a) identification and notification of the public concerned; (b) early public participation; and (c) decisions on proposed activities not listed in annex I to the Convention, in accordance with article 6, paragraph 1 (b), of the Convention. The meeting also helped to share experiences in the use of the Maastricht Recommendations. A survey was organized prior to the meeting in order to facilitate the discussion on this item. In addition, participants discussed challenges and shared experiences with regard to different aspects of public participation in energy-related planning.
A call for case studies on public participation in environmental decision-making is ongoing and an online compendium of the case studies has been populated.

With regard to public participation, at its seventh meeting (Geneva, 15–16 December 2016) the Task Force on Public Participation in Decision-Making focused on public participation in decision-making related to sustainable development and discussed good practices and the main challenges to effective public participation with a focus on effective public participation in decision-making (a) related to changes to or extensions of existing activities and (b) in a transboundary context.  The meeting also offered an opportunity to share experiences in the use of the Maastricht Recommendations on Promoting Effective Public Participation in Decision-making in Environmental Matters (ECE/MP.PP/2014/2/Add.2). A survey was organized prior to the meeting in order to facilitate the discussion on this item. A call for case studies on public participation in environmental decision-making is ongoing, and an online compendium of the case studies has been populated. 

EA 3:

III.
Access to justice:

Implementation of the decisions adopted at the fourth and fifth sessions of the Meeting of the Parties, as well as previous decisions, as appropriate; exchange of information, experiences, challenges and good practices relating to the implementation of the third pillar of the Convention, on such issues as costs, remedies, scope of review, timeliness, protection against persecution and harassment; identification of priority needs with respect to public access to justice in environmental matters; raising of awareness of the access to justice provisions of the Convention; and building of capacity among key groups of stakeholders, such as the judiciary, public interest lawyers and other legal professionals,b through organizing joint events with existing networks and other organizations. 

As resources allow, prepare analytical, guidance and training materials to support this work area.

A3.1

Task Force meetings, if feasible back to back with other relevant capacity-building events, to be organized in liaison with partner organizations active in access to justice, and through development of sector-based partnership approaches, where appropriate.

Strengthen cooperation with existing networks of judges and other legal professionals, as well as other international forums, to exchange information and support capacity building.

Develop analytical and training materials.

Pilot projects and capacity-building activities at the subregional and national levels, which are expected to be funded by partners.

With respect to access to justice activities in the reporting period, on 1 July 2014 members of the Compliance Committee and the secretariat promoted the Convention at the workshop on access to justice organized by the University of Maastricht in the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties. Two studies— one on standing in selected countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, and another on standing, remedies and costs in countries of South-Eastern Europe — were finalized and made available online. 
The secretariat, in consultation with the Chair of the Task Force on Access to Justice, continued preparations for the eighth meeting of the Task Force (Geneva, 15–16 June 2015).  Pursuant to outcomes of the sixth meeting of the Task Force (Geneva, 17–18 June 2013) and in accordance with decision V/3 of Meeting of the Parties, the secretariat has started the preparations for a new study on the possibility of non-governmental organizations to claim for damages on behalf of the environment.
In close cooperation with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the secretariat also provided substantive support to the workshop on access to justice in environmental matters for South Caucasus and Eastern Europe in Tbilisi on 19 and 20 February 2015.
At its eighth meeting, the Task Force on Access to Justice (Geneva, 15–17 June 2015) focused on substantive issues, such as the scope of review, costs and remedies under the Convention.   Delegates also deliberated on quantitative data provided in 2014 national implementation reports in relation to the practical application of the provisions of article 9 of the Convention (access to justice). Furthermore, delegates shared their experience in carrying out multi-stakeholder dialogues with a view to removing barriers to access to justice. The Task Force meeting was preceded by a special session for judges dedicated to the promotion of judicial networking in the pan-European region.
In addition, the study on the possibilities for non-governmental organizations to claim damages on behalf of the environment has been finalized and made available online. 
The secretariat also carried out a study on the scope of review in selected countries of South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. The key findings of the study will be presented to the Task Force at its ninth meeting (Geneva, 13–15 June 2016).   

At its ninth meeting (Geneva, 14–15 June 2016), the Task Force on Access to Justice considered recent developments and national efforts to remove barriers to access to justice.  The meeting also included a thematic session, which focused on the scope of review. In particular, delegates discussed what decisions, acts or omissions could be the subject of administrative appeal and judicial review in accordance with article 9 of the Convention, what could be the grounds for their review and to what extent both procedural and substantive issues might be reviewed. The Task Force meeting was preceded by a special session for judges dedicated to the promotion of judicial networking in the pan-European region. The tenth meeting of the Task Force is scheduled to take place on 27 and 28 February 2017 in Geneva.
For its part, the secretariat continued work on a study on the scope of review in selected countries of South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, and provided advisory support to a similar study being carried out in other countries of South-Eastern Europe by the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe with the support by Germany.
In the reporting period, the secretariat also updated the study on the possibilities for non-governmental organizations promoting environmental protection to claim damages in relation to the environment, in the light of the comments received.

 

EA 4:

IV.
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs):

Support the implementation of decision II/1 on GMOs (GMO amendment) and relevant provisions of the Convention in this area, as well as the application of the Guidelines on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice with Respect to Genetically Modified Organisms (MP.PP/2003/3), inter alia, by promoting exchange of information on common difficulties and the main obstacles to their implementation, as well as good practices to address them.

A4.1

Workshop(s); survey(s); advisory support to, and cooperation with, relevant bodies under the 
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity; advisory support to countries upon request; and use of the Aarhus Clearinghouse to facilitate exchange of information on good practices.

EA 5:

V.
Compliance mechanism:

Monitor and facilitate the implementation of and compliance with the Convention.

Increase support to individual Parties in following up on decisions on compliance

A5.1

 
Compliance Committee to review submissions, referrals and communications on cases of possible non-compliance, prepare decisions and reports and undertake fact-finding missions.

Compliance Committee to explore possible synergies with other relevant forums.

Secretariat to publicize the mechanism, manage the Committee’s web page and develop a database of the Compliance Committee’s findings.

Turning to implementation of compliance-related tasks, since 1 April 2014, the Compliance Committee has held its forty-fifth, forty-sixth and forty-seventh meetings.  It adopted findings on one communication from the public and agreed draft findings concerning three others. The Committee worked very hard to complete all its findings before the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties, when the composition of the Committee would change, so as to be able to start its caseload afresh with the new Committee members. Hence not many new findings have yet been adopted. Between 1 April 2014 and 1 March 2015 the Compliance Committee received 28 new communications (as compared with the previous period, during which it received only 9). In addition, the Meeting of the Parties made one request to the Committee to review a Party’s compliance. No submissions were made to the Committee by individual Parties and the secretariat made no referrals during this period. Of the 28 new communications received, the Committee determined 10 to be preliminarily admissible, 4 to be preliminarily inadmissible, and 14 are currently awaiting a determination of preliminary admissibility. The Committee currently has 35 pending cases, consisting of 34 pending communications and 1 pending request.
The Compliance Committee has recently adopted a new stricter format for communications, with a greater emphasis on describing the use of available domestic remedies and a maximum page limit and number of attachments. It is currently also revising the guide to the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee.
In addition, since the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties, the Committee has followed up on the implementation of decisions V/9a-n concerning compliance by Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, the European Union, Germany, Kazakhstan, Romania, Spain, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As indicated in its report to the fifth session, in the 2015–2017 intersessional period the Committee is taking a more structured approach to its follow-up on decisions of the Meeting of the Parties on compliance by individual Parties. Following the submission in late 2014 by the Parties concerned of their first progress reports on the implementation of decisions V/9a-n, the Committee is preparing its draft first progress reviews of those progress reports, taking into account any comments received from communicants and observers. The Committee will discuss the progress made in implementing decisions V/9a-n in open and closed session at its forty-eighth meeting (Geneva, 24–27 March 2015), after which time the Committee’s first progress reviews will be sent to the Parties concerned, communicants and registered observers. Any comments received on the first progress reviews will be taken into account by the Committee in the preparation of its second progress reviews in early 2016.    
On 1 July 2014, members of the Compliance Committee and the secretariat also attended a side event at the on strengthening the impact of the Aarhus compliance mechanism, organized by the European ECO Forum in the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties.

Since 2 March 2016 the Compliance Committee has held its fifty-second, fifty-third, fifty-fourth and fifty-fifth meetings.  In that period, it adopted findings on four communications from the public and completed draft findings on another four communications. Between 2 March 2016 and 31 December 2016, the Compliance Committee received five new communications. In addition, the Committee received one submission by a Party concerning its own compliance. The secretariat made no referrals during the reporting period. Of the five communications considered for preliminary admissibility between 2 March 2016 and 31 December 2016, the Committee determined all five to be preliminarily admissible. The Committee currently has 49 pending cases, consisting of 45 pending communications, one pending request from the Meeting of the Parties, one pending request from a Party for advice or assistance and two pending submissions.
In addition, since the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties, the Committee has followed up on the implementation of decisions V/9a-n concerning compliance by Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, the European Union, Germany, Kazakhstan, Romania, Spain, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As indicated in its report to the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties (ECE/MP.PP/2014/9), in the 2015–2017 intersessional period the Committee is taking a more structured approach to its follow-up on decisions of the Meeting of the Parties on compliance by individual Parties.
The Compliance Committee is also continuing its work on revising the guide to the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee.
 

EA 6:

VI.
Capacity-building:

Coordination of capacity-building activities to assist countries in the effective implementation of the Convention; implementation of capacity-building measures at the regional and subregional levels.

A6.1

Annual inter-agency coordination meetings; maintaining the Convention’s web pages with information on capacity-building activities; use of the Aarhus Clearinghouse to facilitate exchange of information on good practices; training workshops and technical assistance, mostly separately funded under other substantive work areas; capacity-building activities at the national and subregional levels, which are expected to be funded by partners.

In addition to capacity-building activities mentioned under other areas of work to build synergies and enhance coordination with partners, the secretariat continuously maintained close cooperation with United Nations partner agencies and other international organizations, including the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), OSCE, the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).  The secretariat also serviced the ninth Aarhus Convention Capacity-building Coordination meeting (Geneva, 25 February 2015). The meeting focused on work areas in the Convention’s current strategic plan (ECE/MP.PP/2014/2/Add.1, decision V/5, annex) and programme of work that require special attention by capacity-building partners, as well as specific aspects of projects and activities, such as their geographical scope, target groups, available and required funding, cooperation with partner organizations and challenges encountered in the implementation of activities.
The secretariat attended a side event organized by OSCE in the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties to highlight achievements, identify possible challenges and discuss the future role of Aarhus Centres in developing the necessary actions and synergies to support Parties in building their capacities to implement the Convention.
The secretariat also continued providing substantive support to the implementation of the project under the ENVSEC umbrella on the promotion of the Convention and its Protocol in Belarus. 
With respect to the membership of the Compliance Committee, following the resignation of Ms. Zhandaeva the Bureau appointed Ms. Áine Ryall as the member of the Committee for the remainder of Ms. Zhandaeva’s term. At its forty-ninth meeting (Geneva, 30 June–3 July 2015), after inviting Parties and observers participating in the session for their views, the Committee considered Ms. Ryall’s appointment in closed session and approved her appointment to the Committee.
Turning to implementation of compliance-related tasks, since 5 March 2015 the Compliance Committee has held its forty-eighth, forty-ninth, fiftieth and fifty-first meetings.  It adopted findings on four communications from the public and draft findings on five communications are to be agreed and adopted through the Committee’s electronic decision-making procedure. Between 1 March 2015 and 1 March 2016 the Compliance Committee received 8 new communications (as compared with the previous period, during which it received 28). In addition, the Committee received one submission by a Party concerning another Party’s compliance and, in accordance with the procedure set out in paragraph 53 of the report of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties (ECE/MP.PP/2014/2), one request from a Party for advice or assistance. The secretariat made no referrals during the reporting period. Of the 21 communications considered for preliminary admissibility between 1 March 2015 and 1 March 2016, the Committee determined 17 to be preliminarily admissible and 4 to be preliminarily inadmissible. The Committee currently has 46 pending cases, consisting of 43 pending communications, 1 pending request from the Meeting of the Parties, 1 pending request from a Party for advice or assistance and 1 pending submission.
In addition, since the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties, the Committee has followed up on the implementation of decisions V/9a-n concerning compliance by Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, the European Union, Germany, Kazakhstan, Romania, Spain, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As indicated in its report to the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties, in the 2015–2017 intersessional period the Committee is taking a more structured approach to its follow-up on decisions of the Meeting of the Parties on compliance by individual Parties. Following the submission in late 2015 by the Parties concerned of their second progress reports on the implementation of decisions V/9a-n, the Committee is preparing its draft second progress reviews of those progress reports, taking into account any comments received from communicants and observers. The Committee will discuss the progress made in implementing decisions V/9a-n in open and closed session at its fifty-second meeting (Geneva, 8–11 March 2015), after which time the Committee’s first progress reviews will be sent to the Parties concerned, the communicants and registered observers. The Committee agreed on several further draft findings at its virtual meeting on 12 February 2015.
The Compliance Committee is continuing its work on revising the guide to the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee.  In the context of this revision, and in response to calls by Parties at the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties for greater transparency regarding the procedure for new communications, at its fifty-first meeting (Geneva, 15–18 December 2015) the Committee agreed its procedure on new communications and instructed the secretariat to post this section of the Compliance Committee guide on the web page for communications for the reference of Parties and members of the public.
At its fifty-first meeting, the Committee also discussed the use of electronic tools in its working methods, and in particular the possibilities for increasing its use of audio and web conferencing to facilitate the efficient management of its caseload. It agreed to expand its use of audio and web conferencing with respect to its preparation of draft findings in closed session and to continue to offer Parties and observers the possibility to use these tools to take part in its open sessions on the preliminary admissibility of communications and on the follow-up to Meeting of the Parties’ decisions on compliance. It agreed, however, that, e.g., web-based, video and phone conferences were not appropriate for the hearing of a communication or submission, and representatives of the Party concerned and communicant were expected to attend the hearing of each communication or submission in person.

In addition to capacity-building activities mentioned under other areas of work to build synergies and enhance coordination with partners, during the reporting period the secretariat continuously maintained close cooperation with United Nations partner agencies and other international organizations, including the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).  The secretariat also continued its work on the implementation of the outcomes of the ninth Aarhus Convention Capacity-building Coordination meeting (Geneva, 25 February 2015).  In particular, the secretariat is expected, in consultation with the partners, to finalize and distribute in 2016 a questionnaire on capacity-building among national focal points for the Convention in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia with a view to identifying the needs for future activities.
The secretariat took part in the Aarhus Centres annual meeting (Vienna, 3−4 June 2015), highlighting the main focus of the activities under the Convention in the current intersessional period and the potential role of Aarhus Centres in their implementation.
The secretariat promoted the Protocol on PRTRs at the UNITAR inception workshop for its “Global Project on the Implementation of Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTR) as a tool for Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) reporting, dissemination and awareness raising” (Madrid, 26–28 November 2015).
The secretariat also continued providing substantive support to the implementation of the project under the umbrella of the Environment and Security initiative on the promotion of the Convention and its Protocol in Belarus. This included a presentation on the Protocol on PRTRs via Skype at a technical meeting with representatives from industry and the local authorities (Grodno, Belarus, 23 June 2015).

In addition to capacity-building activities mentioned under other areas of work to build synergies and enhance coordination with partners, during the reporting period the secretariat continuously maintained close cooperation with United Nations partner agencies and other international organizations, including the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).  The secretariat also continued its preparations for the tenth Aarhus Convention Capacity-building Coordination meeting scheduled for February 2017, back to back with the meeting of the Task Force on Access to Justice. In particular, the secretariat distributed a questionnaire on capacity-building strengths and challenges among national focal points for the Convention in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia with a view to identifying the needs for future activities.
The secretariat took part in the Aarhus Centres annual meeting (Vienna 21–22 November 2016), highlighting the main focus of the activities under the Convention in the context of transition to green economy and implementing 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and also delivered a presentation on the project “Strengthening the capacities of Aarhus Centres in disaster risk reduction (DRR) in order to enhance awareness of local communities”.
The secretariat also organized and serviced the second subregional workshop on the Protocol for countries in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, “Get Your Right to A Healthy Community”, held from 19 to 21 September 2016 in Minsk. The workshop aimed to promote ratification and future implementation of the Protocol and discuss synergies with the ECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (Air Convention) in data collecting and reporting. It was the first opportunity for national experts from both instruments from Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia to discuss and share their experience at the international level, and was organized in cooperation with the Air Convention and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of Belarus and its scientific and research centre.
The secretariat promoted the Protocol on PRTRs at a UNITAR inception workshop for its “Global Project on the Implementation of Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTR) as a tool for Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) reporting, dissemination and awareness raising”, which was held on 22 September 2016 in Minsk, back to back with the ECE workshop, and at the regional experience-sharing workshop “Successes, challenges and best practices in developing and operating PRTRs in the Western Balkans and in the Republic of Moldova” (Skopje, 8 and 9 November 2016), organized by the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe.
The secretariat also continued providing substantive support to the implementation of the Environment and Security Initiative project on the promotion of the Aarhus Convention and its Protocol in Belarus. In that connection, against the backdrop of public hearings on a new green economy national action plan being held in the capital, a workshop was organized on ensuring effective public participation in environmental decision-making in Belarus (Minsk, 2–3 November 2016). The workshop was co-organized by the secretariat with OSCE, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of Belarus and its scientific and research centre.
 

EA 7:

VII.
Reporting mechanism:

Production of national implementation reports and a synthesis report.

A7.1

Preparation and processing of national implementation reports.
Analysis of reports and preparation of a synthesis report.

Adjustment of guidance on reporting requirements, as needed.

Following the failure of Portugal, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkmenistan to submit their national implementation reports for the 2014 reporting cycle within the deadlines set by the Meeting of the Parties, these Parties were invited to do so by 1 October 2014. As of 5 March 2015, only Portugal has submitted its report; the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkmenistan have not submitted their reports. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is the only Party that failed to submit a national implementation report for both the 2011 and 2014 reporting cycles.

Following the failure of Portugal, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkmenistan to submit their national implementation reports for the 2014 reporting cycle by the deadlines set by the Meeting of the Parties, these Parties were invited to submit their reports by 1 October 2014. As of 15 February 2016, only the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has not yet submitted its report for the 2014 reporting cycle; however, in the meantime, that Party has submitted its national implementation report for the 2011 reporting cycle.

As of 31 December 2016, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia remains the only Party to the Convention that has not yet submitted its report for the 2014 reporting cycle. 

EA 8:

VIII.
Awareness-raising and promotion of the Convention, including through:

VIII.1. 
Communication Strategy

VIII.2. 
Promotion of the principles of the Convention in international forums

VIII.3. 
Support to non-ECE States to accede to the Convention

VIII.4. 
Support to regional and global initiatives on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration

Raise public awareness of the Convention throughout the ECE region and beyond; increase the number of Parties to the Convention; support regional and global initiatives on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration. 

Activities should be carried out in synergy with the relevant activities of the work programme of the Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (Protocol on PRTRs).

A8.1

Participation in key regional and international events and processes; use of bilateral, regional and international cooperation arrangements to raise interest in the Convention, e.g., the European Neighbourhood Policy; feed into international processes that closely relate to the Convention, including, the special procedures under the United Nations Human Rights Council (depending on the mandate), the United Nations Environment Programme, the international financial institutions and other relevant international forums.

Expert assistance to regional and global initiatives on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration; support to relevant events organized by others; missions and assistance to countries organized at the request of host Governments, with a focus on States that have expressed formal interest in becoming Parties to the Convention.

Implementation of the Communication Strategy; website management; preparation of leaflets, publications, news bulletins, articles and other information materials.

The secretariat has participated in conferences, seminars, workshops and other events in various countries to promote and raise awareness about the Convention and its Protocol at the international level, and has arranged for other representatives of the Convention and Protocol bodies to participate. Meetings and events at which promotional and awareness-raising activities were carried out include: meeting with journalists from Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation and Ukraine (Geneva, 3 April 2014); the Twelfth Annual Conference for Environmental Professionals (Cork, Ireland, 3 April 2014); a symposium on the practice of independent accountability mechanisms held at the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (London, 17 September 2014); and the E TRACK Open Seminar on the role of public participation in radioactive waste management and other sectors, organized by the European Commission Directorate-General Energy (Amsterdam, 23 October 2014).
The Vice-Chair of the Convention, the secretariat and one expert attended a meeting with Chinese governmental officials organized by the European Union-China Environmental Governance Project and the German Agency for International Cooperation (Beijing, 15–16 October 2014).
The Chair of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention promoted the Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs at the symposium of the Commission Nationale du Débat Publique (Paris, 16–17 June 2014).
On 1 July 2014, the secretariat promoted the Convention at a side event organized by the United Nations Quaker Office in the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties. The event addressed peace-building and preventing conflict around water, land and food through access rights.
The secretariat also promoted the Convention and the Protocol through various reports and articles prepared under the auspices of ECE and partner organizations.
In 2014, the secretariat reported on progress made in the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society, through the use of electronic tools for the promotion of the Aarhus Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs
The interactive English version of the Aarhus Convention: An Implementation Guide  was made available online in April 2014 and printed copies were distributed to national focal points and relevant stakeholders. Russian, French and Chinese  versions of the publication are currently being prepared. The new promotional brochure “Protecting your environment: The power is in your hands”, addressing the general public interested in the Aarhus Convention and its provisions, was also published in English, French, Spanish and Russian and was widely distributed.  In 2015 Arabic and Chinese versions of the brochure are planned.
In addition, the secretariat continued an enhanced outreach exercise, distributing materials about the Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs to national focal points, Aarhus Centres, non-governmental organizations and academic institutions in the ECE region.
At the invitation of the Environmental Policy and Law journal, a column dedicated to the deliberations of the Compliance Committee and summarizing the outcomes of the Committee’s most recent meetings, was written by a journal reporter in cooperation with the secretariat in 2014.

The secretariat has participated in conferences, seminars, workshops and other events in various countries to promote and raise awareness about the Convention and its Protocol at the international level. The secretariat took part in a meeting of experts convened by the Access Initiative and the World Resources Institute to discuss and refine a draft set of indicators, to be known as the Aarhus Index, to test the legal transposition and practical implementation of the Aarhus Convention (Dublin, 13–14 July 2015). Other meetings and events at which promotional and awareness-raising activities were carried out include a meeting with the representatives of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (Geneva, 8 September 2015) and a presentation on the Convention at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Geneva, 30 October 2015).
The secretariat provided input regarding the Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs to the Sixth Global Environment Outlook Regional Assessment report for the European region, prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and ECE with the support of the European Environment Agency and in close collaboration with partner institutions and individual experts.
The secretariat also provided input regarding the Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs to the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes for his annual report to the Human Rights Council on the right to access information throughout the life cycle of hazardous substances and wastes. Furthermore, the Aarhus secretariat took part in the interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur organized within the framework of the thirtieth session of the Human Right Council (Geneva, 16 September 2015) and a panel discussion at the side event “Right to information on hazardous substances and wastes” (Geneva, 18 September 2015), raising awareness about both the Convention and the Protocol.
The ECE Executive Secretary promoted the Convention and its Protocol together with other ECE instruments at the fourth session of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (Geneva, 28 September–2 October 2015). 
The secretariat further promoted the Convention and its Protocol at a side event on the margins of the chemicals management conference on “Occupational exposures: Experiences on advancing a more sustainable management of chemicals” (Geneva, 30 September 2015). At that event the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes also highlighted the importance of access to information for workers.
In addition to the English version, the printed Chinese-language  version of the Aarhus Convention: An Implementation Guide  was made available in 2014. The final text version of the Russian translation has also been made available online. The French version of the Implementation Guide is currently being translated. The promotional brochure “Protecting your environment: The power is in your hands”, addressing the general public interested in the Aarhus Convention and its provisions, was published in Arabic. After the finalization of the Chinese version, this brochure will be available in all six official languages of the United Nations. 
The secretariat also promoted the Convention and the Protocol through various reports and articles prepared under the auspices of ECE and partner organizations. In addition, the secretariat continued an enhanced outreach exercise, distributing materials about the Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs to national focal points, Aarhus Centres, non-governmental organizations and academic institutions in the ECE region.

The secretariat, or relevant experts invited by the secretariat to do so, participated in conferences, seminars, workshops and other events in various countries to promote and raise awareness about the Convention and its Protocol at the international level.
The secretariat also provided input regarding the right to access information throughout the life cycle of hazardous substances and wastes to the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, for his annual report to the Human Rights Council. Furthermore, the secretariat provided input to the thematic report on human rights and biodiversity of the Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment in October this year.  The secretariat also participated in the panel discussion “How can human rights contribute to the protection of the environment?”, organized by the Geneva Environment Network (22 September 2016).
The Aarhus Convention was promoted at the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency Nuclear Law Committee meeting (Paris, 24 March 2016), at the Aarhus Convention and Nuclear European Roundtable on Nuclear Emergency Preparedness and Response (29–30 November 2016, Luxembourg) and at a workshop on civil society activities for environmentally sound socioeconomic development implemented in the Western Balkans and Turkey (Tirana, 8–9 December 2016).
The French and Russian versions of the Aarhus Convention: An Implementation Guide  are currently being finalized. The Chinese version of the promotional brochure “Protecting your environment: The power is in your hands”, addressing the general public interested in the Aarhus Convention and its provisions, is also currently being finalized. After the finalization of the Chinese version, this brochure will be available in all six official languages of the United Nations. 
Following a formal expression of interest in acceding to the Aarhus Convention by Guinea Bissau, the secretariat is providing advisory support to the country in its efforts to accede to the Convention.
The secretariat also promoted the Convention and the Protocol through various reports and articles prepared under the auspices of ECE and partner organizations. In addition, the secretariat continued an enhanced outreach exercise, distributing materials about the Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs to national focal points, Aarhus Centres, non-governmental organizations and academic institutions in the ECE region and beyond.
 

EA 9:

IX.
Promotion of the Almaty Guidelines and other interlinkages with relevant international bodies and processes:

Further the application of the principles of the Convention throughout all activities under the Convention, as appropriate, and in the context of the work of relevant international bodies and processes, inter alia, through the promotion of the Almaty Guidelines and the Recommendations on the More Effective Use of Electronic Information Tools to Provide Public Access to Environmental Information and monitoring of their implementation.

A9.1

Thematic sessions, on a needs basis, at meetings of the Working Group of the Parties to oversee progress in promoting the application of the principles of the Convention in international forums and to address challenges encountered in the implementation of article 3, paragraph 7, of the Convention. 

Surveys regarding experiences gained in the implementation of article 3, paragraph 7, and the Almaty Guidelines; online networks; expert assistance to relevant international forums and to Parties upon request and developing a repository of good practices on establishing effective processes for the public to participate in international forums; joint activities with other treaties and multilateral processes; concrete actions by Parties at the national and international level to promote the principles of the Convention in international forums, and the Almaty Guidelines.

Subject to resources, commissioning a study on how to make public participation in international forums more effective.

In connection with work programme items on implementing the Almaty Guidelines on Promoting the Application of the Aarhus Convention in International Forums (Almaty Guidelines), the June 2015 meeting of the Working Group of the Parties includes a thematic segment focusing primarily on promoting the Convention’s principles within the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change. This thematic segment will also address the promotion of the principles of the Convention through developing, implementing and monitoring implementation of the future sustainable development goals. Participants are also expected to discuss the application of the principles in trade negotiations and stakeholder engagement in the framework of the United Nations Environment Assembly.
During the reporting period the secretariat continued supporting efforts to promote the principles of the Convention in various international forums, working with other United Nations bodies, in particular, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), UNITAR, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the United Nations Development Programme; other environmental treaty bodies, such as CBD and its Protocol on Biosafety; and other international organizations, inter alia, OSCE, OECD, the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Among others, the secretariat informed all national focal points and stakeholders about a UNEP proposal for a new access to information policy and the World Bank’s new Environmental and Social Framework, and invited them to comment. Requests by other international forums for advisory support from the secretariat are noticeably increasing, though the secretariat is not always able to respond fully due to its limited capacity.
Public participation in international forums was also discussed at the ninth Capacity-building Coordination meeting (Geneva, 25 February 2015). Partner organizations at the meeting addressed, inter alia, ways to support Parties in implementing the Almaty Guidelines through assisting them in organizing input from the public to national contributions to international forums, and the need to apply the Guidelines in their own activities.
The secretariat promoted the the Aarhus Convention principles, in particular in relation to its national and international obligations on public access to environmental information, at a workshop organized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in Geneva on 28 and 29 January 2015.
In an advisory capacity, the secretariat continued to support ongoing initiatives to implement principle 10 of the Rio Declaration, namely: (a) the Advisory Group on International Environmental Governance for the project on the promotion of the Guidelines for the Development of National Legislation on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Bali Guidelines), led by UNEP; and (b) the “Access for All” initiative, launched at the Eye on Earth Summit in December 2011 and led by the World Resource Institute, which seeks to provide a platform for global promotion of Principle 10. In addition, the secretariat provides ongoing advice to various professional, academic or non-governmental institutions and associations upon request.
The secretariat has provided ongoing advisory support upon request to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and designated focal points for the initiative on a possible regional convention on access rights in Latin America and the Caribbean. On 2 July 2014, the secretariat also promoted the Convention at a side event — “Building bridges between regions with a focus on Principle 10 and Aarhus Convention” — organized by the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe in the margins of the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties. In addition, the Chair of the Compliance Committee participated in the fourth meeting of the focal points of the 10 signatory countries of the Declaration on the Application of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (Santiago, 4–6 November 2014) in order to share the main achievements of and challenges facing the Aarhus Convention compliance mechanism.
In the light of the ongoing discussion by Parties to the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (Industrial Accidents Convention) to strengthen that Convention’s public participation provisions, the Aarhus Convention secretariat has been closely cooperating with the Industrial Accidents Convention secretariat in its work on this issue.
The secretariat made a joint presentation with the secretariat of the Water and Health Protocol at the WaterLex conference and workshop, “WASH Indicators: Measuring Progress in the Realisation of the Human Right to Water and Sanitation,” (Geneva, 21–22 November 2014) on using the Aarhus Convention and the Protocol on Water and Health to ensure access to water and sanitation for all.
On the occasion of the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held in Sendai, Japan, from 14 to 18 March 2015, the secretariat prepared input on the role of the Aarhus Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs in relation to disaster risk prevention and management. The input was also included in the ECE brochure prepared for the event.
Cooperation between the secretariat and the special procedures of the Human Rights Council was further enhanced in the reporting period through, inter alia, the provision of input on the value added of the Aarhus Convention and its Protocol on PRTRs to: (a) a study by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on “best practices, experiences and challenges and ways to overcome them with regard to the promotion, protection and implementation of the right to participate in public affairs in the context of existing human rights law”; and (b) the annual report of the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes.
The secretariat provided an ongoing substantive support to the preparations for the Eighth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference.

In connection with work programme items on implementing the Almaty Guidelines on Promoting the Application of the Aarhus Convention in International Forums (Almaty Guidelines), the nineteenth meeting of the Working Group of the Parties in June 2015 featured a thematic session on promoting the application of the principles of the Convention in international forums.  The session focused primarily on the promotion of public participation in the lead-up to and during the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) (Paris, 30 November–11 December 2015). In addition, participants considered stakeholder engagement in the UNEP processes. Other issues for discussion included the promotion of the universal application of the Aarhus Convention’s principles in international trade negotiations, as well as the promotion of the principles of the Convention through developing, implementing and monitoring implementation of the future Sustainable Development Goals.
During the reporting period the secretariat continued supporting efforts to promote the principles of the Convention in various international forums, working with other United Nations bodies, in particular, UNEP, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the United Nations Development Programme; other environmental treaty bodies, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety; and other international organizations, inter alia, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, OECD, OSCE and the World Bank,
The secretariat participated in the 2015 International Financial Institutions’ Working Group meeting on information disclosure and stakeholder engagement (Luxembourg, 29 October 2015) in order to promote awareness among those institutions of the Aarhus Convention’s contributions to international law on good environmental governance, and in particular the concrete Aarhus Convention products that could be of assistance in their operations.
The secretariat also participated in the European Union enlargement and integration action workshop “Public participation and transparency in the implementation of energy policies” (Belgrade, 25–26 February 2016) in order to promote awareness of the Aarhus Convention’s requirements regarding public participation in energy-related areas, the role of Aarhus Convention task forces and concrete Aarhus Convention products that could assist officials in ensuring effective public participation in energy-related areas.
In accordance with paragraph 7 (b) of decision V/4, and at the request of the UNFCCC secretariat, the Aarhus secretariat provided expert advisory assistance to the UNFCCC secretariat with respect to observer engagement at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris. The secretariat also took part in the consultation processes regarding the UNEP access-to-information policy and the World Bank’s proposed new environmental and social framework. Requests by international forums for advisory support from the Aarhus secretariat are noticeably increasing, though it is not always able to respond fully due to its limited capacity.
The secretariat also provided input on promoting the principles of the Convention in international forums for the round table “Climate change and response strategies in the context of sustainable development of the Republic of Belarus” (Minsk, 24 April 2015), which looked at the country’s contribution to the preparations for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris.
Also in an advisory capacity, the secretariat continued to support ongoing initiatives to implement principle 10 of the Rio Declaration, namely: (a) the Advisory Group on International Environmental Governance for the project on the promotion of the Guidelines for the Development of National Legislation on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Bali Guidelines), led by UNEP; and (b) the “Access for All” initiative, launched at the Eye on Earth Summit in December 2011 and led by the World Resources Institute, which seeks to provide a platform for global promotion of Principle 10. In addition, the secretariat provides ongoing advice to various professional, academic or non-governmental institutions and associations upon request.
The secretariat has provided ongoing advisory support upon request to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and designated focal points for the initiative on a possible regional convention on access rights in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In the light of the ongoing discussion by Parties to the ECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (Industrial Accidents Convention) to strengthen that Convention’s public participation provisions, the Aarhus Convention secretariat has been closely cooperating with the Industrial Accidents Convention secretariat in its work on this issue.
The secretariat also provided an ongoing substantive support to the preparations for the Eighth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference.

In connection with work programme items on implementing the Almaty Guidelines on Promoting the Application of the Aarhus Convention in International Forums (Almaty Guidelines), the twentieth meeting of the Working Group of the Parties in June 2016 featured a thematic session on promoting the application of the Convention’s principles in international forums.  The session focused on recent developments related to international financial institutions, feedback from the promotion of public participation in the lead up to and at the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Paris, 30 November–11 December 2015) and an update on stakeholder engagement in the United Nations Environment Assembly and the high-level political forum on sustainable development processes.
During the reporting period the secretariat continued supporting efforts to promote the principles of the Convention in various international forums. To that end, the secretariat worked with other United Nations bodies, in particular, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the United Nations Development Programme; other environmental treaty bodies, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety; and other international organizations, inter alia, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, OECD, OSCE and the World Bank.
In accordance with paragraph 7 (a) of decision V/4 on promoting the application of the principles of the Convention in international forums, the secretariat took part in the consultation processes regarding the UNEP access-to-information policy and the World Bank’s proposed new environmental and social framework. Requests by international forums for advisory support from the Aarhus secretariat are noticeably increasing, though it is not always able to respond fully due to its limited capacity.
Also in an advisory capacity, the secretariat continued to support ongoing initiatives to implement principle 10 of the Rio Declaration, namely: (a) the Advisory Group on International Environmental Governance for the project on the promotion of the Guidelines for the Development of National Legislation on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Bali Guidelines), led by UNEP; and (b) the “Access for All” initiative, launched at the Eye on Earth Summit in December 2011 and led by the World Resources Institute, which seeks to provide a platform for global promotion of Principle 10. In addition, the secretariat provides ongoing advice to various professional, academic or non-governmental institutions and associations upon request.
Upon request, the secretariat provided ongoing advisory support, including by engaging relevant experts, to assist the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in developing a regional convention on access rights.
In the light of the ongoing discussion by Parties to the ECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (Industrial Accidents Convention) to strengthen the Convention’s public participation provisions, the Aarhus Convention secretariat has been closely cooperating with the Industrial Accidents Convention secretariat in its work on this issue.
The secretariat also provided ongoing substantive support to the preparations for the Eighth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference (Batumi, Georgia, 8–10 June 2016).
 

EA 10:

X.
Coordination and oversight of intersessional activities:

Coordination and oversight of the activities under the Convention.

Preparation of substantive documents for the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties (e.g., drafting decisions, the future work programme, reviewing the implementation of the current work programme and the Strategic Plan).

A10.1

Working Group meetings, meetings of the Bureau and consultations among Bureau members electronically.

Coordination and oversight of intersessional activities during the reporting period was mainly conducted by the governing body and its subsidiary bodies during regular meetings of those bodies.
The fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention and the Joint High-level Segment with the second session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on PRTRs were held in Maastricht, the Netherlands from 30 June to 2 July 2014. The Bureau held its thirty-fourth meeting in Maastricht on 29 June 2014 and its thirty-fifth meeting in Geneva on 3 March 2015. The Bureau also held regular electronic consultations on different subjects.
At its eighteenth meeting in Maastricht on 29 June 2014, the Working Group of the Parties conducted the final preparatory negotiations regarding the documents that would be discussed during the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties.
Representatives of the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy and the governing bodies of the ECE MEAs continued to liaise at informal meetings to exchange information on priorities under the agreements and identify and discuss possible areas of cooperation and synergy in the light of recent and future key developments in the area of the environment. At the last meeting (Geneva, 27 October 2014), held back to back with the twentieth session of the Committee on Environmental Policy (Geneva, 28–31 October 2014), the Vice-Chairs of the Aarhus Convention and the Chair of the Protocol on PRTRs participated, as well as the secretariat.
Activities under the Aarhus Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs were presented at the twentieth session of the Committee on Environmental Policy by the Vice-Chairs of the Convention and the Chair of the Protocol on PRTRs.
During the reporting period the status of the Convention, its GMO amendment and the Protocol on PRTRs with regard to accession, ratification or approval has remained unchanged: as of 5 March 2015, the Convention has 47 Parties, the GMO amendment has 28 Parties and the Protocol on PRTRs has 33 Parties.

Coordination and oversight of intersessional activities during the reporting period was mainly conducted by the governing body and its subsidiary bodies during regular meetings of those bodies.
At its nineteenth meeting the Working Group of the Parties reviewed implementation of the current work programme and discussed a number of items, including progress achieved in promoting access to information, public participation and access to justice. The Bureau held its thirty-sixth and thirty-seventh meetings in Geneva, on 19 June 2015 and on 25 and 26 February 2016, respectively.
Representatives of the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy and the governing bodies of the ECE multilateral environmental agreements continued to liaise at informal meetings to exchange information on priorities under the agreements and to identify and discuss possible areas of cooperation and synergy in the light of recent and future key developments in the area of the environment. At the most recent meetings in Geneva, on 13 April and 26 October 2015, the secretariat and the Chairs of the governing bodies of the Aarhus Convention and its Protocol all participated.  Activities under the Aarhus Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs were presented at the twenty-first session of the Committee on Environmental Policy (Geneva, 27–30 October 2015) by the Chairs of the two governing bodies.
During the reporting period the status of the Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs with regard to accession, ratification or approval has remained unchanged: as of 29 February 2016, the Convention has 47 Parties and the Protocol on PRTRs has 33 Parties. After the ratification of Georgia, the GMO amendment to the Aarhus Convention now has 29 Parties. The parliament of Ukraine approved the law on the ratification of the Protocol on PRTRs. Ukraine will become the thirty-fourth Party to the Protocol when the law enters into force on the ninetieth day after it deposits its instrument of ratification.

Coordination and oversight of intersessional activities during the reporting period was mainly conducted by the governing body and its subsidiary bodies during regular meetings of those bodies.
At its twentieth meeting, the Working Group of the Parties reviewed implementation of the current work programme and discussed a number of items in preparation for the next session of the Meeting of the Parties. The Bureau held its thirty-eighth meeting and its thirty-ninth meeting in Geneva, on 17 June 2016 and on 13 and 14 December 2016, respectively.
Representatives of the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy and the governing bodies of the ECE multilateral environmental agreements continued to liaise to exchange information on priorities under the agreements and to identify and discuss possible areas of cooperation and synergy in the light of recent and future key developments in the area of the environment. The next informal meeting of the representatives of the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy and the governing bodies of ECE conventions and protocols is scheduled to take place on 24 January 2017 in Geneva.
The Aarhus Convention and the Protocol on PRTRs and their relevance to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals were promoted at the Eighth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference.
During the reporting period the status of the Convention with regard to accession, ratification or approval has remained unchanged: as of 31 December 2016, the Convention has 47 Parties. After the ratification of France, the GMO amendment to the Aarhus Convention now has 30 Parties. The Protocol on PRTRs has 35 Parties.
The secretariat in close cooperation with the host country started preparations for the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention, which will take place in Budva, Montenegro, during the week of 11–14 September 2017. A preparatory mission was carried out by the secretariat in September 2016.
 

EA 11:

XI.
Sixth ordinary session of the Meeting of the Parties:

See article 10 of the Convention.

A11.1

Session of the Meeting of the Parties.

EA 12:

XII.
Horizontal support areas:

Overall support that covers multiple substantive areas of the work programme.

A12.1

Secretarial support, staff training, equipment.

During the period 2014–2015, the objective of horizontal support activities was to provide overall support that covered multiple substantive areas of the work programme, inter alia, through secretarial support and staff training.

During the period 2015–2016, the objective of horizontal support activities was to provide overall support that covered multiple substantive areas of the work programme, inter alia, through secretarial support and staff training. These activities are relevant for the achievement of all focal areas of the strategic plan.

During the period 2016–2017, the objective of horizontal support activities was to provide overall support that covered multiple substantive areas of the work programme, inter alia, through secretarial support and staff training. These activities are relevant for the achievement of all focal areas of the strategic plan.

EA 1:

A.
Compliance mechanism:

Monitor and facilitate compliance with the Protocol

A1.1 

Compliance Committee to meet to review submissions, communications, etc., prepare decisions and reports and undertake fCompliance Committee to meet to review submissions, communications, etc., prepare decisions and reports and undertake fact-finding missions; secretariat to publicize the mechanism, develop a database of cases and service the Committee; Expert missions; Subcontracts (e.g., translations, management of electronic databases, website maintenance and improvement)

EA 2: 

B.
Technical assistance:

Assist countries in the effective implementation of the Protocol

A2.1

Specific projects in countries needing assistance; training workshops, guidance materials and technical assistance, mostly separately funded; questionnaires, analysis of results; Subcontracts (e.g., preparation of guidance material, research, analytical studies); Expert missions

EA 3:

C.
Information exchange on a technical level:

Monitor and facilitate the implementation of the Protocol

A3.1

Meetings of the Working Group of the Parties to the Protocol; ad hoc expert meetings and missions; use of electronic tools including the Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy, PRTR capacity-building database and prtr.net, PRTR:Learn website, PRTR capacity-building activities database;Subcontracts (e.g., maintenance and improvement of PRTR-related databases and other electronic tools); Expert missions

EA 4:

D.
Reporting mechanism:

Monitor and facilitate the implementation of the Protocol; facilitate reporting, review of compliance and experience

A4.1

Meetings of the Working Group of the Parties to the Protocol; exchange on a technical level of information on the application of electronic information tools; use of the online implementation database in the Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy, the PRTR:Learn website, the PRTR capacity-building activities database and e reporting

EA 5:

E.
Awareness–raising and promotion of the Protocol and its interlinkages with other treaties and processes:

Further the knowledge of the Protocol throughout the ECE region and beyond, increase the number of Parties to the Protocol; further the application of the Protocol in the context of other MEAs and related processes (SAICM/ICCM)

A5.1

Participate in key regional and international events and processes; provide support to workshops organized by others; prepare leaflets, publications, news bulletins and other materials; update website; write and review articles on the Protocol; Subcontracts (e.g., organization of outreach campaigns)

EA 6:

F.
Coordination and oversight of intersessional activities, organization of the third session of the Meeting of the Parties:

Coordination and oversight of the activities under the Protocol, i.e., through the implementation of this programme of work

A6.1

 
Meetings of the Working Group of the Parties to the Protocol; meetings of the Bureau as necessary; consultations among Bureau members using e-mail, session of the Meeting of the Parties
to the Protocol

EA 7:

G.
Technical assessment of provisions of the Protocol:

Drafting of recommendations to the Meeting of the Parties on technical issues, based on the assessment and implementation reports

A7.1

 
Meetings of the Working Group of the Parties to the Protocol, electronic consultation; drafting of assessment report(s) on experience gained in the development of national PRTRs according to article 6, paragraph 2, as appropriate, of the Protocol, and implementation reports; Subcontracts (draft recommendations on technical issues)

EA 8:

H.
Horizontal support areas:

Overall support that covers multiple substantive areas of the work programme

A8.1

 
Secretarial support, staff training, equipment

EA 9:

Staff requirements: