The twenty-first meeting of the Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention was held on 4-6 April 2017 in Geneva (Palais des Nations, Salle XII). The Working Group reviewed the progress in implementing the current work programme and discussed a number of items in preparation for the sixth ordinary session of the Meeting of the Parties (Montenegro, 11-14 September 2017).

DOCUMENTS

Draft decisions 

The Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention at its twentieth meeting (Geneva, 15-17 June 2016) requested the Bureau to prepare the following draft decisions for the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties:

• Draft decision on access to information

• Draft decision on public participation in decision-making

• Draft decision on promoting effective access to justice

• Draft decision on promoting the application of the principles of the Convention in international forums

• Draft decision on the work programme for 2018-2021 

• Draft decision on financial arrangements under the Convention 

The above draft decisions were prepared by the Bureau on the basis of the relevant outcomes of the twentieth meeting of the Working Group of the Parties; the Notes by the Chairs of the Convention’s Task Forces (AC/WGP–20/Inf.1; AC/WGP–20/Inf.2; and AC/WGP–20/Inf.3), by the Chair of the Compliance Committee (AC/WGP–20/Inf.4) and by the Chair of the Thematic Session on the Promotion of the Principles of the Convention in International Forums (AC/WGP–16/Inf.5), submitted to the twentieth meeting of the Working Group of the Parties, and relevant decisions on the respective subject matters, adopted by the Meeting of the Parties at its fifth session (Maastricht, the Netherlands, 30 June-1 July 2014).

All draft decisions were distributed to Parties and stakeholders on 27 September 2016 for comments with the deadline to respond before 7 November 2016. The draft declaration was also made available to Parties to both treaties and all stakeholders for comments. National focal points for the Convention and the Protocol were requested to coordinate their comments on the document and to submit to the secretariat one consolidated input per country, before 18 November 2016. Upon completion of the round of consultations, the Bureau considered the comments received and finalised the draft decisions for their submission to the twenty-first meeting of the Working Group of the Parties. 

The Working Group of the Parties is expected at its twenty-first meeting (Geneva, 4-6 April 2017) to consider and approve the draft decisions and submit them to the Meeting of the Parties at its sixth session for consideration. 

Draft Declaration

The Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention at its twentieth meeting (Geneva, 15-17 June 2016) requested the Bureau to prepare, in light of the comments provided at the meeting, a draft declaration, jointly with the Protocol’s Bureau, for its submission to the twenty-first meeting of the Working Group for consideration and approval and subsequent submission to the Meeting of the Parties for consideration. 

Pursuant to this decision, the draft declaration was made available for comments through this webpage (see below). It was at the same time submitted to the fifth meeting Working Group of the Parties to the Protocol (23-24 November 2016) and also made available to Parties to both treaties and stakeholders for comments. 

Following the consultations, the document was revised, taking into consideration the comments received, and is submitted to the Convention’s Working Group of the Parties at its twenty-first meeting. The document will then be revised again by the two Bureaux, in the light of the comments received, and submitted to the Meetings of the Parties for consideration at their joint high-level session in September 2017.

Draft provisional agenda for the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties

The Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention at its twentieth meeting (Geneva, 15-17 June 2016) requested the Bureau to prepare, in light of the comments provided at the meeting, a draft provisional agenda for the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties for its submission to the twenty-first meeting of the Working Group for consideration and approval and subsequent submission to the Meeting of the Parties for consideration. As there was a general support to the draft outline of the agenda submitted to the twentieth meeting of the Working Group of the Parties (see document ECE/MP.PP/WG.1/2016/10 available from www.unece.org/env/pp/aarhus/wgp20) the document was not amended after the meeting. 

The draft agenda was circulated for comments to Parties and stakeholders following which it was revised by the Bureau and submitted to the Convention’s Working Group of the Parties at its twenty-first meeting for approval.