| title: | "Legal Problems Concerning Implementation of Environmental Requirements of the European Union" |
|---|---|
| reg no: | ETF6673 |
| project type: | Estonian Science Foundation research grant |
| subject: |
5.2. Juridical Sciences |
| status: | accepted |
| institution: | TU Faculty of Law |
| head of project: | Hannes Veinla |
| duration: | 01.01.2006 - 31.12.2008 |
| description: | 1. Aim of the Project The central problem of the research is evaluating the suitability of the mechanisms of implementation of environmental requirements of the European Union and making proposals for improvement of the mechanisms. The field of research has been defined at two levels:Central focus will be on four environmental protection sectors that are influenced the most by the environmental requirements of the European Union: a)Waste b)Biological diversity c)Ambient air quality d)Water protection The research will focus on the following main implementation mechanisms: a)Environmental impact assessment b)Environmental procedures in general c)Relations of environmental rights and environmental procedures (procedural rights: right to information, right to participate in decision-making and access to justice; substantive right to a clean environment). 2. The assessment of the existing implementation mechanisms and the proposals for improvement of the existing system are based on the following assumptions: a)Implementation mechanisms have to be as universal as possible. b)Implementation mechanisms must be open to public participation. c)Implementation mechanisms should be compatible with the main general legal principles and regulation in other branches of law. 3. Research Methods The research is based on three integrated parts: a)Identification, mapping and characterisation of implementation mechanisms. Also, the variation in mechanisms of different environmental protection sectors will be identified and the need for variation will be critically assessed. b)Assessment of the efficiency of implementation mechanisms in regard to the full and actual implementation of the Community’s environmental requirements. The actual and potential problems will be pointed out. An essential component of this stage of the research is the analysis of the relevant practice of the European Court of Justice. c)Finding solutions to the actual and potential problems. Main emphasis will be on the following three areas: environmental impact assessment, environmental procedures in general, environmental rightsThe method of qualitative analysis shall be used in the research. The comparative law analysis and analysis of the practice of the European Court of Justice is important. 4. The expected importance of the research Firstly, data that will be collected and analysed as well as the conclusions would make vital contribution to the development of the theory of environmental law since the research concerns the central questions of environmental theory. Secondly, the research has potential practical significance since the results of the research can be employed in legal drafting. Thirdly, the research project would provide additional valuable material for teaching environmental law in the institutions of the University of Tartu. |
| project group | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| no | name | institution | position | |
| 1. | Kaarel Relve | |||
| 2. | Hannes Veinla | Tartu Ülikool | ||