The Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine has developed a draft resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine titled “On the Implementation of a Pilot Project for a Simplified Environmental Impact Assessment Procedure in Areas Where Armed Conflict is Ongoing or Has Taken Place.”
The draft resolution proposes to approve the procedure for implementing the pilot project, which introduces a simplified environmental impact assessment (EIA) process for planned economic activities in areas affected by ongoing or past armed conflict.
The objective of the draft resolution is to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses during martial law, accelerate the recovery of economic activities, and create favorable conditions for doing business without compromising environmental safety.
The adoption of this act is driven by the challenges posed by the legal regime under martial law and the need to simplify business operations in areas affected by hostilities.
Specifically, the pilot project procedure provides for:
- The cancellation of the obligation to submit a notification about planned activities;
- The cancellation of public consultations on the scope of research and level of detail in the EIA report, which currently last 12 working days;
- The elimination of fees for conducting public consultations as part of the EIA process.
The implementation of this pilot project will significantly reduce the time required to obtain an EIA conclusion, lower financial costs for businesses, and at the same time ensure compliance with environmental requirements during the restoration and rebuilding of territories affected by the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation.
Comments and proposals on the draft resolution can be submitted within 30 calendar days from the date of its publication on the official website of the Ministry.