Climate change law in Georgia rests on the basic law on environmental protection: its goals and principles create the framework within which the chapter on climate protection — the norms and authorization of greenhouse gas emissions — operates. On this page you will find a complete description of these three layers, together with the ozone layer norms.
The Goals and Tasks of the Law
The basic goals of the environmental protection law are: defining the principles and norms of legal relations in the field of environmental protection; protecting the fundamental human rights established by the Constitution — living in an environment harmless to health and enjoying the natural and cultural environment; securing state environmental protection and rational nature use, and an environment safe for human health, taking into account the interests of present and future generations.
Among the goals are facilitating the conservation of biological diversity and of rare, endemic, and endangered species characteristic of the country, protecting the marine environment, ensuring ecological balance, preserving self-sufficient landscapes and ecosystems, the legal resolution of common global and regional environmental problems, and securing the conditions for the country's sustainable development. The tasks include protecting a safe environment, the legal securing of protection from harmful impact, and the management of the use of natural resources.
The Basic Principles of Environmental Protection
In planning and carrying out activities, state bodies and all persons are obliged to be guided by the basic principles: risk reduction — taking measures to avoid or reduce the risk of harmful impact; sustainability — the use of the environment and resources in a way that poses no threat to the development of society; priority — choosing a less risky action over a more risky one.
Among the principles are paid nature use — the use of land, water, forest, flora and fauna, and subsoil resources is paid; the "polluter pays" principle — the subject of activity is obliged to compensate the damage caused to the environment; as well as the principles of conservation of biological diversity, waste minimization, recycling, restitution, impact assessment, public participation, and accessibility of information.
Climate Protection from Global Changes
For the purpose of protecting the earth's climate from global changes, the subject of activity is obliged to observe the norms of emission of gases causing the greenhouse effect in the atmosphere and to carry out measures for their reduction. This emission is regulated on the basis of the integrated pollution control system, and within Georgia's jurisdiction the legal regime of climate protection is established by Georgian legislation.
For activities defined by a government decree, an authorization of greenhouse gas emissions is mandatory — an individual administrative-legal act issued for an indefinite term and containing a monitoring plan. The authorization holder is obliged to conduct monitoring and to submit annually, no later than 31 March of the relevant year, a verified report; the possibility of transferring the authorization to another person, on the basis of a joint application, is also available.