Under the current regime, instead of an environmental permit an environmental decision is issued — an administrative act that defines the conditions of carrying out an activity from the standpoint of environmental protection. The Environmental Assessment Code precisely regulates the application, the administrative proceeding, the deadlines, the grounds for refusal and the transfer of the decision to another person. This page explains the procedure as a practical guide for business — from preparing the application to challenging a refusal or transferring the decision.
The Application and the Attached Documents
The person carrying out the activity is obliged to submit to the Agency an application for an environmental decision, which is examined under the procedure established by the General Administrative Code; in case of inconsistency, the norms of the Environmental Assessment Code apply. The applicant has the right to request the issuance of the decision by an accelerated procedure, on the basis of payment of the accelerated service fee. The application must be accompanied by the environmental impact assessment report, the draft calculations of the permissible emission and discharge norms, a request for the classification of information where such exists, and a document confirming payment of the fee.
The amount of the environmental impact assessment fee is 500 GEL, and the paid fee is not returned where the issuance of the decision is refused. The accelerated service fee must not exceed 15,000 GEL. Within 5 days of the registration of the application, the Agency ensures its placement on the information board of the municipality and on the environmental information portal. By one application, one decision may be requested for several substantially interrelated activities — a useful tool for multi-component projects.
The Administrative Proceeding and the Deadlines
The proceeding includes an expertise, the participation of society and of administrative bodies, and, in the case of possible transboundary impact, the corresponding procedure. Within 5 days of registration, the Agency checks the formal compliance of the documentation; for the examination of the report it creates an expert commission whose members submit their conclusions within 30 days of its creation, and the commission submits the expertise conclusion within 40 days.
Society has the right to submit comments and remarks within 40 days of the placement; the public hearing of the report is held no earlier than the 25th and no later than the 30th day after placement, and information about it is published no later than 20 days before it is held. The decision is issued no earlier than the 85th and no later than the 90th day from registration; by the accelerated procedure — between the 51st and 55th day. Where a defect of the report is established, the proceeding may be suspended once — such a decision is taken no later than 50 days, and the commission receives an additional period of no more than 10 days for the refined documentation.