The easier public access to information on environmental protection plans and the establishment of new environmental agency being the Directorate General of Environmental Protection are among the most important solutions provided for in this Draft Act approved recently by the Cabinet.

The proposal sets forth also specific principles for and the procedures of conduct when making accessible information on the environment and its protection, environmental impact assessment, and those for the pubic participation in environmental protection. The Draft Act provides that administrative authorities are obliged to render, without unnecessary delay, environmental information, including environmental impact assessment, to anyone concerned, yet prior to approval thereof. The scope of the rights vested to non-governmental environmental organisations has been also broadened. Data on the documents which contain such information has to be put on publicly accessible lists in electronic form and published in the Public Information Bulletin.

This newly proposed Act provides also for establishment of new Governmental Authority - Director General of Environmental Protection and its regional counterparts. The major responsibility of these specialized services is to improve environmental management processes. The Regional Directors are to take over from the Voivodes their current tasks concerning environmental impact assessment, protection of Natura 2000 sites and other naturally valuable areas. They will also deal with prevention of environmental damage. The aforementioned solutions will provide for management of natural resources in a manner more harmonised which corresponds to the local circumstances and hazards. That will also provide for more effective use of the relevant Community resources.

Director General of Environmental Protection will collaborate with both the Chief Nature Conservator and the National Council for Nature Conservation, and also with the self-governmental authorities and non-governmental environmental organisations.

This new law provides that the projects which have or could have potential significant environmental impact, including the Natura 2000 sites, require environmental impact assessment procedure. Under this procedure: the environment, human health and living conditions, material property, historical monuments, accessibility of fossil mineral resources, methods to prevent and reduce negative environmental impacts form investments planned, and the scope of the project monitoring will be determined.

Pursuant to new provisions, a decision on environmental conditions will be issued prior to making any decision on the construction permit, approval of construction project, demolition of nuclear site, granting development consent, concession for prospecting and extraction of mineral deposits, regulatory waterworks and construction of flood embankments, location of highway, public road, and railway line. Such decisions will be issued by the Regional Directors General of Environmental Protection, County Heads, Regional Directors of the .State Forests. National Holding (in case when changing the use of forest land into agricultural land), Community Heads, Mayors of Cities and Presidents of Towns. Where any irregularity is fund which concerns decisions made by the aforementioned authorities, the Director General of Environmental Protection will have the power to request for invalidation thereof.

The operators who apply for granting of the investment permit will have to comply with all relevant requirements in force when making the decisions on environmental conditions and the final decisions.

This Draft Act transposes the relevant Community legislation into the Polish legal framework.

New provisions call for subordination of economic development on the Natura 2000 sites to the requirements of sustainable development. The restrictions as provided in new Draft Act on the use of the areas designated for urbanisation, including their technical, communication, tourism, and educational infrastructure, will have beneficial influence on the regional development.

The Draft Act provides also that the Director Regional of Environmental Protection is the only authority competent for recognition of an area as a nature reserve. Any planning elaborates relating to establishment, liquidation of or change in boundaries of the nature reserves will have to be agreed upon with Director Regional. New provisions set forth that the management plans established for the National Parks, landscape parks or nature reserves falling in the boundaries of a Natura 2000 site are considered those which replace any management plan approved for the area in question. It is however required that the former plans take into account all the requirements concerning the Natura 2000 sites. The local communities. participation to establishment of the plans has been also provided for in new Draft Act.

The solutions proposed in the Draft Act will bring about reduction in the operational costs of both the Natura 2000 sites and the entire nature conservation issues in Poland thanks to, amongst others, desisting of doubling the responsibilities or management plans for the same Natura 2000 sites. New solutions will also provide for possible minimum conflicting situations between various institutions responsible for the area management.

According to the provisions proposed, the plans for planting forest in the protective zone of a National Park will have to be agreed upon with Director of this Park. The plans and other planning projects concerning the Natura 2000 sites, nature reserves, and those for planting forest in the protective zone of natural reserves will have to be first approved by the respective Director Regional of Environmental Protection.