1 / 24

Introducing the Environmental Law Service

Introducing the Environmental Law Service. Overview Mission Activities Partnerships Case law. Radek Motzke www. eps. cz brno @eps.cz Phone: +420 545 575 229 Fax: +420 542 213 373. Overview. Czech name : Ekologický právní servis (EPS) Founded in 1995

erik
Download Presentation

Introducing the Environmental Law Service

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Introducing the Environmental Law Service • Overview • Mission • Activities • Partnerships • Case law Radek Motzke www. eps. cz brno@eps.cz Phone: +420 545 575 229 Fax: +420 542 213 373

  2. Overview • Czech name : Ekologický právní servis (EPS) • Founded in 1995 • Working for public interest • Focus on environmental law • Offices in Prague, Brno, Tábor • 14 lawyers 5 administrative staff 10 volunteers

  3. Mission Use the law to protect people and environment Activities: • Litigation • Legislation • Capacity building • International networking

  4. Litigation I Global responsibility (GARDE) • monitoring multinational corporations • focus on environmental, labor and consumer law Strategic cases: NEMAK, TPCA, Hyundai

  5. Litigation II Environmental Justice • free legal aid • focus on air and noise pollution from traffic Strategic cases: • Ruzyne airport, R 52 highway

  6. Legislation • Cooperation with „green-thinking“ MPs and senators • Analyses for Ministry of Environment • Watching for negative law proposals Strategic projects: Highway Act Construction Act Environmental Liability Directive

  7. Capacity building • electronic weekly newsletter „Via Iuris“ www.viaiuris.pilaw.cz • every year Human Rights School for students • Conferences and seminars for law teachers and judges

  8. Networking • Zelený kruh (Green circle, CZ) www.zelenykruh.cz • PILA (Public interest lawyers association, CZ) www.pilaw.cz • Justice and Environment European network of environmental law organisations www.justiceandenvironment.org • EEB www.eeb.org • ELAW www.elaw.org

  9. Why is envi law interesting ? • Meaningful work • Strategic work • Unique knowledge of envi law • Non-legal skills on a high level (media, negotiations, teaching, project management)

  10. Case law in the Czech Republic • Prague - Ruzyne Airport • NEMAK • Hyundai

  11. Ruzyne airport • Prague wants a new runway

  12. Ruzyne airport Arguments for the new runway : • Increase of air freight traffic capacity • Economic growth for Prague Arguments against the new runway: • Increase of connecting truck traffic • Increase of noise • Expropriation of private land

  13. Ruzyne airport What happened ? • Prague amended its land use plan • Ignored protests of affected owners • EPS sued Prague • Historically first lawsuit against a land use plan • Court ruled in favour of EPS

  14. Ruzyne airport What laws have been breached ? • National law on land use plans • European Directive 2001/42/SEA • Aarhus Convention

  15. Ruzyne airport What happened next ? • Prague adopted a new land use plan • Ignored protests again • EPS is preparing a new lawsuit

  16. NEMAK Car engine factory on a green field site

  17. NEMAK Arguments for: • Fighting unemployment in a very poor region • Boosting the local economy Arguments against: • Loss of arable land • Dioxins emmissions • Damage to local food production

  18. NEMAK What happened ? • Authorities issued permits • Ignored people´s protests • Bypassed several permitting procedures • EPS sued permits on behalf of farmer Rajter • 260 legal filings • Strong media coverage

  19. NEMAK • Court ruled in favour of EPS • NEMAK threatened to leave the country • Government offered a settlement to farmer Rajter • Government bought land from Rajter for 260 Mio CZK (cca 8.6 Mio Euro)

  20. HYUNDAI Car factory on a green field site

  21. HYUNDAI Arguments for: • Fighting unemployment • Boosting the local economy Arguments against: • Loss of arable land • Increase of local traffic • Air and noise pollution

  22. HYUNDAI What happened ? • Death threats to people who did not want to sell their land • Everybody sold • Authorities issued permits • EPS sued the permits • Hyundai asked EPS to negotiate

  23. HYUNDAI • Negotiations lead to a multilateral agreement • First agreement of this type in the country • Parties are Hyundai, Czech Republic and NGOs • Agreement has a media enforcement clause

  24. HYUNDAI • EPS promises to stop litigation • Government promises to: • Provide anti-noise protection • Support brownfields instead of greenfields • Hyundai promises to : • Integrate their factory into the countryside • Reduce connecting traffic • Provide at least 20 Mio CZK (660.000 Euro) for charitable purposes

More Related