Eleven Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) signatories of the Declaration on the Application of Principle 10, which was signed during Rio+20, have agreed on a road map for reaching a regional agreement on the application of Principle 10 on access to environmental information, participation and justice, as well of the basic elements expected for such an agreement.
7 November 2012: The 11 signatory countries to the Declaration on the Application of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development have agreed on the “Road Map for the Formulation of an Instrument on the Application of Principle 10 in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
The road map was agreed at the first meeting of focal points from signatory countries, which convened in November 2012, at UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) headquarters in Santiago, Chile.
In the new road map, the countries agree to launch a process to develop a regional instrument on rights of access to environmental information, participation and justice that, inter alia: defines the values and principles underpinning Principle 10 such as transparency, equality and inclusion; promotes the exchange and intensification of regional and international cooperation; promotes education, training, information and awareness-raising on the effective application of rights of access; and organizes and launches an inclusive process that allows all sectors involved to make a meaningful contribution.
The countries agree to consider appropriate national and regional measures to provide up-to-date information to civil society on the process of developing the instrument and conducting public consultations, and support for civil society activities in the respective countries. The standards, practices and mechanisms to be used “will be approved internationally within the framework of the United Nations and ECLAC,” the document notes.
The countries agree to adopt, during the first four months of 2013, a plan of action with the following elements: a schedule of meetings for focal points, which must meet at least once per year; consideration of proposals and recommendations submitted through national consultation processes, including those conducted by UN agencies in follow-up to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) and in preparation for the post-2015 development goals; preparation of a status report on the application of Principle 10 in signatory countries that identifies technical assistance and capacity building needs; preparation of a report on national and international access rights under Principle 10; and a consultation process coordinated by the panel that will define the nature and content of the regional instrument. The plan of action is to be drafted by a panel, with support from ECLAC as technical secretariat.
The Declaration on the Application of Principle 10 was signed at Rio+20 by the governments of Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. At the recent meeting of focal points, Brazil announced that it will also join the Declaration. [ECLAC Press Release] [Road Map for the Formulation of an Instrument on the Application of Principle 10 in Latin America and the Caribbean] [IISD RS Story on Declaration on Application of Principle 10]