March 2015: The Negotiating Committee of the regional agreement on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean will commence its work this spring in order to negotiate a regional instrument for implementing the rights of access to environmental information, participation and justice as set out in Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration, according to a work plan agreed in March 2015.

The work plan affirms that negotiations will begin in May 2015 and conclude by 2016, as decided in the Santiago Decision of November 2014, which launched the negotiation process. The Committee is mandated to hold both in-person and virtual meetings throughout the year, with public participation in the negotiating process in accordance with the provisions and modalities established in the Santiago Decision and the Plan of Action.

The Committee will base its discussions on the Preliminary Document of the Regional Instrument. The March 2015 document proposes text for articles on, inter alia: objective; definitions; principles; scope of application; general obligations; access to environmental information; generation and dissemination of environmental information; access to justice; capacity building and cooperation; resources; implementation, monitoring and evaluation; and settlement of disputes. If necessary, ad hoc working groups may be established to support the negotiations by advancing discussions on particular issues and elaborating proposals for consideration by the Committee.

The Committee will be co-chaired by representatives from Chile and Costa Rica, while ECLAC will serve as Technical Secretariat for the Committee.

The first meeting will take place on 5-7 May 2015, in Santiago, Chile, and will be preceded by a civil society capacity-building workshop.

Other scheduled meetings include: an intersessional, virtual Committee meeting on 28 July 2015; an intersessional, virtual Committee meeting on 3 September 2015; and a second in-person Committee meeting from 27-29 October 2015, in a place to be determined. [Website for the First Meeting of the Negotiating Committee] [Draft Work Plan for the Negotiating Committee] [Preliminary Document of the Regional Instrument] [Website for the Declaration on Principle 10 in Latin America and the Caribbean]