application of the aarhus convention

Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (Aarhus Convention) has been adopted in 1998 and entered into force three years later. It envisages three elements for strengthening democratic procedures in decision-making: access to information, public participation and access to justice. At the first meeting of the Member States the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee was founded. The European Union is a party of the Convention and it has implemented the provisions in its legal order. After entering into force of the Convention, several Directives that regulate these issues in the EU have been enacted. Republic of Serbia has ratified the Convention in 2009 and it is currently in the process of its implementation by involving private subjects in decision-making on environmental issues.