Decree No. 7/2017 approving the Regulation on the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment.

This Decree approves the Regulation on the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment. This Regulation, consisting of 23 articles divided into four Chapters, aims at regulating the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) procedures for projects likely to cause significant impacts on the environment and human health under the Environmental Law, approved by Law No. 1/2011 of 2 March and without prejudice to the provisions of the Law on Environmental Assessment, approved by Law No. 10/2010 of 24 September providing for the types and stages of ESIA. The implementation of the ESIA should observe, in particular the following basic principles: ESIAs should produce information of technical and scientific nature; The process of elaboration of the ESIAs should apply the best methodologies and scientific techniques that are suitable and appropriate to the treatment of the problems in question; ESIAs should contain objective information and provide results that aid in problem solving and are acceptable and usable by the developer; The process should follow the following steps: Provide sufficient and reliable information in environmental assessment and decision processes; Achieve the objectives of the environmental assessment within the limits of information, time, resources and methodologies available; Impose a minimum of financial and time costs on the workforce and the various stakeholders; Focus on the key factors and significant environmental effects that have to be considered in the decision; Adjust to the circumstances of the proposals under consideration, without compromising the integrity of the process, being interactive and incorporate the lessons learned throughout the process; Promote appropriate opportunities to inform and involve affected and affected parties, their contributions and concerns being explicitly considered, etc. Offences and penalties are appended to the text.