THE VEIL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SECRECY CHALLENGED A new Convention at the UN/ECE

"Lack of access to information is one of the fundamental obstacles to solving Europe's many environmental problems, says Jeremy Wates of the European Environmental Bureau, a coalition of environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs). In some cases human lives have been put at risk due to the failure of public authorities to inform the public about environmental risks. In such cases, it is vital that all information should be provided immediately so that precautions can be taken."

This spring, Northern Europe experienced the severest incident of stratospheric ozone depletion ever recorded. As a hole developed in the ozone layer, damaging ultraviolet radiation peaked. Yet it took almost two weeks before the public was informed. By then the episode had passed. Meanwhile, children were playing in the harmful spring sunshine. Ten years ago, when a radioactive cloud from the Chernobyl power station spread over several countries in Europe, the public had to wait days, or even weeks, before they were given access to information about the effects of the disaster. As a result, people across Europe faced needless exposure to high levels of radiation.

"Polluters like to operate under a veil of secrecy. Once the veil is lifted, they are forced to clean up their act, explains Mr Wates. This is why the Convention on public participation, which is being negotiated at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), is so important."

These negotiations started on Monday, 17 June 1996, in Geneva. A large number of NGOs are taking part alongside governmental representatives. The NGO representatives, brought together in a coalition of national, European and international environmental NGOs, have decided to launch a two-year campaign to promote their ideas at the negotiations of this new Convention. The NGO delegation includes representatives of Friends of the Earth (FOE), the European Environmental Bureau, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) International, Ecojuris (Russian Federation) and others.

The Convention should enable the public not only to have access to information on the environment, but above all to participate actively in environmental decision-making. This Convention, the fifth on the environment negotiated under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, could apply to the Commission's 55 member States. The ECE region covers the whole of Europe, the Central Asian republics of the former Soviet Union, the United States of America, Canada and Israel, in other words more than a billion people who are the victims of three quarters of the world's pollution.

The novelty of these current negotiations is that NGOs will fully participate in the drafting process. They are hopeful that the Convention will not only consolidate the newfound transparency in central and eastern Europe, but also improve public information in western Europe. They are convinced that public participation in environmental decision-making will improve the quality of decisions taken, and increase the level of support for those decisions.

The NGOs do not underestimate the difficulties ahead. "Many public officials regard public participation as an impediment to the smooth functioning of government, a nuisance which must increasingly be tolerated but certainly not welcomed. It will take quite a cultural shift in some countries to accept really meaningful levels of public participation. If the Governments show sufficient political will, this Convention could prove to be an important step along that road."