Strategic environmental assessment is a procedure for determining, describing and analyzing the consequences for the environment and public health of the implementation of state planning and development programs.
A strategic environmental assessment is carried out during the development of the corresponding state planning document before its approval.
According to the amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Strategic Environmental Assessment”, which will enter into force on May 19, 2023, failure to carry out a strategic environmental assessment and violation of the strategic environmental assessment procedure, especially in urban planning documentation, is grounds for:
annulment of decisions of state authorities and local self-government bodies on approval of state planning documents, recognition of state planning documents as invalid;
refusal to agree and approve draft state planning documents;
refusal to approve the establishment and change of the target designation of land plots, as well as the boundaries of settlements, which are carried out on the basis of or taking into account the relevant state planning documents.
Also, persons guilty of offenses in the field of strategic environmental assessment will bear disciplinary, civil and administrative liability in accordance with the law.
In view of the above, the department of ecology and natural resources of LOVA emphasizes that conducting a strategic environmental assessment procedure is mandatory for state planning documents related to agriculture, forestry, fisheries, energy, industry, transport, waste management , the use of water resources, environmental protection, telecommunications, tourism, urban planning or land management (schemes) and the implementation of which will involve the implementation of activities (or which include activities and objects) for which the legislation provides for the implementation of an environmental impact assessment procedure, or which require an assessment, taking into account the likely consequences for the territories and objects of the nature reserve fund and the ecological network.