Procedure on the Assessment of the Environmental Impact of Investment Plans on Natura 2000 Sites in the Polish Legal System

Numerous legal requirements regarding the implementation of all kinds of investment projects are extremely important means to attain goals related to environmental protection. The procedures concerning the assessment of the impact exerted by investment plans on Natura 2000 sites, which are discussed in this article, belong to the crucial ones. Their existence in the Polish legal system results from the implementation of Community directives (79/409/ EEC and 92/43/EEC). Establishing this type of legal form of nature protection in a given area limits its investment use, introducing the requirement to verify the actions taken in terms of their influence on the conservation objectives of Natura 2000 areas. Confirmation of the negative environmental impact in this respect obligatorily prevents a specific investment project from being undertaken. The described legal procedure serves to implement the basic rules of environmental protection, contained not only in the Environmental Protection Law, but also in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, which include the principles of sustainable development and the individualisation of environmental costs associated with running a business.