Access to Information

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Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration was of great importance for the developments that led to the 1998 Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention). The Convention sets out a general right of access to "environmental information" held by public authorities for individuals and NGOs without their having to show a particular interest in the case. Environmental information is broadly defined and includes ( i ) "the state of elements of the environment" (air, water, soil, landscape, diversity etc); (ii ) " factors" (e.g. substances, energy, noise and radiation), activities, measures, environmental agreements, policies, and legislation affecting or likely to affect the elements under ( i ); and (iii) the state of human health and safety, conditions of human life and cultural sites. Such information shall be made available "as soon as possible", and no later than one month after a request unless the volume or complexity of the information requested justifies an extension of the time-frames.

Broader term(s): Access to Information, Access to Justice and Public Participation (Rio Principle 10)

		Noumea Convention The Convention for the Protection of Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region Article: Article 16 Paragraph: The results of these assessments shall be communicated to the Organisation, which shall make them available to interested Parties.
		CBD The Convention on Biological Diversity Article: Preamble Paragraph: Recognizing also the vital role that women play in the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and affirming the need for the full participation of women at all levels of policy-making and implementation for biological diversity conservation,
		Nagoya Protocol Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity Article: Article 5 - Access to Genetic Resources Paragraphs: (a) Provide for legal certainty, clarity and transparency of their domestic access and benefit-sharing legislation or regulatory requirements; (c) Provide for a clear and transparent written decision by a competent national authority, in a cost-effective manner and within a reasonable period of time;
		CMS Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals Article: Article IX - The Secretariat Paragraph: (j) to provide for the general public information concerning this Convention and its objectives; and
		Rotterdam Convention Rotterdam Convention Articles (3): ARTICLE 13 - Information to accompany exported chemicals Paragraph: 3. Without prejudice to any requirements of the importing Party, each Party may require that chemicals subject to environmental or health labelling requirements in its territory are, when exported, subject to labelling requirements that ensure adequate availability of information with regard to risks and/or hazards to human health or the environment, taking into account relevant international standards. ARTICLE 15 - Implementation of the Convention Paragraph: 2. Each Party shall ensure, to the extent practicable, that the public has appropriate access to information on chemical handling and accident management and on alternatives that are safer for human health or the environment than the chemicals listed in Annex III. ARTICLE 14 - Information exchange Paragraph: 3. The following information shall not be regarded as confidential for the purposes of this Convention:
		Stockholm Convention Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants Articles (4): Article 10 - Public information, awareness and education Paragraph: (b) Provision to the public of all available information on persistent organic pollutants, taking into account paragraph 5 of Article 9; Article 9 - Information Exchange Paragraph: 5. For the purposes of this Convention, information on health and safety of humans and the environment shall not be regarded as confidential. Parties that exchange other information pursuant to this Convention shall protect any confidential information as mutually agreed. Article 11 - Research, Development and Monitoring Paragraph: (e) Make the results of their research, development and monitoring activities referred to in this paragraph accessible to the public on a timely and regular basis; and Preamble Paragraph: Underlining the importance of manufacturers of persistent organic pollutants taking responsibility for reducing adverse effects caused by their products and for providing information to users, Governments and the public on the hazardous properties of those chemicals,
		UNCCD United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Articles (2): Article 10: - National Action Programmes Paragraph: (e) promote policies and strengthen institutional frameworks which develop cooperation and coordination, in a spirit of partnership, between the donor community, governments at all levels, local populations and community groups, and facilitate access by local populations to appropriate information and technology; Article 16: - Information Collection, Analysis and Exchange Paragraph: (e) give full weight to the collection, analysis and exchange of socio-economic data, and their integration with physical and biological data;
		UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Articles (2): Article 6 - Education, Training and Public Awareness Paragraph: (ii) public access to information on climate change and its effects; Article 12 - Communication of Information Related to Implementation Paragraph: 10. Subject to paragraph 9 above, and without prejudice to the ability of any Party to make public its communication at any time, the secretariat shall make communications by Parties under this Article publicly available at the time they are submitted to the Conference of the Parties.

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Access to Information

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