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BIRUTĖ PRANEVIČIENĖ – VIOLETA VASILIAUSKIENĖK CYIL 7 ȍ2016Ȏ
on its possible transboundary impact; the nature of the possible decision and
indication of a reasonable time span to provide an opinion on the proposed measure.
Furthermore, if the affected Party wishes to participate in the environmental impact
assessment procedure, the Party of origin has the duty to provide all the relevant
information and enter into consultations with the affected Party. The consultations
may relate to possible alternatives to the proposed activity, possible measures to
mitigate significant adverse transboundary impact and to monitor the effects of such
measures at the expense of the Party of origin, other forms of mutual assistance in
reducing any significant adverse transboundary impact and other measures related to
the proposed activity.43
If the notification has not taken place, and the concerned state considers that
it could be affected by a significant adverse transboundary impact of the proposed
activity, and it was not notified by the state which is carrying out or planning to carry
out the activity listed in the Convention, that state may address the state carrying out
the planned activity and request information that would allow this state to evaluate
whether the project could cause a significant transboundary impact. If the states
cannot agree on the likelihood of the significant adverse transboundary impact,
their disagreement may be submitted to an inquiry commission in accordance with
the provisions of Appendix IV of the Convention to decide on the likelihood of
significant adverse transboundary impact, unless they agree on another method of
settling this question.
The Espoo Convention came into force in Belarus on 8 February 2006. Therefore
the state has willingly accepted international obligations and is therefore bound to
uphold them.
Activities that are considered as causing transboundary harm are listed in Appendix I
of the Espoo Convention, and this includes as well “Thermal power stations and
other combustion installations with a heat output of 300 megawatts or more and
nuclear power stations and other nuclear reactors (except research installations for
the production and conversion of fissionable and fertile materials, whose maximum
power does not exceed 1 kilowatt continuous thermal load).”44
As for the NPP being built in Belarus, Ostrovets, each reactor will have the
reference unit power of 1109 megawatts.45 Belarus is building two-reactor nuclear
power plants. The location, the Ostrovets site, is located approximately 25 kilometres
from the Lithuanian – Belarusian border. The site is located about 40 kilometres
from the capital of Lithuania, Vilnius, which has a population of over half a million.
Belarus informed the affected Parties about its planned activity on 15 July 2008, and
43 Ibid., Article 5.
44 Ibid., Appendix I, point 2.
45 IAEA, Power Reactor Information System ‘Republic of Belarus’ (IAEA, last update 30 May 2016)
> accessed 31 May 2016.