Skip to main content
European Commission logo
en
Environment

The Aarhus Convention and the EU

Find out how you can participate in EU decision-making on environmental issues under the Aarhus Convention.

Overview

The EU and its 27 Member States are all Parties to the Aarhus Convention – the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters. It is the leading international agreement on environmental democracy. The Aarhus Convention protects every person’s right to live in a healthy environment. It guarantees the public three key rights on environmental issues.

Access to information refers to the public’s right to receive environmental information held by public authorities. This includes information on

  • the state of the environment
  • policies or measures affecting the environment
  • public health and safety where these are affected by the state of the environment

Public participation refers to the public’s right to participate in environmental decision-making. Public authorities are required to allow the general public and environmental NGOs to meaningfully participate in decision-making regarding projects affecting the environment and plans and programmes relating to the environment.

Access to justice refers to the public’s right to review by a court or another independent body to ensure that public authorities respect the rights to access to information and public participation, and environmental law in general.

Objectives

The Aarhus Convention is at the heart of ensuring environmental democracy, by

  • laying down a set of basic procedural rights for the public
  • imposing obligations on public authorities to make these rights effective
  • increasing transparency
  • making governments more accountable to the people

Law

The Aarhus Convention and EU Member States

Access to information 

The Access to Environmental Information Directive (2003/4/EC) aims to ensure that environmental information is systematically made available by the authorities to the public either actively or upon request.  

For further information on the reporting and guidance documents related to this Directive, see

Public participation  

The Public Participation Directive 2003/35/EC provides for public participation with respect to formulating certain plans and programmes relating to the environment. 

Provisions for public participation in environmental decision-making are also found in a number of environmental directives, such as the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive 85/337/EEC and the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive 2001/42/EC.

Access to justice 

Both Directive 2003/4/EC on public access to environmental information and Directive 2003/35/EC on public participation include access to justice provisions.

While there is no directive specifically dedicated to access to justice in EU Member States which would apply horizontally in all sectors, the Court of Justice has developed extensive jurisprudence on the subject. In addition, there is a growing number of access to justice provisions in new and revised EU law. An example is the Seveso III Directive (2012/18/EU), which provides for access to justice in cases of acts and omissions in the context of prevention of major accidents involving dangerous substances.

More information on access to justice in EU Member States

Case law

In 2017 the Commission published a Notice (C 275/2017) on access to justice in environmental matters. It consists of a guidance document that clarifies how individuals and their associations can challenge decisions, acts and omissions by public authorities based on the Aarhus Convention, provisions of EU law, including the relevant rulings of the Court of Justice of the EU. The scope is limited to access to justice in relation to decisions, acts and omissions by public authorities of EU Member States.

Several updates have been made to this notice

  • Update 1– Judgments delivered by the EU Court of Justice since the adoption of Commission Notice
  • Update 2 covering the period between 16 April 2018 and 10 March 2019
  • Update 3 covering the period between 11 March 2019 and 31 December 2019
  • Update 4 covering the period between 28 May 2020 and 14 January 2021 

Priority areas for improving access to justice in EU Member States

A 2020 Communication on improving access to justice in environmental matters called on Member States to step up implementation and drew up four priority action areas

  • full transposition of EU secondary law on access to justice (mainly those under the Environmental Impacts Assessments, Environmental Liability and Industrial Emissions Directives)
  • calling on co-legislators to support access to justice rules to be included in sectoral EU proposals
  • removing obstacles from national law, in line with case-law of the Court of Justice of the EU
  • calling on national judges to a improve access to justice

The Commission committed to support these priorities by improving monitoring, training and taking enforcement action as Guardian of the Treaties.

Access to justice on the ground – the situation in EU Member States

In 2021, the EU published the eJustice fact sheets on access to justice in environmental matters informing the public of the applicable rules in each Member State.

The Aarhus Convention and EU Institutions

The “Aarhus Regulation” (Regulation (EC) N° 1367/2006 as amended by Regulation (EC) 2021/1767)  contributes to the implementation of the Aarhus Convention to the EU’s institutions, bodies, offices and agencies.  

Access to information

The Aarhus Regulation extended Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding public access of environmental information to all EU institutions and bodies. For more information on access to information and how to submit documents  and/or requests to the Commission, see Freedom of information. 

Public participation 

The Aarhus Regulation requires EU institutions and bodies to provide for public participation in preparing, modifying or reviewing plans and programmes relating to the environment.   

Access to justice 

Under the Aarhus Regulation, environmental NGOs and other members of the public that meet certain criteria can request an internal review  of acts adopted, or omissions, by EU institutions and bodies, where these violate EU environmental law. The basic rationale is to ensure accountability and make sure that any EU administrative decisions comply with EU environmental law. If they do not, NGOs or other members of the public can submit a request for review. In addition, if they are not satisfied with the results of the review decision, they can challenge the decision before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

2021 amendment to the Aarhus Regulation 

On 6 October 2021, the EU adopted Regulation (EU) 2021/1767 that amended Regulation 1367/2006 to allow for better public scrutiny of EU acts affecting the environment by NGOs and other members of the public. The 2021 revision significantly increased the range of decisions that may be subject to internal review under the Regulation.

More information on the 2021 amendment to the Aarhus Regulation

Prior to the revision, NGOs were only able to challenge individual decisions, for example a GMO authorisation addressed to a single company. However, general decisions applicable to all firms could not be challenged. Now, NGOs can also challenge general decisions.

In addition, decisions are opened up for review under any policy area, be it environment, transport, energy or health, such as major energy or transport infrastructure projects. Taxonomy-related delegated acts, fisheries quotas, and pesticides authorization are recent examples where NGOs took advantage of the new possibilities for review.

From 29 April 2023, individuals and other organisations, subject to certain criteria, will also be able to submit requests.

The expansion is a true game-changer: it means sweeping changes in the current system and new opportunities for NGOs and other member of the public to hold EU institutions accountable.

The amendment entered into force on 28 October 2021, with the exception of Article 1, point (3)(a), giving right to individuals and other organisation beyond environmental NGOs, which shall apply from 29 April 2023. For background and further information on the 2021 review of the Aarhus Regulation, please see  

Requests for internal review

NGOs may submit requests for internal review relating to administrative acts adopted by EU institutions and bodies that violate EU environmental law. From 29 April 2023, individuals and other organisations, subject to certain criteria, will also be able to submit requests.

The objective is to ensure accountability and make sure that any EU administrative decisions comply with EU environmental law. If they do not, NGOs or other members of the public can submit a request for review. In addition, if they are not satisfied with the results of the review decision, they can challenge the decision before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Find out more about the internal review process.

The EU’s compliance with the Aarhus Convention

The EU is committed to fully complying with the Aarhus Convention.

More information on the EU’s efforts to continuously monitor and improve compliance

Every four years, the Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention adopts a series of decisions following findings and recommendations by the Convention’s Compliance Committee. This concerns Parties who have ongoing compliance issues that have not yet been addressed to the full satisfaction of the Meeting of the Parties.  

In July 2022, the Commission submitted an action plan to the Convention’s Compliance Committee outlining existing and future steps to ensure full compliance with the Convention with respect to three outstanding compliance cases:  Industrial Emissions Directive, National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) and projects of common interest (PCI). 

A separate action plan has also been prepared for case ACCC/C/2015/128 on state aid.

On 9 September 2022, the Commission organised a virtual meeting open to all interested stakeholders (e.g. environmental NGOs, academics, law firms, public authorities) on the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee findings in case ACCC/C/2015/128 and Commission State aid decisions.

Meeting minutes are available here.

On 17 May 2023 the European Commission has adopted a Communication COM(2023)307 on the findings adopted by the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee in case ACCC/C/2015/128 as regards state aid: Analysing the implications of the findings and assessing the options available accompanied by a Commission Staff Working Document SWD(2023)307 containing a Synopsis Report of Stakeholder Consultation on the findings adopted by the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee in case ACCC/C/2015/128 as regards state aid: Analysing the implications of the findings and assessing the options available. 

The Communication aims to set out the Commission’s assessment of the implications of the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee’s findings and reports on the public consultation that the Commission organised to explore options for addressing the findings. The Communication further elaborates on the options which will inform the Commission’s approach going forward, in light of its obligations under the Aarhus Convention, taking into account the need for a fast and effective State aid control mechanism in the EU.

The EU’s implementation reports under the Aarhus Convention

The EU also collects and publishes data and reports on how well the Aarhus Convention is being implemented. The sixth Aarhus Convention Implementation report was adopted by the Commission on 2 July 2025 with the objective to describe the legislative, regulatory and other measures by which the EU implements the Aarhus Convention. The previous 5 EU Implementation reports are available online.

Aarhus Expert Group

The Commission’s expert group on Aarhus implementation discusses issues related to the Aarhus Convention. It is made up of experts from EU Member States and the Commission.

Studies and publications

Contact

For questions about EU environmental policy, please contact Europe Direct.

News

See all News on Aarhus