dr Dominik Wałkowski | In Principle

One of the most anticipated acts in the environmental arena has now been adopted: the new Water Law. This statute with 570 articles enters into force on 1 January 2018 and will fundamentally change the rules for water management in Poland.

The Polar Code entered into force at the beginning of 2017. It is a major event for companies in the maritime industry navigating in Arctic and Antarctic regions.

The amendment to environmental impact assessment regulations entering into force at the beginning of 2017 will also change regulations governing access to environmental information constituting trade secrets.

“Water is not a commercial product like any other but, rather, a heritage which must be protected, defended and treated as such,” states the Water Framework Directive. The principle of the recovery of the costs of water services is being introduced to encourage savings and optimal use of water. This will be a substantial burden for many businesses.

The circular economy is a model in which products, materials and resources are kept in circulation for as long as possible, and generation of waste is kept to a minimum. Implementation of this model would respond to the challenges of climate change and the need to support sustainable growth.

On 18 December 2015 the Dutch Court of Appeal at The Hague issued an interim judgment in a closely watched case concerning liability for environmental injury caused by an oil spill from Shell’s pipelines in Nigeria.

In August an arbitration award was issued in the case of the ship Arctic Sunrise, involving protests by ecologists on the Pechora Sea defending the Arctic environment. The ship was seized and 30 protesters were arrested by Russian authorities.

The proposed amendment to Poland’s environmental impact assessment regulations contains not just procedural changes. It also goes directly to the nature of environmental impact assessments and the contents of EIA reports.

Selection of the structure for transactions typically depends on business conditions and tax considerations, but findings made in environmental due diligence are also beginning to play a greater role.

The Sejm has passed an amendment eliminating the administrative procedure for transferring permits. When it comes into force, the acquirer of an installation will automatically assume the rights and obligations under the permits for the installation.

Before a transaction, an investor will often hire consultants to conduct environmental due diligence. The environmental impact of business operations are also an element of legal due diligence. How are these two types of due diligence interrelated?

Administrative fines and increased fees for exploitation of the environment are increasingly included in environmental regulations as sanctions.