The Water Resources (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017

Projects in another EEA State likely to have significant transboundary effects

12.—(1) Where the Department receives from another EEA State pursuant to Article 7.2 of the Directive information which the EEA State has gathered from an applicant of a proposed project in that EEA State which is likely to have significant effects on the environment in Northern Ireland, the Department must, in accordance with Article 7.4 of the Directive—

(a) enter into consultations with that EEA State regarding, inter alia, the potential transboundary effects of the proposed project on the environment in Northern Ireland and the measures envisaged to reduce or eliminate such effects and whether it wishes to participate in that EEA State’s procedure; and

(b) agree with that EEA State a reasonable timeframe, before consent for the project is granted, during which members of the public in Northern Ireland may submit to the competent authority in that EEA State representations pursuant to Article 7.3(b) of the Directive.

(2) The Department, in so far as it is concerned, must also—

(a) arrange for the information referred to in paragraph (1) to be made available, within a reasonable time, both to the consultation bodies in Northern Ireland which it considers are likely to be concerned by the project by reason of their specific environmental responsibilities, and to the public concerned in Northern Ireland;

(b) ensure that those consultation bodies and the public concerned in Northern Ireland are given an opportunity before consent for the project is granted, to forward to the competent authority in the relevant EEA State, within a reasonable time, their opinion on the information supplied; and

(c) make available to the public concerned in an appropriate manner any information received from the competent authority of the relevant EEA State in order to comply with Article 9.2 of the Directive.