Some considerations about the early termination of the environmental assessment procedure

Abstract

Law Nº 19,300 establishes the early termination of the environmental procedure based on the lack of "relevant and essential information" of the respective Environmental Impact Study or Statement. This Article critically examines several organic and procedural aspects related to this mechanism: causes for early termination, the proper authority, the procedure and the applicable recursive system. This Article ends by demonstrating that "relevant and essential information" is the minimum standard for the Environmental Assessment Instruments' content. Therefore, early termination should only be used by authorities as a last resort in the environmental procedure.