Report on the Strategic Impact Assessment of the National Adaptation Plan (NAP)
On the day of 20.09. in the premises of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, a public hearing was held on the National Adaptation Plan, as well as the Report on the Strategic Impact Assessment (SEA) of the National Adaptation Plan.
The representatives of the expert team of the consortium, which consists of Aurora green ltd. and Expert inženjering ltd. were also present at this meeting as producers of the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Report.
The public hearing was attended, in addition to the expert team of the Plan’s editors – the international company PwC PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS ltd. Serbia, by representatives of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Secretariat for Environmental Protection of the City of Belgrade, the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia, the UNDP – United Nations Development Plan, NGOs, as well as other interested organizations and the public. For the purposes of this public discussion, the participation of interested parties was also made possible through the Internet connection.
The presentation of the National Adaptation Plan with the Action Plan was held by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Environmental Protection – Sandra Dokić. The overall goal of the National Adaptation Plan is to increase resilience to climate change in order to maintain and potentially improve the well-being of people, the economy and the environment in the Republic of Serbia.
The Plan ensures the implementation of adaptation measures to changed climate conditions in a “smart” and “systematic” way, that is, it uses existing knowledge and ensures future implementation of science-based solutions, as well as adaptation of policies and methodologies for sustainable future planning in conditions of climate change. The Plan was created in accordance with the principles of the European Union Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, which mandates the need to implement adaptation as “smart”, “systematic” and “fast”, with an emphasis on the importance of preserving water resources, which are considered particularly vulnerable to climate change.
After the presentation of the discussed areas, the most important details, goals and conclusions of the Plan, the presentation of the Report on the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment of the Plan followed. The presentation was held by the Report processors, representatives of “Aurora Green” and “Expert Inženjering.”
The SEA is done with the aim of ensuring environmental protection and promoting sustainable development, by integrating the basic principles of environmental protection into the process of preparation, development and adoption of the Plan in question. This document is an instrument that describes, evaluates and assesses possible significant impacts of Plan solutions on the environment that may occur through the implementation of the subject Plan, as well as proposing measures to reduce negative impacts on the environment.
The conclusion of the Report on the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment of the NAP is that the Plan in question is acceptable in every respect and will have only positive impacts on the environment.
At the very end of the public hearing, a public discussion was held and a panel was opened for questions and comments from the public present, both live in the hall and via video link.
