EIA – Environmental impact assessment

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of projects represents a preventive environmental protection measure based on the preparation of an environmental impact assessment study, conducting consultations with public participation, analysing alternative solutions, and determining and proposing measures aimed at preventing, reducing, or eliminating adverse impacts.

The subject of environmental impact assessment includes planned and implemented projects, changes in technology, reconstructions, capacity expansions, cessation of operations, and removal of projects that may have significant impacts on the environment. The project developer of a project for which an environmental impact assessment is mandatory, or for which the need for an environmental impact assessment has been determined, may not commence project implementation without the consent of the competent authority to the environmental impact assessment study, in accordance with the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment.

In addition, environmental impact assessment also applies to projects that have been implemented without the preparation of an environmental impact assessment study and do not have a construction or operation permit, for which an Environmental Impact Assessment Study of the Existing State is prepared.

Environmental Impact Assessment represents one of the proactive mechanisms for environmental protection and enables the identification and assessment of future project impacts on the environment, identification of potential opportunities for environmental improvement, and determination of measures required to prevent, reduce, and mitigate adverse impacts. Furthermore, together with public participation and consultation, the procedure can contribute to addressing broader environmental issues and achieving wider environmental policy objectives. Within the European Union, the environmental impact assessment procedure was initially regulated by the EIA Directive (85/337/EEC) adopted in 1985, which was subsequently amended in 1997, 2003, 2009, 2011, and 2014.

In the legal system of the Republic of Serbia, the environmental impact assessment procedure for projects is regulated by the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 94/2024), as well as by secondary legislation that further regulates specific issues within the environmental impact assessment procedure, including:

1. Regulation on the List of Projects for Which an Environmental Impact Assessment is Mandatory, the List of Projects for Which There is an Obligation to Submit a Request for Deciding on the Need for Environmental Impact Assessment, and the Criteria for Deciding on the Need for Environmental Impact Assessment (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 106/2025);
2. Rulebook on the Procedure for Public Inspection, Public Presentation and Public Debate, and Preparation of the Report on the Conducted Public Debate on the Environmental Impact Assessment Study of a Project (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 26/2026);
3. Rulebook on the Method of Operation of the Technical Commission for the Evaluation of Environmental Impact Assessment Studies of Projects (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 24/2026);
4. Rulebook on the Content of the Request for Deciding on the Need for Environmental Impact Assessment and the Content of the Request for Determining the Scope and Content of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 69/2005);
5. Rulebook on the Content, Format and Method of Maintaining the Public Register of Conducted Procedures and Adopted Decisions on Environmental Impact Assessment (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 69/2005);
6. Rulebook on the Content of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 69/2005).

One of the particularly important elements of the environmental impact assessment procedure is public participation and the establishment of a technical commission.

The subject of environmental impact assessment includes projects that are planned and implemented, changes in technology, reconstructions, capacity expansions, cessation of operations, and removal of projects that may have significant impacts on the environment.

The environmental impact assessment procedure consists of three phases (depending on the category of the project, as defined by the relevant lists, a project may undergo one, two, or all phases):

Phase I: Decision-making on the need for an environmental impact assessment of the project;

Phase II: Determination of the scope and content of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study;

Phase III: Decision-making on approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study.

The parties involved in the environmental impact assessment procedure are: the project developer, the competent authority, the entity preparing the study, interested authorities and organisations, and the interested public.

If deviations occur from the documentation on the basis of which the approved Environmental Impact Assessment Study was prepared, or if project implementation does not commence within two years from the date of receipt of the decision granting approval for the study, the project developer is obliged, before submitting a request for a construction permit based on amended documentation, to submit a Request for Updating the Existing Environmental Impact Assessment Study to the competent authority. The request for updating the existing study shall contain the information prescribed for the request for determining the scope and content of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study.