Hazardous installations outside the EU: the Espoo Convention’s Implementation Committee’s proceedings concerning Lithuania and Belarus

ENIt is incontrovertible that energy production and consumption cause significant transboundary harm and are a major contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The “energy as environmental threat” narrative is associated with concerns where large ultrahazardous energy activities are executed. Concerns about the effects of such activities were heightened by the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear incidents. The storage of spent nuclear power fuel is environmentally problematic, and in the event of a malfunction, nuclear power plants (NPPs) can create an environmental catastrophe that can change the ecosystem for a prolonged period of time. Protection of the environment was not a major concern for the original drafters of the international nuclear law conventions, but this has changed over time. Environmental sustainability as a purpose came along the way, starting in the 1970s, and its regulation is less close to the core of the transaction than security and safety considerations. As the nature of nuclear energy-related activities involves a potentially wide scope of severe impacts, a great deal of public concern has been raised by this issue, not to mention the potential impact on national interest, in view of which the sound and transparent transboundary environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure is of great importance. EIAs have emerged as an essential element of a preventive approach to environmental protection and sustainable development. EIA is a component of a planning process through which environmental considerations are integrated into governmental decision-making. The Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (otherwise referred to as the Espoo Convention) is a key instrument in terms of establishing rules for domestic action and international cooperation in preventing, reducing, and controlling significant adverse transboundary environmental impacts.The construction of Belarus’s first NPP is taking place in Ostrovets, near the border with Lithuania. In line with the Espoo Convention, a transboundary EIA for the construction of this NPP was initiated to assess this project’s potential environmental impact. The implementation of the transboundary EIA has led to a degree of misunderstanding and disagreement between these neighbouring countries, with the issue being escalated to the Espoo Convention’s Implementation Committee. An analysis of the proceedings between Lithuania and Belarus has revealed the peculiarities and limitations of the practical implementation of an EIA. In addition to the Lithuanian and Belarusian proceedings, the Implementation Committee has opened more non-compliance proceedings concerning EIAs for NPP projects. These proceedings concern the planned construction of the Hinkley Point C NPP in England and the construction of a nuclear power station in Metsamor, Armenia. The activation of transboundary EIAs in connection with nuclear-related activities has gained attention in terms of scientific examination. While the challenges of cross-border negotiations regarding the Ostrovets NPP have been examined, this article focuses more on a detailed analysis of the Implementation Committee’s compliance review procedures. This chapter aims to examine and analyse the proceedings between Lithuania and Belarus, No. EIA/IC/S/4 under the Espoo Convention, regarding the construction of an NPP in Ostrovets. Furthermore, the chapter aims to analyse the legal framework behind the transboundary EIA under the Espoo Convention, analyse the main aspects of the EIA procedure and the proceedings between Lithuania and Belarus (No. EIA/IC/S/4) under the Espoo Convention, and evaluate the proceedings between Lithuania and Belarus (No. EIA/IC/S/4) under the Espoo Convention. [p. 108-110].