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SECTION 2. SPATIAL PLANNING 2.1 . Environmental legislation and policy According to the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan accepted at the National referndum on August 30, 1995, environmental legislation – laws system, other standard acts, international and other obligations of the Republic of Kazakhstan, regulating public relations in the field of environmental protection as a basis of life and activity of the country’s population are under development in our country. The general system of legal regulation in the sphere of nature protection as a whole and the environment in particular is presented by legislative ad normative-legal documents of three levels. Laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan adopted by its legislative body (former Supreme Soviet council of the KazSSR, now the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan) and Decrees of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan that have a force of a Law are on the highest level. The order and the ways of implementation of the laws are determined by instructions – Government Decrees and Orders (former Cabinet of Ministers) of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The documents stated above are mandatory valid all over the territory of Kazakhstan for all juridical and natural persons including foreign ones. Specific norms, supplementing and detailing provisions and requirements of legislative acts and Decrees of the Government are identified by normative-methodical documents issued by branch ministries and agencies. If the sphere of activities of these documents is beyond of one of the ministries (branches), then they must be registered at the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan and after that they become obligatory for all interested persons. Besides, local administrations (akimats) and representative bodies have the right to issue their own decrees and decisions valid within subdepartmnetal territories. Legislative acts, in their turn, may be divided into 3 groups according to their relation to ecology and environmental issues. The first group includes laws of direct environmental purposes. First of all, it is the principal or basic law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Environmental Protection (July 15, 1997), entered into force instead of former valid Law on Environmental Protection of the KazSSR (August 1 1991). Preserving basic principal approaches to environmental protection, stated in the former law, it reflects new tendencies and approaches developed by international comminity. Above all, it is orientation to balanced solution of socio-economic tasks and environmental issues in order to shift the Republic of Kazakhstan to sustainable development under conditions of market relations and to satisfy the needs of the present and future generations in the healthy and favourable environment. Both objects of environmental protection: “...land, bowels, water, air, forest and other vegetation, animal world, natural ecological systems, climate and ozone layer”, and the state bodies responsible for this activity are identified in the law. Reflecting the existing framework of the state management, the law defines specifically the competence of relevant departments, entrusted the central executive body of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the field of environmental protection (the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection (MNREP) with the coordination of activities of “other executive bodies performing functions of environmental protection and environmental management ” and exercising the state control over departments. An essential innovation in law, having direct relation to the current activities, is the introduction of the articles on environmental impact assessment and ecological audit. Latest positions are stated in the former edition of the environmental law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Ecological Expertise (March 18, 1997). The basic activities of the ecological expertise in the republic were identified on the highest legal level. The law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Specially Protected Areas (July 15, 1997), defining both types of protected areas and principal approaches to thier protection, was issued together with the principal law. Except direct environmental laws, stated above, the law on Air Protection in the KazSSR (July 12, 1981) is valid for a long time in the republic. So far as this law was developed on the basis of All-Union Law and is in force long enough, it is, mostly, strenghthened by necessary normative and methodical base. The basis for the practical implementation of law needs is the development of norms of maximum allowable emissions (MAE) into the environment by every enterprise, which after the state ecological expertise and approval by the MNREP bodies, is the foundation to obtain the permission on omissions and is the base for the assignment of relevant payment to environmental funds. It is necessary to mention that the same procedure refers to norms of maximum allowable discharges (MAD) of sewage into the surface reservoirs and respecting to the distribution of industrial and consumtion wastes in the environment. In addition, the drafts of the laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Ecological Control, on Wastes, on payments for the Biological Resources Use were developed and prepared for submission. The second group of the laws, mostly, refers to the regulation of environmental management and though the tasks for nature protection are of the essential part in them, they are not determinative. They are as follows: “Water Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan” (March 31, 1993), “Forest Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan” (March 1, 1993), the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Animal World Protection, Reproduction and Use (October 21, 1993). The Decree of the president of the Republic of Kazakhstan having force of the law on Land, part IV “Land Protection. The State Control, Land Utilization, monitoring and Land Cadastre” came into force instead of former the former Land Code in December 22, 1995. The Committee on Land Resources Management of the Ministry of Agriculture (former the State Land Committee) is responsible for the stated activities. This law opened a new page in the history of land relations in Kazakhstan. The acknowledgement of private property on land, the inclusion of land sites and rights of land utilization into market turnover confirms that Kazakhstan stepped on the way of the construction of civilized state with market economy. There is a necessary legal normative basis for the realization of a new stage of land and economic reforms connected with land in the republic. Now the integral system of normative acts in the field of land relations is established in the country and it is expected not to undergo any radical changes in the near future. At the same time, the further improvement of land legislation will be directed to the development of land market, credits on mortgage of land and the right to land utilization, ensuring the state registration of land rights and bargain and sale, improvement of tax legislation in respect to land tax, the development of lease relations. One of the environmental laws connected with bowels utilization is the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, having force of the Law on Petroleum (June 28, 1995), regulating oil activities. Its part 9 “Environmental Protection, Human and Personnel Safety ” consists of 4 articles: Art. 46. Status of environmental measures. Here stated the obligation of its application. Art.47. Ecological foundation for the approval of a contract. This article makes obligatory the conducting of environmental impact assessment on Feasibility Study documents and obtain positive results of the state ecological expertise. Art.48. Monitoring. This article declares of the necessity of Nature Change Complex Information System establishment for the period of oil activities. Art.49. Offshore and Land-based, Emergency and specially Protected Natural and Cultural Sites Oil Activities. The permission for these activities is given by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the foundation of the Government submission, as well as normative documents stating provisions of the Decree. Some documents, related to offshore oil activities, include: “Safety regulations and Environmental Protection in the construction and Exploitation of Underwater pipelines and Cables connected with oil activities” (approved by the Decree of the Republic of Kazakhstan of June 13, 1996, #732). Section 10 “Pipeline and Environmental Protection”, included into “Safety regulations...”, consists of the following items: 10.1. General requirements; Besides, there is a special section – 11. Special safety and environmental protection requirements to pipelines on the transportation of hydrocarbons with a large number of sulfur hydrogen. “Regulations of the order to carry out marine researches connected with offshore and land-based activities in the Republic of Kazakhstan. ” (approved by the Enactment of the Kazakhstan Government of June 5, 1996, # 693). The order to obtain permission to carry out marine researches, the application for which should be sent 180 days before researches are stated in section 2 of this comparatively small document. “Regulations of the order to conduct offshore and land-based oil activities in the Republic of Kazakhstan ” (approved by the Enactment of the Kazakhstan Government of January 27, 1997, #105). Point 14 of the regulations states that “oil activities are conducting in the established order according to the regulations of oil and gas fields exploitation, approved by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan”. Now, according to the enactments of the Government, the Work Group, established by the former ministry of Oil & Gas Industry, is developing the following normative documents: “ Instructions on the observance of ecological safety norms in the offshore and land-based activities planning and conducting in the Republic of Kazakhstan ”; “Safety regulations in the offshore and land-based activities ”; “Technical management regulations in the process of facility construction in the offshore and land-based activities ”. “KazakhCaspianShelf” JSC is responsible for the organization of documentation development. By the initiative of “KazakhCaspianShelf” and foreign oil companies association, operating in Kazakhstan, the means for development were provided by USAID with the involvement of the consulting firm “Hugler Bai Consulting, Inc. ”. “Bowels Code” was replaced by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, by the valid Law on Bowels and Its Utilization , came into force on January 27, 1996. Article 6 of “Law...” related to “Bowels
and Environmental Protection ”, consists of 7 articles: The governmental enactments, issued to develop the Law on Bowels and Its Utilization, states the conditions on compliance with environment protection requirements. E.g. Point 11 “Regulations for the order to conduct investment programme competition to be licensed to explore and/or to extract natural resources in the Republic of Kazakhstan ” (approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of January 27, 1997, #107) states that “competitive proposal to obtain the license for exploration of mineral resources must contain... intentions of the competition participant in respect to environmental protection including competitive area recultivation and restoration". The participation of the representative of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection in the Competition Board would meet the interests of environmental bodies at this stage. The ecological expertise of the materials to be submitting for license acquisition is not conducted. After obtaining the license, its holder makes an agreement (contract) with an appropriate body (the State Investment Committee) to explore and/or extract mineral resources. The agreement, as well as the license, can be concluded both in particular and as a whole for all kinds of bowels utilization. The base for the development of the agreement is “model contract for bowels utilization ”, the form of which was approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of January 27, 1997, # 108. Contract materials, including Feasibility Study, should be submitted, without fail, to the State ecological Expertise and an appropriate body is prohibited to sign a contract without having a conclusion of the State Ecological Expertise. It is obligatory to have the section on bowels and environmental protection in the contract. The Law on Emergency Actions of Natural and Technogenic Nature of the Republic of Kazakhstan (July 3, 1996) and the Enactment of the Government on the State Emergency Prevention and Response System of the Republic of Kazakhstan of August 28, 1997, #1298, issued to improve the law, should play essential parts in the field of environmental protection. These legal acts determine the order of activities on prevention and response to any emergency action, authorities and the order of an appropriate body activities. According to the Enactment # 1298, point 2 stipulates “the State Committee on Emergency Actions of the Republic of Kazakhstan is entrusted with general guidance of the state emergency prevention and response system” – now the Committee on Emergency Actions of the Republic of Kazakhstan (CEA of the Republic of Kazakhstan). On the basis of article 11 of the Law, stated above, CEA, side by side with other authorities: - approves and coordinates norms, standards and regulations, registers emergency actions in the region...; - supervise the state expertise in the field of emergency actions and, if necessary, organizes an independent expertise with the involvement of international expert organizations; - organizes scientific study, publications, training for population and specialists in the field of emergency actions; - exercise the state control and supervise the state inspection on emergency prevention and response;” It is necessary to pay attention to the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, having force of the Law on Privatization (December 23, 1995). Two articles related to environmental issues were included into it: Article 18. Consideration of ecological requirements in the object privatization on private projects.
Article 23. Responsibility of an owner of a privatized enterprise for the damage, inflicted on the environment. 1. Responsibility for the damage, inflicted on the environment and human health as a result of economic activities, prior to privatization, rests on a former owner of the privatization object – the state. 2. Distribution or payment of damage, inflicted on the environment as well as environmental risk, laid on a new owner, is possible only with his consent. 3. Responsibility for the damage, inflicted on the environment by economic activities of a new owner, is regulated by legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan. In conclusion, it is necessary to mention the third group of laws related to the field of economic and administrative law, the scope of which is directly connected with land utilization – enterprises, farming, urban construction, bankrupt etc. Interests of environmental protection are taken into consideration in some of them e.g. in the laws on urban construction, on sanitary-epidemiological welfare of the population. In the others – on bankrupt, enterprises, farming, private enterprise these positions are practically ignored and it would cause unfavorable consequences. Environmental legislation in Kazakhstan contains about 90 laws and regulations. At the same time, there is a necessity to develop the mechanism for ecological law implementation. 2.2. Administrative competence At present the central executive body in the field of environmental protection is the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection (MNREP). Akimats and MNREP regional departments – executive bodies perform functions of environmental management on local level. Local government. Normative legal activity of local representative and executive bodies in the field of environmental protection is carried out within the established authorities. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) take active part in environmental management they are provided with a wide scope of competence. In Kazakhstan, 70 % of environmental expenses of the government sector come from local sources, but decentralization is not often supported by supplied with sufficient financial resources. It results in extra breakdown of the potential and resources, responsibility abatement. Permission distribution, monitoring and control for the observance of environmental conditions and measures on their implementation are carried out, mostly, on local level. It is necessary to expand authorities and responsibilities of local government in organizing and carrying out of environmental activities. Strengthening ties with local government are made possible via joint solution of environmental issues and assistance in the implementation of local programmes and plans. Oil companies, operating in the Kazakhstan Caspian sector, are accountable, depending on the type of their activity, to relevant departments of the governmental authorities. 2.3. Planning system on national, regional and local levels One of the high-priority tasks of the long-term Strategy “Ecology and Natural Resources - 2030 ” is the establishment of environmental protection management system. Transition to the market economy requires the reorganization of the whole state environmental framework and clear division of responsibility on all levels. The central executive body in the field of environmental protection is the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection (MNREP). There are other specially authorized bodies, being the organs of government of natural resources and supervising the state control on particular directions of environmental protection: • Committee of Forestry, Fishery and Hunting of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection; • Agency on Land Resources Management of the Republic of Kazakhstan; • Committee on Water Resources of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection; • Committee of Geology ad Bowels Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The central and other authorized bodies cooperate closely with the Committee on Atomic Energy, the Aerospace Committee and the Committee on Housing and Construction policy of the Ministry of Energy, Industry and Trade of the Republic of Kazakhstan, with the Agencies on Emergency Actions of the Republic of Kazakhstan and on Health Service, services of veterinary inspection of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, committees of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Customs Committee of the Ministry of the Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection ensures coordination of joint actions among the participants of the NEAP process. Recently, there has been achieved: • consolidation of authorities in the development of integrated environmental policy by means of the establishment of interdepartmental committees and commissions on the Government level; • development and introduction of instruments for the involvement of a wide circle of the experts and all interested parties. Work groups on problem sections and special groups on the development of priority projects were established; • information supply to the participants of the NEAP process including decision-makers and public community. Information exchange was set up, Web-server is functioning, interaction with mass-media was organized; " training of the specialists that are able to support analytical, political and consultative processes. Joint activity with ministries and departments, local government on the identification and inclusion of ecological priorities into sectoral and territorial development plans laid the foundation of interdepartmental interactions and increased the efficiency of the use of financial, organizational and intellectual resources. The coordination of the Government Programme participants activities is carried out based on the uniform programme and project monitoring. So, ministries, departments, local executive authorities, and private sector support the exchange of information by submission to MNREP data on the programmes and projects filled in special forms. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan, developing the governmental policy in the field of protection, reproduction and utilization of natural resources, coordinates the interaction among ministries, departments, local authorities, non-governmental sector on the implementation of the Programme; formulates strategic plans in the field of environmental protection and exercises control over their implementation; submits proposals to the Government on the solution of environmental issues. The Caspian Sea and Oil&Gas Pollution Problems Committee, being a coordinating body of environmental activity in the Kazakhstan Caspian region and integration of national programmes into the activity on regional level, is in the framework of MNREP. Organizational framework of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection
2.4. Special instructions for coastal areas In 1974 , the North Caspian part was declared as a reserved zone (the Enactment of the Cabinet of the KazSSR of April 30, 1974, #252), with the admission of fishery and water transport there. In connection with it, after the issues of the Enactment of the Cabinet of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Measures to promote assessment of the perspective of oil and gas fields and development of the Kazakhstan Caspian sector (June 9, 1993, #488), it was necessary to support this decision with relevant legal acts, which was done in the subsequent enactments of the Cabinet. In one of them, 23.09.93 #936, “on Geophysical Researches production”, the position that point 5 of the regulations on the reserved zone in the north part of the Caspian sector, approved by the above stated enactment #252 is supplemented with subparagraph D, stating that “the production of geophysical researches, geological survey and extraction of hydrocarbons taking into account special ecological conditions” is permitted along with other activities. The Ministry of Energy and Fuel Resources in cooperation with National Academy of the Republic of Kazakhstan ”...is to submit draft normative and legislative acts, regulating geological survey actions to be undertaken in the North Caspian sector, being a reserved zone of the Caspian Sea for consideration to the Cabinet of the Republic of Kazakhstan” in the Enactment of the Cabinet on the Establishment of International Consortium on the Assessment of Oil and Gas-bearing Potential in the Kazakhstan Caspian sector of the Republic of Kazakhstan of December 3, 1993, (point 5). In accordance with this Enactment, the scientists of National Academy of Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan developed “Special ecological conditions to carry out geophysical study in the Kazakhstan Caspian sector”, approved, on January 2, 1995, by the Ministry of Ecology and Bioresources of the Republic of Kazakhstan (according to the Decree of Deputy Vice Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan of 26.12.94, #8-4-p). In accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, having force of the Law on Petroleum (June 28, 1995?), regulating oil actions to be undertaken, normative documents ensuring its implementation, approved, as a rule, by enactments of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, prepared and came into force. They include: “General regulations of the exploration of oil and gas fields of the Republic of Kazakhstan ” (approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of June 18 1996, #745). The regulations contain comprehensive (14 pages) section #6 “Bowels and environmental protection in the exploration of oil and gas fields ” consisting of the following points: 6.1. General provisions; “Provisions of the order and conditions to issue permissions for construction and exploitation of man-made islands, dams, facilities and plants to undertake oil activities in the Republic of Kazakhstan ” (approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of June 24, 1996, #772). This document is of generalized nature but it describes in detail the contents of necessary project documentation and the order of coordination on particular sections and the whole project documentation with ministries and departments on the moment of the document’s issue. It is obligatory to use “Provisions of the order of harmful substances burial and discharge of sewage into bowels ” (approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of October 18, 1996, #1286). The order to obtain permissions on operations within the scope of enactments are clearly described there. “Provisions of the order of the state Cadastre of harmful substances and radioactive waste burial, and discharge of sewage into bowels” (approved by the Enactment of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan of October 18, 1996, #1285) issued along with this document. The following normative-methodical documents regulating economic activity in coastal zones are approved: Tentative order to issue permissions on environmental management, 1997; tentative guidance on control of air pollution sources, guiding-normative document (GND) 211.3.01.06-97; Instruction on normalization of discharges of contaminants into atmosphere. GND 211. 2.02.01-97; Instruction on normalization of discharges of contaminants into water objects of the Republic of Kazakhstan. GND 211.2.03.01-97; System of the calculation of a damage, inflicted on fishery as a result of breaking the legislation of on fish-stock protection. GND 211.3.01.08-97; System of the calculation of concentration of contaminants in the atmosphere, containing in enterprise emissions. GND 211. 2.01.01-97; System of the calculation of maximum allowable discharges (MAD) of contaminants into water objects of the Republic of Kazakhstan with sewage, 1997; Manual for customers and projector of pre-project and project documentation on the organization of study and responsiveness of public opinion in the process of environmental impact assessment of planned activity on the environment. Official edition,1997; Regulations of the organization of the state control on air protection in enterprises. GND 211. 3.01-96; Recommendations on design and contents of the project maximum allowable emissions into the atmosphere for enterprises of the Republic of Kazakhstan. GND 211. 2.02.02.97; Tentative instruction on the order of conducting ecological audit (environmental and human health impact assessment – EIA and 3) for existing (operating) enterprises in the Republic of Kazakhstan. GND 211.3.02.01-96; Methodic recommendations on identification of toxicity rate of industrial wastes and classifier of industrial wastes, 1996; Classifier of industrial toxic wastes of the Republic of Kazakhstan, 1996; Tentative system of the calculation of a damage in the process of air, land and water resources pollution by oil products, bedded waters as well as distribution of unauthorized oil storages, 1996; Recommendations on planned economic activity impact assessment on bioresources (soil, vegetation, animal world). GND 211.3.02.05-96. Special ecological conditions, along with other guiding normatively methodical materials served a basis for subsequent activity both production organizations and control bodies in the field of Caspian environmental protection. State ecological expertise and bodies of the state control of the Ministry of Ecology and Bioresources of the Republic of Kazakhstan with the involvement of a wide range scientific and ecological public organizations kept a intent eye on the activity of international consortium on the Caspian Sea, completed the seismic prospective actions in the Kazakhstan Caspian sector in 1996.. Every stage of these actions, in constructive cooperation of consortium and its Kazakhstan operator “KazakhstanCaspianShelf”, underwent thorough ecological expertise. In 1995, the basis for ecological monitoring of oil activities in the Kazakhstan Caspian sector were founded, it was done at 25 stations at the expense of international consortium on the Caspian Sea by the North Kazakhstan Center for Environmental Pollution Control (Atyrau, 1995). In 1996, supervision on these stations was repeated and besides, in the frame of the similar but advanced program, the study of background state of the North-East Caspian ecosystem (on 50 stations) including environmental impact assessment of exploration drilling was conducted, which will be the start for the next and ecologically more dangerous stage of oil activities. |
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