Circular No. 1076/TT-MT guiding the preparation of annual environmental status reports for ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated agencies, provincial people's committees under central cities.

CIRCULAR

GUIDELINES FOR THE PREPARATION OF ANNUAL ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS REPORTS FOR MINISTRIES, GOVERNMENT-LEVEL AGENCIES, AND PROVINCE AND CITY PEOPLE'S COMMITTEES UNDER THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to Decree No. 22/CP dated May 22, 1993 of the Government on the tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment.
Pursuant to Article 8, Article 10, Article 37, and Article 38 of the Environmental Protection Law adopted by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on December 27, 1993 and effective from January 10, 1994.
Pursuant to Article 4, Article 5, and Article 6 of Decree No. 175/CP dated October 18, 1994 of the Government guiding the implementation of the Environmental Protection Law. - Based on practical experience in preparing environmental status reports over recent years, the national environmental status report has been prepared and submitted annually to the National Assembly; initial environmental status reports for sectors and localities have also been prepared but not regularly and not closely coordinated and directed nationwide.
The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment issues this Circular to guide the preparation of environmental status reports for ministries, government-level agencies, and province and city people's committees under the central government (hereinafter referred to as sectors and localities). This guidance circular aims to establish a legal basis and a consistent methodological approach for the annual preparation of environmental status reports by sectors and localities.

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The environmental status report is prepared with the aim of:

- Contributing to providing scientific foundations for environmental protection and sustainable development to serve decision-making processes at all sectors and localities.

- Contributing to enhancing public awareness and understanding about the current state of the environment, trends, causes, and consequences thereof.

- Annual environmental status reports are objective measurement tools reflecting progress towards sustainable development in sectors and levels, serving as historical records that reflect the current state of the environment and environmental management in the country.

2. Preparing environmental status reports is one of the tasks under the Environmental Protection Law, and it is also a fundamental component of state management activities concerning environmental protection.

3. State management agencies for the environment at both central and local levels, within their functions and responsibilities, are responsible for periodically preparing environmental status reports to submit to the National Assembly, the Government, local People's Council delegations, People's Councils, and local authorities. These reports should be processed appropriately to inform the public about the current state of the environment.

4. At the sectoral and local levels, environmental status reports are prepared annually to serve environmental protection and management work in sectors and localities, and to serve as a basis for compiling the national environmental status report.

II. ON CONTENT

1. Sectoral and local environmental status reports are divided into two types: Comprehensive Reports and Specialized Reports.

The Comprehensive Report is a comprehensive, integrated report on the environmental status of a locality or sector after a long-term development period, which may range from three to five years.

The Specialized Report is prepared annually with the goal of supplementing and updating information for previous reports or delving deeply into analyzing urgent issues and areas in sectors and localities. Specialized reports are also essential preparatory steps for compiling Comprehensive Reports.

2. The Comprehensive Report on the environmental status of a locality or sector includes four main contents:

a. The current state of environmental components within the jurisdiction of the locality or sector.

b. The impact of economic and social activities in the locality or the condition and technology of the sector on the environment.

c. The situation and results of state management activities for environmental protection within the responsibility of the locality or sector.

d. Recommendations for environmental protection measures by the locality or sector.

3. The environmental status report must contain concise, scientific content; its presentation format should be beautiful, clear, and easy to understand. Particular attention should be paid to presenting data in tables, comparative charts, maps, illustrative images, etc.

4. The Department of Environment, Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, is responsible for providing detailed guidance on the annual preparation of environmental status reports by localities and sectors.

III. ON METHODS FOR PREPARING THE REPORT

1. The report should be based on the collection and processing of existing information on the environmental status of the locality or sector. In cases where necessary and if funds permit, additional measurements regarding the quality of certain environmental components may be considered.

2. The preparation of the report is assigned to units with research and management functions in the field of the environment at the locality or sector level (for example, the provincial Department of Science, Technology and Environment, or the relevant department of the ministry/sector) under the direction of the Provincial People's Committee or the leadership of the relevant ministry/sector.

3. Implementation process:

The unit responsible for preparing the report needs to:

- Collect and process information through cooperation and coordination with related institutions in the locality or sector or through contracts with experts or appropriate scientific research/training/service organizations.

- Organize conferences and seminars to gather opinions and contributions from experts, specialized agencies, managers, and mass organizations.

- Review and assess the quality of data and assessments in the report; organize reviews and evaluations of each section and the entire report.

IV. ON THE IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE OF THE REPORT

1. To ensure timely provision of information for local and sectoral management objectives as well as data for compilation into the annual National Environmental Status Report, localities and sectors need to develop their own annual Environmental Status Reports according to a common schedule as follows:

* In July of the previous year:

The Environment Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology conducts research to determine the theme of the National Environmental Status Report for the following year.

* From August 1 to August 15 of the previous year:

The Environment Department announces the proposed theme of the National Environmental Status Report for the following year so that localities and sectors can coordinate to include their environmental status reporting tasks in their plans for the following year.

* From September of the previous year to April of the following year:

Localities and sectors develop their local/sectoral Environmental Status Reports and submit them to the Environment Department before April 30 for the Department to compile and supplement into the National Report.

* From September of the previous year to August of the following year:

The Environment Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology develops the National Environmental Status Report to be submitted to the National Assembly.

V. REGARDING EXPENSES

The development of local and sectoral Environmental Status Reports is a regular scientific research task. The expenses for developing these reports are allocated as a ministry, sector, or locality-level research topic in accordance with regulations on scientific research topics; the funds are drawn from the budget for scientific research activities.

VI. IMPLEMENTATION

1. Ministries, sectors under the Government, provinces, and centrally-administered cities shall plan to develop Environmental Status Reports within their jurisdiction and oversight according to the guidelines set forth in this Circular. Any difficulties or issues should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Science and Technology for resolution.

2. This Circular takes effect thirty days from the date of signature.