Circular No. 55/2013/TT-BNNPTNT guiding the management of environmental protection tasks under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for managing environmental protection tasks under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

____________________________

Pursuant to Decree No. 199/2013/NĐ-CP dated November 26, 2013 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Environmental Protection Law 2005;

Pursuant to the Law on State Budget dated December 16, 2002;

Pursuant to Decree No. 60/2003/NĐ-CP dated June 6, 2003, promulgated by the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of the Law on State Budget;

Pursuant to Decree No. 81/2007/NĐ-CP dated May 23, 2007 of the Government stipulating the organization and specialized departments for environmental protection at state agencies and state-owned enterprises;

Pursuant to Circular Joint No. 45/2010/TTLT-BTC-BTNMT dated March 30, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment guiding the management of environmental public expenditure;

Pursuant to Circular Joint No. 01/2008/TTLT-BTNMT-BTC dated April 29, 2008 of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the Ministry of Finance guiding the preparation of budgets for environmental protection activities funded from environmental public expenditure;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment;

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development issues this Circular guiding the management of environmental protection tasks under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. These Guidelines shall guide the management of environmental protection tasks funded by the State budget under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (hereinafter referred to as "tasks"), including: planning; implementing plans; recognizing results and terminating contracts.

2. These Guidelines apply to organizations and individuals participating in the management and implementation of agricultural and rural development environmental protection tasks under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. The agency managing environmental protection tasks is the state administrative agency assigned by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to manage environmental tasks: the Department of Science, Technology and Environment; Forests, Fisheries, and Irrigation General Departments.

2. The main executing agency of the task: is an organization with legal personality and capacity assigned by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to implement environmental tasks.

3. Selection is the process of choosing organizations and individuals with the best capability and experience to carry out environmental protection tasks according to the orders of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development through reviewing and evaluating applications to participate in selection.

Selection is applied to environmental tasks where multiple organizations and individuals have the ability to participate in order to achieve the highest efficiency.

4. Direct assignment is the designation of organizations and individuals with sufficient capacity, conditions, and appropriate expertise to carry out environmental protection tasks according to the orders of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Direct assignment is applied to environmental tasks where only one organization or individual has the necessary expertise and equipment to perform the task.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Section 1

b) The environmental task proposal form specified in Appendix 1 issued together with this Circular.

Article 3. Determining the list of environmental tasks

1. Basis for determining environmental tasks

a) National strategies, target programs, and environmental protection plans of the State and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

b) Practical requirements for environmental protection in areas managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

c) Priority directions of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. Based on the basis for determining environmental tasks set forth in Clause 1 of Article 3, before January 30 each year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development guides organizations and individuals to propose tasks for the annual plan.

3. Proposals for environmental tasks must be submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development before March 30 each year using the Environmental Task Proposal Form (Form 1.PDX-NVMT) issued together with these Guidelines.

4. Based on the task proposal forms, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment:

a) Compiles the list of proposed tasks from organizations and individuals;

b) Presents to the Ministry for the establishment of an advisory council or invites independent experts to evaluate and select proposals;

c) Based on the advisory results and the requirements of state management of environmental protection, submits to the leadership of the Ministry for consideration and approval of the list of environmental tasks for the annual plan (before May 31 each year).

5. Announcing the list of tasks

The Department of Science, Technology and Environment announces the list of environmental tasks after approval on the Ministry's electronic information page.

Article 4. Conditions for participation in selection and direct assignment

1. Organizations participating in registration for selection or being considered for direct assignment to implement environmental tasks must meet the following conditions:

a) Having legal personality;

b) Having registered scientific and technological activities;

c) Possessing functions suitable to the specialized field of environmental tasks.

2. The person in charge of the task must satisfy the following requirements:

a) Holding a bachelor's degree or higher, having relevant expertise, and currently working in the same field of science as the environmental task for at least five years prior to the submission of the application;

b) Being the proposer of the plan and the head of drafting the detailed description of the environmental task;

c) Having sufficient capacity to directly implement or organize implementation and ensuring adequate time to lead the execution of the environmental task.

Article 5. Documents for Participation in Selection and Direct Assignment

The documents for participation in selection and direct assignment include the following:

a) Application form for leading the execution of the environmental task (Form 2.ĐĐK-NVMT);

b) Comprehensive description of the environmental task (Form 3.TMTT-NVMT);

The documents must be submitted directly or via postal service to the Department of Science, Technology and Environment, including one (01) original set and nine (09) copies. The documents must bear the seal of the organization and the signature of the individual applying to lead the task, be packaged, and sealed.

Article 6. Selection of Organizations and Individuals Leading the Execution of Environmental Tasks, Review and Approval of Comprehensive Descriptions

1. For tasks conducted through selection procedures

The Selection Council for organizations and individuals leading the execution of environmental tasks shall be established by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Council shall consist of seven to nine members, including the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, two members as opposing experts, and other members. Members shall include representatives from related state management agencies (not exceeding one-third of the total number of members) and experts with relevant expertise. Individuals and organizations participating in the selection process may not be members of the Council.

Materials for the Selection Council meeting include: Registration Form for Selection of Environmental Task Applications (Form 4.PNX-NVMT), Evaluation Form for Selection of Environmental Task Applications (Form 5.PĐG-NVMT), Minutes of the Selection Council Meeting on Environmental Tasks (Form 6.BBTC-NVMT), and Ballot Counting Minutes (Form 6a.BBKP-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

The Selection Council evaluates the comprehensive descriptions according to a 100-point scale.

An organization will be selected to lead the execution of the environmental task when its application achieves the highest score and receives a Council evaluation score above 70 points.

Within fifteen working days from the date of the selection results, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment will notify the selected organizations and individuals to refine their comprehensive descriptions.

Within fifteen working days from the date of notification of the selection results, the organizations and individuals leading the environmental task will refine their comprehensive descriptions based on the Council's feedback and submit them to the Department of Science, Technology and Environment for content and budget review.

Within fifteen working days from receiving the refined documents, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment will coordinate with the Department of Finance to review the comprehensive descriptions and overall budget estimates. Annual content and budget reviews are approved by the organization leading the execution of the environmental task.

2. For tasks assigned directly

Based on the documents and conditions of the participating organization for direct assignment, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment will submit to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for approval of the organization and individual assigned to lead the execution of the environmental task.

The Review Council for Comprehensive Descriptions and Overall Budget Estimates shall be established by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Council evaluates according to a 100-point scale, and the documents meet requirements if they receive a Council evaluation score above 70 points.

Article 7. Compilation of Environmental Protection Plan

The Department of Science, Technology and Environment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Finance to compile the list and budget estimates of environmental tasks that have been reviewed, and submit them to the leadership of the Ministry for comments from relevant Ministries before July 25 each year.

Section 2

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PLAN

Article 8. Approval of the Plan and Organization of Implementation of Environmental Tasks

1. Based on the annual state budget plan for environmental protection assigned to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Finance to submit the plan for approval by the Ministry and allocation of funds for implementation of environmental tasks.

2. Based on the plan and allocated funds, the approval of the detailed description and overall budget estimate shall be carried out as follows:

a) For environmental tasks managed by General Departments under the Ministry, the General Departments shall take the lead in approving the detailed description and overall budget estimate.

b) For the remaining environmental tasks, the Department of Science, Technology and Environment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Finance to approve the detailed description and overall budget estimate.

3. The agency managing the environmental task shall take the lead in coordinating with related units to sign a contract with the organization responsible for implementing the environmental task according to the model contract for environmental tasks (Table 7.HĐ-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

Article 9. Inspection and Evaluation of the Implementation of Environmental Tasks

1. The agency managing environmental tasks shall take the lead and coordinate with related units and consulting experts (if necessary) to organize regular inspections of the implementation of environmental tasks at least once a year, excluding unscheduled inspections. The inspection record form for environmental tasks is provided in Table 8.BBKT-NVMT issued together with this Circular.

2. Every six months or at any time, the organization responsible for the environmental task must report in writing on the progress of the task to the agency managing the environmental task. The periodic report form for environmental tasks is provided in Table 9.BCĐK-NVMT issued together with this Circular.

3. When there are changes or additions to the content of the implementation of the environmental task, the organization responsible for the task must submit a written report to the agency managing the environmental task for review and submission to the Ministry for approval of the adjusted content. The organization responsible for the task may only implement the contents that have been approved in writing by the Ministry.

Section 3

ACCEPTANCE AND SUBMISSION OF RESULTS

Article 10. Evaluation of Task Results

1. Annual Result Evaluation

Annual result evaluation shall be conducted once a year. The organization responsible for the environmental task shall evaluate the annual results and report the results to the agency managing the task. The annual report shall be prepared using the model for periodic reports on environmental tasks (Table 9.BCĐK-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

2. Evaluation and Acceptance

a) After completion, environmental tasks shall be evaluated for acceptance in two stages: the acceptance committee at the base level and the Ministry level.

b) For environmental tasks where the product is reports serving the drafting of legal regulations, technical standards, and standards, activities supporting the Ministry's environmental management (inspections, audits, conferences, seminars, training, workshops, public awareness campaigns), no acceptance committee will be organized, but the responsible organization must submit a report on the results along with the product for the managing agency to confirm completion. The form for confirming completion of environmental tasks is specified in Table 10.XNCV-NVMT issued together with this Circular.

Article 11. Organizational Acceptance at the Basic Level

The acceptance evaluation at the basic level council must be completed within twenty-five working days from the end of the environmental task implementation period.

1. The basic-level acceptance dossier includes:

a) Report on the results of task implementation (Form 11.BCKQ-NVMT);

b) Contract;

c) Comprehensive explanation;

d) Intermediate products, specialized reports (if any);

đ) Annual assessment report (if any);

e) Inspection minutes (if any).

The dossier consists of one (01) original set and nine (09) copies. The dossier must bear the signature of the individual primarily responsible for implementing the environmental task.

2. The basic-level acceptance evaluation council shall be established by the head of the organization primarily responsible for implementing the environmental task upon receiving the acceptance proposal from the task leader. The council comprises seven to nine members, including the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, two members as reviewers, and other members. Members include representatives of relevant state management agencies (not exceeding one-third of the total number of members) and experts with appropriate professional qualifications. Individuals involved in task implementation may not be members of the council.

The basic-level acceptance evaluation council is responsible for reviewing and evaluating the content and products; the methods of implementation, the degree of completion of the report materials and products compared to the approved comprehensive explanation, and concluding specifically about remaining issues and necessary revisions and supplements. The basic-level acceptance council evaluates the results of the environmental task implementation at one of two levels: "Pass" or "Fail". The "Pass" level includes grades: "Excellent", "Good", "Average".

Materials for basic-level acceptance evaluation include: Environmental Task Acceptance Observation Form (Form 12.PNXNT-NVMT), Environmental Task Acceptance Evaluation Form (Form 13.PDGNT-NVMT), Environmental Task Acceptance Minutes (Form 14.BBNT-NVMT), and Ballot Counting Minutes (Form 14a.BBKP-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

Article 12.  Organizational Acceptance at the Ministry Level

Within twenty working days from the basic-level acceptance evaluation, the organization or individual primarily responsible for the environmental task must complete and submit the dossier to the management agency for acceptance evaluation at the ministry level.

1. The ministry-level acceptance evaluation dossier includes:

a) Report on the results of task implementation (Form 11.BCKQ-NVMT);

b) Contract (for tasks implemented under contract);

c) Comprehensive explanation;

d) Intermediate products, specialized reports (if any);

đ) Annual assessment report (if any);

e) Inspection minutes (if any);

g) Official letter requesting ministry-level acceptance (Form 15.CVNT-NVMT) accompanied by a statement explaining the adoption and revision according to the comments of the basic-level acceptance evaluation council.

h) Basic-level acceptance minutes.

The dossier consists of one (01) original set and nine (09) copies. The dossier must bear the seal of the organization and the signature of the individual primarily responsible for implementing the environmental task.

2. The ministry-level acceptance evaluation council shall be established by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. The council comprises seven to nine members, including the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, two members as reviewers, and other members. Members include representatives of relevant state management agencies (not exceeding one-third of the total number of members) and experts with appropriate professional qualifications. Individuals involved in task implementation may not be members of the council. The organization primarily responsible for the task may have no more than one person participating in the council and may not serve as Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, reviewer, or secretary of the council.

The ministry-level acceptance evaluation council convenes officially when at least two-thirds of the members attend, including the Chairperson or the Vice-Chairperson authorized by the Chairperson. The ministry-level acceptance evaluation council evaluates the results of the environmental task implementation at one of two levels: "Pass" or "Fail". The "Pass" level includes grades: "Excellent", "Good", "Average".

Materials for ministry-level acceptance evaluation include: Environmental Task Acceptance Observation Form (Form 12.PNXNT-NVMT), Environmental Task Acceptance Evaluation Form (Form 13.PDGNT-NVMT), Environmental Task Acceptance Minutes (Form 14.BBNT-NVMT), and Ballot Counting Minutes (Form 14a.BBKP-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

Article 13. Recognition of Results and Termination of Contracts

1. For tasks evaluated by the Ministry-level Evaluation and Acceptance Council at the "Achieved" level, within thirty working days, the task leader must complete the task dossier according to the Council's comments and submit it to the managing agency. The dossier includes:

a) One complete report (printed copy);

b) One soft copy on a CD (the complete report and products of the task).

2. Within fifteen working days from receiving a valid dossier, the main managing agency, in coordination with related units, shall confirm the completion of the task and terminate the environmental task contract in accordance with current regulations (Form 16.TLHĐ-NVMT) issued together with this Circular.

3. The task dossier shall be stored at the Department of Science, Technology and Environment, the managing agency for environmental tasks, and archived as prescribed, while a summary of the results shall be published on the Ministry’s science and technology website.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 14. Responsibilities of Units under the Ministry

1. The Department of Science, Technology and Environment shall take the lead in guiding and inspecting the implementation of this Circular.

2. Departments, Bureaus, Departments, the Ministry Office, and related units shall cooperate with the Department of Science, Technology and Environment to implement this Circular in accordance with their functions and responsibilities.

Article 15. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from February 9, 2014.

This Circular replaces Circular No. 76/2009/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 4, 2009 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development guiding the management of environmental protection tasks under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. For environmental tasks using other sources of funding without guidance, appropriate contents in this Circular shall be applied.

3. In case of difficulties during implementation, agencies and units shall promptly reflect them in writing to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (through the Department of Science, Technology and Environment) for consideration and resolution./.