04 subjects required to undergo strategic environmental assessment in Vietnam

According to Article 15 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 of Vietnam, there are 04 subjects that are required to undergo strategic environmental assessment:

1. National strategy for extraction and use of natural resources.

2. National comprehensive planning; national marine spatial planning; national land use planning; regional planning; provincial planning; special administrative-economic unit planning.

3. National and regional strategy for field and sector development, national sector planning and technical and specialized planning having great impacts on the environment on the list prescribed by the Government.

4. Adjustments to the national comprehensive planning; national marine spatial planning; national land use planning; regional planning; provincial planning; special administrative-economic unit planning; national and regional strategy for field and sector development, national sector planning and technical and specialized planning having great impacts on the environment.

Besides, this Law also specifies that strategic environmental assessment is carried out as follows:

- Organizations assigned to formulate the strategy and planning shall carry out strategic environmental assessment in the process of formulating such strategy and planning.

- The result of strategic environmental assessment of the national strategy for extraction and use of natural resources, national and regional strategy for field and sector development shall be incorporated in the application for approval of the strategy.

- The result of strategic environmental assessment of the national comprehensive planning; national marine spatial planning; national land use planning; regional planning; provincial planning; special administrative-economic unit planning; national and regional strategy for field and sector development, national sector planning and technical and specialized planning having great impacts on the environment shall be presented in a report enclosed with the application for approval of the planning.

- The agency presiding over appraising planning shall appraise strategic environmental assessment results during the appraisal. The agency approving the strategy shall consider the strategic environmental assessment result during the approval.

- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Vietnam shall give its written opinions on the contents of strategic environmental assessment of strategies and planning.

The strategic environmental assessment result shall serve as one of the bases for the competent authority to consider approving a strategy or planning.

View more details at the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 of Vietnam, effective from January 01, 2022.

Ty Na

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