The Access Initiative

Ireland

Region

Europe

1.93

Environmental Democracy Index Score

Ireland is a party to the legally binding Aarhus Convention on environmental democracy. It scored well overall on EDI due mostly to its very good score on the Transparency pillar. Of the three pillars, Ireland scored highest on transparency, because of a clearly defined right to access environmental information by request, as well as an obligation for government authorities to proactively make environmental information available to the public. However, it received a fair score on the Participation pillar. While the public can participate in a variety of decisions affecting the environment, the government is not obliged to ensure the public is made aware of these opportunities. The public also does not enjoy the right to give input into the preparation of legally binding rules for the environment. As for the Justice pillar, Ireland scored well, with some room for improvement. The public has the right to challenge government and private actors in environmental matters. Expanding mechanisms that ensure affordability when using the justice system would improve IrelandÂ’s score. Overall, Ireland scored well and could continue to expand environmental democracy by addressing these issues and others identified through the EDI indicators.

Visit the Environmental Democracy Index to explore the EDI score.

TAI Ireland is currently leading the development of an Aarhus Convention Index with the TAI Secretariat and has worked significantly to promote the implementation of the Aarhus Convention. Additionally, TAI Ireland partners have engaged with the Aarhus Convention Secretariat to advocate for a more robust United Nations Environment Programme access to information policy.

 

The TAI Ireland recently carried out an in-depth assessment of Principle 10 implementation in Ireland and have helped expand the impact and presence of the Aarhus Convention in Europe.