Fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP) to the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention) and Second session of MOP to the Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTRs MOPP-2) and their Joint High-Level Segment

The fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP 5) to the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention) convened on Monday, 30 June, in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

The MOP convened in plenary throughout the day, adopting the provisional agenda (ECE/MP.PP/2014/1), addressing the status of ratification of the Convention and the amendment to the Convention. It also took up sub-items under the agenda item on substantive issues, including: access to information, including electronic information tools; public participation in decision-making; access to justice; and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The MOP also addressed sub-items under the agenda item on procedures and mechanisms facilitating the implementation of the Convention, including on: reports on the status of implementation of the Convention; compliance mechanism; and capacity-building.

The forty-fifth meeting of the Compliance Committee under the Aarhus Convention continued during the day, with delegates considering the preparation of draft findings on compliance by specific Parties.
Side events engaged participants on a variety of issues, including: transparency in European Union (EU) institutions; workshop on access to information; Aarhus Convention – a driver for democracy in international organizations; and the role of Aarhus Centres in advancing the implementation of the Aarhus Convention.