Quercus expresses great concern regarding the restructuring of the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) and the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF), which according to the Minister of Environment and Energy is "practically ready" to move forward. The environmental organization sent an urgent meeting request to the Ministry of Environment in May regarding this matter, but after four months has received no response.
The Minister announced that one of the objectives of the restructuring is to reduce the "burden of prior procedures" and give "more emphasis to post-authorization enforcement". Quercus questions what this "deep simplification of licensing processes" means, considering it concerning that the two agencies may adopt more lenient procedures at a time when the territory and natural resources face constant threats from megaprojects.
The organization warns that the focus on "post-authorization enforcement" after project approval is based on a remediation logic, when frequently offenders escape without consequences due to the lack of technical and human resources for on-the-ground enforcement.
The Minister also stated that the "great dispersion of responsibilities" between central and regional structures of APA and ICNF will lead to a redistribution of competencies, which Quercus interprets as a centralization of decision-making power in national structures and a substitution of regional technical decisions with political decisions. Quercus reiterates the request for the Minister to meet with environmental non-governmental organizations and share the restructuring plan in detail.
