逻辑与进路:环评审批中如何引入基于环境公益的公众参与

Logic and approach: how to introduce public participation based on environmental public interest in EIA approval

从环评公众参与制度的发展进程来看,环评审批过程中的公众参与常常表现为环境保护行政许可听证程序,需要遵循行政法的程序性规定。根据《行政许可法》,是否具有重大利害关系的听证参与人的判断标准,以及围绕不同主体间利益冲突为中心的听证内容,使得行政许可听证过程中更易注重对私人利益纠纷的解决。事实上,环评审批部门作为公权力主体,本身具有维护环境公益的义务。而基于环境公益的公众参与的引入,能提高审批部门环境公益保护意识和能力。基于此,本文从利益角度分析,提出目前体制下的环评审批中,需要引入基于环境公益的公众参与渠道。随着多元化环境治理理论的发展,公众的主体作用愈加突出。2015年《环境保护法》对公众环境保护权利的重视,为公众保护环境公益提供了法律上的权利依据。结合2019年1月1日新实施的《环境影响评价公众参与办法》,有望在环评审批过程中真正为公众打开基于环境公益的参与入口。为了将基于环境公益的公众参与制度真正落实,除了通过法律解释寻找法律规范的相关依据之外,还需要有公众基于环境公益参与环评审批的制度安排。一方面,引入公众基于环境公益参与环评审批的路径。这种路径包括专门制定一部基于环境公益的环评审批公众参与程序的平行模式,以及在现有的以私人利益保护为主的公众参与制度中,增加公众基于环境公益参与环评审批的方式和程序性规定的融合模式。通过对二者优劣的分析与比较,认为公众基于环境公益参与环评审批的融合模式更加符合中国目前国情。另一方面,在制度上予以跟进。具体而言,在现有参与制度的基础上,从信息公开范围及内容的扩展、环评范围外公众参与主体的引入、参与方式的优化方面融入环境公益保护参与程序,并为环境公益公众参与提供行政和司法上的救济途径。

From the perspective of the development process of the public participation system of EIA,as a kind of environmental protection administrative license hearing procedure,the public participation procedure in the EIA approval process needs to follow the procedural provisions of administrative law.According to the Administrative Licensing Law,the judgment criteria of the participants in the hearing who have a significant interest,as well as the content of the hearing centered on the conflict of interest between different subjects,make the administrative license hearing process attach more importance to the settlement of private interest disputes.In fact,as the subject of public power,the EIA approval department itself has the obligation to maintain the environmental public interest.The introduction of public participation based on environmental public interest can help EIA approval departments to improve their awareness and ability to protect the environmental public interest.Based on this,from the perspective of interests,this paper analyzes and puts forward that there is lack of public participation channels based on environmental public interest under the current system.The development trend of diversified theories of environmental governance highlights the main role of the public.The new Environmental Protection Law issued in 2015 which attaches great importance to the environmental protection rights of the public provides a legal basis for the public to protect the public interest of the environment.In conjunction with the newly implemented‘the Measures for Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment’on January 1,2019,it is expected to open the entrance of public participation based on environmental public interest.In order to truly implement the public participation system based on environmental public interest,in addition to finding the relevant basis of legal norms through legal interpretation,it is also necessary to have institutional arrangement for the public.On the one hand,a path is needed for the public to participate in EIA approval based on environmental public interest,and such path includes the parallel model independent with the existing public participation system based on environmental public interest and the integration model which adds the methods and procedure based on environmental public interest to the existing system.Through the analysis and comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of the two,it is considered that the integration model based on the environmental public interest is more suitable for China.On the other hand,the system needs to be upgraded.Specifically speaking,on the basis of the existing participation system,the participation procedure of the protection of environmental public interest should be integrated,including expanding the scope and content of information disclosure,introducing the public subject of participation outside the scope of EIA,optimizing the way of participation,and providing administrative and judicial remedies for the public participation based on the environmental public interest.