Luc Lavrysen

Legal constraints and opportunities for biochar: a case analysis of EU law

This article addresses biochar from a legal point of view. It analyses different policies and regulations from a European (Flemish) point of view and provides a first and general insight in what potential legal constraints the development of a biochar industry might face and what opportunities lie ahead. This is due to the fact that biochar is a recent product and a lot of scientific uncertainty still exists regarding the consequences of its application. From the analysis it appears a multitude of policies and legislative measures influence the development of the biochar industry. Hence, it is important that all these policies and legislative measures are analyzed in an appropriate manner. Moreover, considerable lobbying, negotiating and cooperation between different disciplines (legal, scientific, economical, etc.) will be required so as to develop a feasible and safe biochar framework.

Policies and Regulations in Belgium with Regard to Genetic Technology and Food Security: Country Report – Belgium

The Belgian regulations for GMOs are to a large extent dictated by the EU regulatory framework for GMOs. The implementation of the relevant European Directives concerning GMOs and the application of the related Regulations is a mixed competence between the regions and the Federal Government. The implementation of Directive 2001/18/EC on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms, is a task for the federal authorities in as far as it deals with the “placing on the market of genetically modified organisms as or in products within the Community”. The regional authorities are involved as far as it deals also with “carrying out the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms for any other purposes than placing on the market”. Regional competencies are e.g. involved in the authorisation of field experiments, because there may be risks to their environment and biodiversity. The implementation of Directive 2009/41/EC on the contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms is mainly a competence of the regions, because the laboratories in which these activities take place are seen as so-called “classified installations” that require a regional environmental permit. The decisions made by different administrative bodies are based on a common scientific evaluation system comprising the Biosafety Advisory Council (BAC) and the Biosafety and Biotechnology Unit (SBB), based on the Cooperation Agreement of 25 April 1997 between the Federal State and the Regions on the administrative and scientific coordination concerning biosafety.

The European Union Forum of Judges for the Environment

Following up the recommendations made during the UNEP Global Judges Symposium of 2002 in Johannesburg and the Ad Hoc Planning Meeting in January 2003 in Nairobi, the judges from Western Europe present at that meeting, considered to set up a regional forum of judges for the environment. The idea was discussed further in London in October 2002, during an IUCN i symposium and in Rome in May 2003 during the Symposium on Environmental Law for Judges organised with the Italian Council of the Judiciary ii by ICEF, in collaboration with UNEP and IUCN iii .