1. What is an environmental permit? What are the grounds for granting environmental permits?

 Pursuant to Clause 8, Article 3 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, an environmental permit is a document issued by a competent state management agency to organizations and individuals with production, business and service activities that are allowed to discharge waste. environment, management of imported waste and scrap from abroad as production materials with requirements for environmental protection conditions according to the provisions of law.

It can be seen that an environmental license is a legal document issued by an environmental management agency that allows a business organization or project to carry out activities that affect the environment. This is a tool to manage and control production and business activities, waste treatment, resource exploitation and other activities to ensure compliance with environmental protection regulations. Environmental permits are often required before starting business operations, constructing facility expansions, or undertaking projects that have an impact on the environment. By applying for an environmental permit, units will have to comply with environmental standards and conditions prescribed by law to ensure environmental protection and public health. Environmental licenses have a term and are renewed after their validity expires depending on the provisions of law and the specific situation of environmental activities.

Clause 4, Article 42 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 stipulates that environmental permits are the basis for carrying out inspection, inspection and supervision by competent state agencies for environmental protection activities of the state. investment projects, facilities of concentrated industrial production, business and service zones and implementation of environmental protection responsibilities of grassroots investment projects.

Types of projects that must undergo environmental licensing procedures include:

• Group 1 investment projects are projects with high risk of impact on the environment
• Group 2 is a project with a risk of negative impact on the environment
• Group 3 is a project that has little risk of negative impacts on the environment, generates wastewater, dust, exhaust gases discharged into the environment that must be treated or generates hazardous waste that must be managed according to management regulations. When entering official operation, waste must have an environmental permit.
• Facilities in concentrated production, business and service zones and industrial clusters operating before the effective date of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 have environmental criteria.

Pursuant to Article 42 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, the grounds for granting environmental permits include:

- Application dossier for environmental permit

- The environmental impact assessment report has had its appraisal results approved by a competent state agency

- National environmental protection planning, provincial planning, environmental zoning, environmental carrying capacity according to decisions of competent state agencies.

 In short, environmental licensing is based on the basis of the Environmental Protection Law and related legal regulations. Compliance with the 2020 environmental protection law is the main basis for granting environmental licenses to ensure compliance with regulations on environmental protection and natural resources. In addition, regulations, decisions, decrees, circulars and regulations at environmental management agencies can provide a basis for determining the issuance of environmental permits for projects that have a great impact on the environment. environment, requiring environmental impact assessment. The assessment results will be used as a basis for granting an environmental permit. At the same time, technical standards related to environmental protection and natural resources are also the basis for granting environmental permits. The above bases will be applied depending on the type of activity, project, industry and specific conditions of each case.

2. Maximum term of environmental permit

Pursuant to Article 40 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, regulations on the duration of specific environmental permits:

• 7 years for group 1 investment projects
• 7 years for production, business, service establishments, concentrated production, business and service zones, industrial clusters operating before January 1, 2022 with environmental criteria like group 1 investment projects
• 10 years for subjects not covered by the two cases mentioned above. The duration of an environmental permit may be shorter than the prescribed form at the request of the owner of the investment project, facility, investor in construction and infrastructure business, production, business and service zone. industrial cluster.
• Accordingly, the maximum term of an environmental permit is 10 years. However, the specific term of the environmental permit can be adjusted according to the type of industry activity, specific conditions and regulations of the environmental management agency. The environmental management agency may request a re-evaluation of the environmental permit after each term to consider extending the permit or adjusting the permit content if necessary. When the term of the environmental license expires, businesses need to extend or re-issue the license according to the provisions of law to ensure compliance with environmental protection regulations.

3. Time to issue environmental permit

Pursuant to Clause 2 and Clause 3, Article 42 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 stipulates the time for granting specific environmental permits:

- For investment projects subject to environmental impact assessment, an environmental permit must be obtained before trial operation of the waste treatment facility.

- For investment projects that are not subject to environmental impact assessment, an environmental permit must be obtained before being issued a document by a competent state agency.

- In case the construction investment project is not subject to appraisal of the feasibility study report by a specialized construction agency according to the provisions of construction law, it must have an environmental permit before being approved by the agency. The state has the authority to issue construction permit adjustments

- For investment projects, facilities, production, business, and service zones in industrial clusters operating before the effective date of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 with environmental criteria under trial operation waste treatment works according to regulations, the investment project owner can choose to continue trial operation to obtain an environmental license after completing trial operation of the waste treatment works or prepare documents to be granted an environmental permit before it expires and tested.

- In case an investment project or production, business and service establishment in a concentrated production and business service zone or industrial cluster is implemented in many stages with many works or one work, the environmental permit is valid. Can be issued for each construction phase and construction item that may generate waste. The environmental permit issued later will be consistent with the content of the previously issued environmental permit that is still valid.

 In summary, the time for granting environmental permits according to the 2020 environmental protection law is:

- Environmental permits for new construction projects and expansion of new operations need to be issued before the project begins construction and expansion and operates.

- Environmental permits for projects with changes or adjustments must be issued before the project makes changes and adjustments related to the environment.

- Environmental permits for production, business and service activities must be issued before implementation activities

Specifically, the time for granting an environmental permit will be specified in the permit application process and depends on the type of project or activity required by the environmental management agency and current legal regulations. Normally, applying for an environmental permit needs to be done before starting environmental-related activities to ensure compliance with environmental protection regulations and standards.