On July 7, 2019, Supreme Decree No. 014-2019-EM was published in the official newspaper "El Peruano", which approves the Regulation for Environmental Protection in Electrical Activities and repeals Supreme Decree No. 029-94-EM, Regulation for Environmental Protection in Electrical Activities.
The most noteworthy provisions of the regulation are the following:
On the Person in Charge of the Internal Environmental Management
The company must have a person in charge of the Internal Environmental Management, responsible for identifying existing problems and foreseeing future ones, defining goals to improve and control the maintenance of environmental programs, and, if applicable, maintaining coordination with the Competent Authority in Matters of Environmental Auditing, which must be notified of its designation and/or modification within a period of no more than five (5) working days of the designation and/or modification.
On the Types of Environmental Studies and Complementary Environmental Management Instruments
In addition to the Environmental Management Instruments established in the Law of the National System of Evaluation of Environmental Impact, Law N° 27446, the regulation establishes the following Complementary Environmental Management Instruments:
- Total Abandonment Plan (PAT by its Spanish acronym)
- Partial Abandonment Plan (PAP by its Spanish acronym)
- Rehabilitation Plan (PR by its Spanish acronym)
- Supporting Technical Report (ITS by its Spanish acronym)
- Remediation Directed Plan (PDR by its Spanish acronym), within the framework of the regulations on the Environmental Quality Standard for Soil.
- Polychlorinated Biphenyls Environmental Management Plan (PGAPCB by its Spanish acronym)
It is also important to bear in mind that these instruments also have the quality of complementary Environmental Management Instruments, other instruments approved in accordance with the applicable environmental legislation in force at the time, among which we have:
- Environmental Compliance and Management Program (PAMA by its Spanish acronym)
- Environmental Management Plans (EMP by its Spanish acronym)
- Contaminated Sites Identification Report
- Detailed Environmental Plans (PAD by its Spanish acronym)
It is important to mention that Annex 1 determines the anticipated classification of electrical activities.
On the Terms of Reference for projects with Early Classification
In those cases in which there is an Advance Classification of investment projects with common or similar characteristics in the Electricity sub-sector, but the Common Terms of Reference of the Environmental Studies have not been approved within the framework of the Second Complementary Transitory Provision of this standard, the company must submit a request for approval of the Terms of Reference, complying with the requirements of article 15.1
It is important to consider that, by means of a Second Transitory Complementary Provision, the MINEM within a term not exceeding one hundred and twenty (120) working days, must approve the Terms of Reference of the Environmental Studies for projects with common or similar characteristics contained in Annex 1. Thus, as long as they are not approved, the Terms of Reference approved by Ministerial Resolution No. 547-2013-MEM/DM remain in effect.
On the other hand, within a term not exceeding ninety (90) working days, the MINEM must approve the Terms of Reference for Plans of Abandonment of electrical activities. Likewise, the Terms of Reference for the preparation of the Annual Environmental Report are issued within ninety (90) working days. Similarly, until such Terms of Reference are approved, Annex No. 2 of Supreme Decree No. 29-94-EM applies.
On the Total Abandonment Plan (PAT)
In this regard, the new regulation establishes the obligation to have a Performance Guarantee for the commitments contained in the Plan, which must be presented after the issuance of the Final Evaluation Report. It is important to mention that the PAT is not approved if the Company does not attach the mentioned guarantee, whose validity is until the issuance of the favourable opinion of the Competent Authority in Matter of Environmental Auditing, which verifies the fulfilment of all the environmental obligations contained in the framework.
Likewise, in case the company does not have Environmental Certification for the development of his project and requires to obtain the approval of a PAT, he may request, in a duly supported manner, the evaluation of said Plan, which will be carried out without prejudice of the supervision and inspection faculties of the Competent Authority in Matter of Environmental Auditing and the Authority of Auditing in Technical and Safety Matters.
On the Detailed Environmental Plan (PAD)
- In relation to the complementary corrective instruments, the new regulation creates the PAD, to be applied in the following cases:
- In case of electrical activities are developed without having previously obtained the approval of the corresponding complementary Environmental Study or Environmental Management Instrument.
- In the case of electrical activities not contemplated in the previous case, which have a complementary Environmental Study or Environmental Management Instrument and extensions and/or modifications have been made to the activity, without having previously carried out the corresponding modification procedure.
In the event that the holder has an Affidavit for the development of its electrical activities, within the framework of the regulations in force at the time, in lieu of having an Environmental Study.
The company who intends to take advantage of this environmental adaptation must communicate this decision to the Directorate General of Electrical Environmental Affairs -DGAAE, attaching information on the components constructed, within a period of ninety (90) working days counted from the entry into force of the Regulation. The presentation of the PAD must be made within a maximum and non-extendable term of three (3) years counted from the expiration of the term indicated above.
On the Environmental Management Plan for Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PGAPCB)
The PGAPCB is a complementary Environmental Management Instrument that contains activities aimed at environmental prevention, as well as the progressive elimination of equipment, components or infrastructures used in the development of electrical activities, that contain or are contaminated with PCBs or that have dielectric oil with PCBs (greater than or equal to 50 ppm in dielectric oils or 10 μg/100 cm2 for non-porous surfaces), identified in the inventory of their stocks and wastes.
Approval of the methodological guide for the inventory of stocks and residues for the identification of PCBs will be required for the elaboration of the PGAPCB. Subsequently, the holder must submit the PGAPCB to the Competent Environmental Authority for evaluation within a period of nine (9) months from the approval of said Guide.
On the modification of the Environmental Studies and Environmental Management Instruments Complementary to Electrical Activities
With respect to this point, article 62 of the Regulation establishes exhaustively the cases in which the holder will not need to initiate a modification procedure or an ITS procedure of the Environmental Study or the complementary Environmental Management Instrument:
On the suspension and termination of the electrical activity
The Temporary Suspension of Electrical Activities is established, in the event that the company decides to temporarily suspend its activities, in whole or in part, having to previously inform the Competent Environmental Authority and the Competent Authority in Matter of Environmental Auditing. The resumption of activities is made by informing the corresponding Competent Environmental Authority and the Competent Authority on Environmental Auditing of such fact, thirty (30) working days prior.
On other sources of electricity generation
The projects of the company that contemplate the generation of electric energy from the valorisation of solid waste generated in productive and consumption activities are under the competence of the electric sector and are subject to the provisions of the aforementioned Regulation, without prejudice to the application of the trans-sectorial provisions relating to energy valorisation issued by MINAM and others that may correspond.
On the other hand, energy recovery activities carried out as part of an investment project in a sector other than electricity are complementary to the same and must be evaluated as part of the Environmental Study of the said project before the corresponding Competent Authority, in accordance with the principle of indivisibility.
General Provisions
It is important to note that the above-mentioned Regulation lays down specific technical provisions applicable to the following activities:
- Hydroelectric Generation.
- Thermoelectric Generation.
- Wind Power Generation.
- Photovoltaic Generation.
- Geothermal Power Generation.
- Transmission and Distribution.
For more information, contact our specialists of the Environmental and Energy practice area.
%20(2).jpg?v=2)
.jpg?v=1)
Social Media cookies collect information about you sharing information from our website via social media tools, or analytics to understand your browsing between social media tools or our Social Media campaigns and our own websites. We do this to optimise the mix of channels to provide you with our content. Details concerning the tools in use are in our privacy policy.