In the departments of La Paz and San Vicente procedures will be made through a local office, without having to go to the headquarters of the authority for the environment.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN):
The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) in coordination with the Association of Municipalities Los Nonualcos, has set up a one-stop shop that will streamline procedures related to the environmental assessment process.
With a new system, the authorities promise to reduce the time for granting environmental permits from 70 to 49 days for high-impact projects, and 20-16 for mild impact ones.
According to a statement issued by the Salvadoran authorities, the new System of Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA) "... will speed up and reduce waiting times for the issuance of Environmental Permits by up to 30%.
The four plants will receive solid waste from nine municipalities that produce about 8.5 tons per day.
The investment amount is $563 000 and the plant will benefit about 13,000 local inhabitants.
The ministry of environment has finished work on the first 11 composting plants. In May, the first three opened in the San Vicente and La Paz municipalities. In the coming days a further four will be opened .
This plant is the first of 42 that are planned to be constructed as part of the National Integrated Solid Waste Management Program.
The signing of an agreement between four councils in south eastern El Salvador, the Ministry for the Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) and the Social Investment Fund for Regional Development (FISDL) is the beginning of the process to allocate funds for the studies and designs necessary to develop the composting and recycling facility.
The procedures for obtaining an environmental permit now require between 6 months and 2 years; they could be shortened to 60 days.
Ismael Nolasco, from the Salvadoran Chamber of Construction (CASALCO), remarked they have held talks with the Environment Ministry and agreed on a new scheme that will come into effect this week.
He told newspaper La Prensa Gráfica that “for the time being, a special counter will be put in place for builders to present their projects. Nolasco remarked that by ‘defining clear rules’ constructors will be able to submit all the required paperwork in one shot, so they are not asked for additional requirements later”.
The first landfill from a project to build six will be constructed in the department of La Unión.
These initiatives are included in the National Program for Integral Solid Waste Management, recently unveiled by President Mauricio Funes.
Government authorities visited the department and met with local representatives at the Santa Rosa de Lima landfill, which will be used as a model for the rest of the dump.
The government is planning to spend $28.1 million to build 6 landfills and 43 recycling centers.
The program’s first phase comprises building 6 landfills in different points of the country, strategically located to help municipalities save money by having closer sites where to dump waste. In particular, the new landfills will be located in La Unión, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Ahuachapán, Chalatenango and Morazán.