The Guatemalan Ministry of Energy and Mines decided to revoke the license it had granted in early 2020 to the Rocja Pontilá hydroelectric project, in Coban, Alta Verapaz.
Arguing that the requirements established by law to issue a license were not met, the authorities in Guatemala decided to suspend the environmental permit for the Rocja Pontila Central hydroelectric project.
In Guatemala, a group of deputies filed an unconstitutionality action against the ministerial agreement approving the Rocja Pontila hydroelectric project.
The authorization for the hydroelectric plant, owned by the Pontila Integrated Development Project and planned to be built on the Icbolay River in Alta Verapaz, was issued on January 13, 2020.
The legal appeal that the congressmen who make up the National Unity of Hope (Une) party presented to the Constitutional Court (CC), argues that Ministerial Agreement 019-2020 of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) violates seven articles of the Constitution, including 1, 3, 12, 44, 66, 97 and 154.
Until December 16, 2022, businesses in Guatemala will have to comply with the rules contained in the Regulations for Environmental Evaluation, Control and Monitoring.
The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) reported that after the publication of Government Agreement 317-2019 on December 24, 2019 in the Central American Journal, which reforms Government Agreement 137-2016, the period was extended by three years so that all projects, works, industries or productive activities present their respective environmental instruments in order to function.
In Guatemala, the government has extended until January 3, 2020, the timeframe for regularizing projects, works, industries or activities that do not have an environmental impact study.
Through agreement 137-2016, the government gave a period of two years for the environmental regularization of the different industries to take place, this period expired on July 11 of this year.
Companies have time up until July 2018 to make the necessary modifications to comply with the new environmental rules to avoid fines or even closure of their business.
With a loan from CABEI, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources plans to build a treatment plant in Chinautla, in the department of Guatemala.
The goal of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) is to build a megaplant where waste from La Arenera and the city can be treated in Chinautla, according to Minister Samuels.
The government of Guatemala has announced the creation of a one-stop shop to manage environmental permits for social housing construction projects.
Through an agreement between the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) and the Central American Association for Housing, the single window will be implemented to make the process more expeditious.
The government has announced that financing of up to $68 million is available for municipalities to renovate treatment plants in different areas of the country.
The head of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources explained that the resources will be granted in loans to the municipalities, which will have to present studies that determine the type of investment to be made and the amount required."...It may be for a period longer than its management whenever it can be justified how that cost is going to be replaced."
On August 24th and 25th companies and public institutions will meet to discuss issues such as standards and quality management, as well as taking part in a business roundtables for the industrial sector.
From a statement issued by Agexport:
Guatemala April 20, 2016. -AGEXPORT-, Ministry of Economy, The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ministry of Finance, and Universidad del Valle, are some of the 18 public, private and academic institutions of the Organizing Committee of the XI Congress on Quality, which seeks to strengthen the culture of quality in Guatemala on issues of quality management, enabling agency and multi-sectoral work to productively contribute to growth and development.
The new head of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources believes it is illogical to reduce the cost of an environmental permit from $3,000 to $6 per, which would be applied with the entry into force of a new regulation in May.
Government Agreement 20-2016 published on January 12 in the official newspaper, La Gaceta, makes official the new rules for granting environmental licenses that will apply from May.
Employers are demanding a one-stop shop service for issuing building permits, in order to avoid the ordeal of visiting 18 state institutions, and also the streamlining of tax collection.
Guatemala ranks 106 in the world in terms of ease of obtaining building permits, according to the World Bank. Data from the Guatemalan Chamber of Construction (CGC) reveals that the current backlog of projects awaiting approval amounts to about 2.6 million square meters of construction work, processes which represents for the State lost revenue of up to Q2.145.000 ($277 million) through IVA , ISR, USI, payments to municipalities and for licenses.
One million square meters are awaiting construction permits in a country where 13 institutions have to be visited in order to collect a license.
For the Municipality of Guatemala to give out a building permit, the applicant must obtain approval from the Ministries of Environment, Culture and Sports, the General Property Registry, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the National Forestry Institute, the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction, the Office for Territorial Control and the district capital departments of Works, Historic Center, Environment and Land and from the Empagua.
A proposal has been made to amend the regulations for environmental control so the SMEs can submit affidavits instead of environmental impact studies when applying for environmental permits.
The proposal by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources aims to simplify the processes to be followed when requesting authorization of environmental permits for the development of construction projects.
The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has announced that it is working on a number of changes to the regulations on Evaluation, Monitoring and Environmental Controls in order to adapt them to the current regulations.
The Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Andreas Lehnoff said that they are working on the modifications and expect them to be completed before the end of the transitional government led by Alejandro Maldonado.