Abstract

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) continue to take centre-stage in law and in media, in Guyana. More so, in light of the burgeoning petroleum industry. In Guyana, by declaration of the Constitution, the goal with respect to natural resource development is the "sustainable development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social development". In this regard, the EIA plays a critical role in enabling decision-makers to strike a balance between environmental sustainability and economic and social development. Still, despite the importance of this process, stakeholders have been recorded as saying that it is so complex and ambiguous that while "well known by the staff of the EPA...the general public may not fully appreciate the role of the process...". Others hold "the belief that despite the benefits of participation, the EIA process in Guyana has often not adequately engaged citizens". In answer to these convictions, this paper clarifies Guyana's EIA process for petroleum development projects, the importance of public participation in it, challenges often faced by participants, and the extent to which Guyana's domestic environmental regulatory framework mirrors the objectives of the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean, to which Guyana subscribed in 2019.