Sustainable development, as a type of modern approach to development, aims to equalize three dimensions: economic, social and ecological, to protect the environment. The Republic of Serbia, as a signatory to the 2030 Agenda and a candidate country for membership in the European Union, has undertaken to harmonize its legislation with the global goals of sustainable development and EU regulations in this area. The main instrument of preventive action in environmental protection, environmental impact assessment, in domestic regulations is limited by a series of irregularities and legal loopholes that prioritize economic activities to the detriment of the environment. The paper presents examples of non-compliance that show possible consequences for the realization of the right to a healthy environment guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia. Unclear definition of the obligation to attach the consent to the environmental impact assessment study along with the documentation for obtaining approval for the execution of works and the realization of projects leaves room for inadequate application of this mechanism. The environmental impact assessment is rendered meaningless by artificially dividing the project into several smaller ones, or by omitting preparatory works and activities that were previously carried out without an impact assessment, which makes it impossible to assess the environmental impact of the project as a whole, as well as to define appropriate protection measures.
Jovan Cvijetinović (Mon,) studied this question.