Financing

Annual European Commission Progress Reports, all the previous Coalition 27 shadow reports for Chapter 272, and numerous other analyses by relevant
institutions unequivocally indicate that the progress made from 2014 to 2023 was rather modest. To a certain extent, all dimensions of the approximation process can be assessed unfavorably — the expected environmental improvement, the degree of EU acquis transposition into domestic legislation3, and the capacity of domestic institutions to ensure its effective implementation in the field. In addition to the obvious lack of political will to solve accumulated environmental problems at the top of the list of national priorities, the main reason for such disappointing results is probably the fact that financial investments in environmental protection in this period, despite ambitious plans, remained at a consistently low level.

Horizontal Legislation

There were no significant legislative additions to the area of horizontal legislation in the reporting period. Two key laws that should provide the instruments necessary for good environmental management have not been adopted yet, although public discussions on the Draft Law on Environmental Impact Assessment and the Draft Law on Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment were completed in mid-January 2022.

Air Quality

The Annual Report on Air Quality in Serbia for 2022, prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency, was published in mid-October 2023, even
though the report for the previous year should be made available by February 28 of the current year, as per regulations. According to the report, in 2022, the air was excessively polluted in 8 agglomerations and 13 cities in Serbia, which are cumulatively home to over 4 million inhabitants.

Waste Management

The system for collecting data and improving its accuracy in the waste management sector was not improved in the previous period. In terms of the amounts of municipal waste, these are still mostly estimating, rather than precise data obtained by measurement. Most of the municipal waste still ends up in illegal and unsanitary landfills, but there is a noticeable increase in the amount of municipal waste disposed of in sanitary landfills.

Water Quality

There were no amendments to the Law on Water in 2023, even though their adoption has been announced multiple times over the past few years. Several
significant by-laws were adopted, which are also relevant for the EU accessionm process, i.e., for the harmonization of national legislation with the EU Water Framework Directive. After the adoption of the Water Management Program in 2022, there were no significant changes in the strategic framework for water management.

Nature Protection

Nature protection and the conservation of Serbia’s biodiversity have remained on the long wait list of the Serbian Government. While assessments and
negotiations regarding whether the Law on Nature Protection merely needs to be amended or if a new law needs to be drafted are ongoing, intersectoral cooperation on nature protection is getting weaker. Policies and regulations are discussed only while they are on the daily political agenda, and there is little time and financial resources left for the conservation of sites, habitats, and species.

Chemicals Management

The process of drafting the National Environmental Protection Strategy and an action plan (which would include the area of chemicals management) is
underway. It is coordinated by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and is expected to be adopted in 2024.

Noise

Partial progress was recorded in the field of noise protection. Although the Law on Environmental Noise Protection, which entered into force in October 2021, sets a one-year deadline for the adoption of relevant by-laws, only 4 out of a total of 7 were adopted.

Climate Change

Even though the Law on Climate Change was adopted in early 2021, it still cannot be fully implemented, because a substantial number of by-laws are
missing. An instrument for taxing the carbon imported into the EU market, the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, was first implemented in October 2023, starting with a transitional period. The Republic of Serbia has not been prepared for this instrument because the key by-laws and mechanisms are still missing.

Forestry

Over the reporting period, the strategic and legislative framework for forestry remained the same. No legislation or by-laws were adopted, with the exception
of periodic acts that are passed on an annual basis. The Forestry Development Program, Serbia’s basic strategic document for forestry, has still not been adopted, nor is there publicly available information regarding its preparation. The only change compared to previous years is the publication of data from the Second National Forest Inventory.

Industrial Pollution and Risk Management

The most important legal regulation for industrial emissions, for which harmonization with EU regulations (specifically with the Industrial Emissions Directive) has begun, is the Law on Integrated Prevention and Control of the Environment Pollution 232 with the appropriate by-laws. Over the past period, this legislative framework has not fundamentally changed, except that the deadlines for obtaining integrated permits were extended, so now the final deadline for obtaining them is December 31, 2024.