PANAMA Law and Practice Contributed by: Kharla Aizpurúa Olmos, Mónica Moreno and Eduardo Oteiza, Morgan & Morgan
for the applicable institution to grant the permit or authorisation linked with the natural resources project. 8.8 Environmental, Health and Safety Laws Law 41 of 1998 (General Environmental Law) and Executive Decree 1 of 2023 (which regulates Chapter 3, Title 2 of Law 41 of 1998) are the principal environ- mental laws applicable to projects in Panama. The Ministry of Environment is the authority responsible for all environmental matters across the country but Law 41 of 1998 also established special prosecutors to investigate alleged environmental crimes and des- ignated the Public Prosecutor’s Office as responsible for initiating investigations and conducting discovery to determine liability for such offences. Projects will most likely require environmental impact assessments (EIAs), and their approval often requires public consultations. Additionally, under Law 6 of 2002, state institutions at the national and local lev- els are obligated to allow citizens to participate in all public administration acts that may affect the inter- ests and rights of groups of citizens, such as infra- structure projects. This participation can take various forms, including public consultations, public hearings, forums or workshops, and direct participation in insti- tutional bodies. Regarding health and safety measures, the Sanitary Code regulates all matters related to public health and hygiene, sanitary policing, and preventive and curative medicine. The Ministry of Health is the responsible authority for overseeing compliance with these regu- lations.
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