Environment Protection Act (Cap. 549), article 32

32. (1) The Authority shall set up a fund, hereinafter referred to as the Environment Fund. (2) The Environment Fund shall be administered by the Authority. (3) The Environment Fund shall be used to finance projects, programs and schemes related to, and costs intended to achieve and manage, the aims and objectives of this Act, studies, as well a s works which may be needed for that purpose or to remedy any har m caused to the environment, as the Minister in consultation with the Authority may prescribe: Provided that, without prejudice to the aforesaid, the Environment Fund shall not be used to finance other costs of th e Authority: Provided further that the Authority may charge the Environment Fund for any services rendered by it to the Environment Fund. (4) There shall be paid into the Environment Fund: (a) any sums appropriated by P arliament for the purpose; (b) any donations or grants made to the Environment Fund by individuals or institutions; (c) sums received by the Aut hority for the purpose of being placed in the Environment Fund; (d) such other sums or monies as may from time to time be provided by or under this or any other law or regulations: Provided that the Authority shall implement all relevant safeguards to ensure that the implementation of this sub-articl e does not result in any actual or perceived conflict of interest s in the performance of its regulatory functions, and does not otherwise tarnish its reputation or public trust. Such safeguards shall include, inter alia and as deemed most relevant: (a) appropriate functional a nd operational separation; (b) internal administrative firewalling; and (c) rejection of donations or grants offered to it, financially or in kind, which may introduce a likely or foreseeable conflict of interests. (5) The Environment Fund shall keep a proper account of its revenue and expenditure and the Authority shall, without prejud ice to the powers of the Auditor General and of the Minister responsible for finance under an y law, each year cause the acco unts of the Environment Fund to be audited by suitably qualified pub lic auditors and accountants appointed by it with the concurrence o f the Minister. (6) The Environment Fund shall every financial year deliver to t he Minister, through the Authority, a copy of its duly audited rev enue and expenditure stat ement together with a re port of its activities during the previous financial year. The Minister shall lay a copy of the revenue and expenditure statement which shall be included as a note to the audited ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION [CAP. 549. 23 financial statements of the Authority, and a copy of the audited report on the Table of the House within a month from the receipt of the s aid statements from the Authority. Cap. 123. Cap. 364. (7) The revenue of the Environment Fund shall not be subject to tax under the Income Tax Act and the Environment Fund shall not be liable to tax under the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act. (8) The Minister after consulting the Authority may make regulations prescribing the procedure to be followed by the Authority and otherwise regulating the Environment Fund. (9) The Authority may set up other funds and prescribe what shall be paid into such funds and how the said funds shall be administered and used. The provisions of sub-articles (4), (5), (6), (7) and (8) shall apply mutatis mutandis to such other funds. The Registration Board. 33.* ( 1 ) T h e r e s h a l l b e a R e g i s t r a t i o n B o a r d w h o s e f u n c t i o n shall be to evaluate applications for registration in the Regis ter of Consultants eligible to carry out environmental assessments, au dits, monitoring and studies as required by the Authority. (2) The Board shall be composed of a minimum of three members and a maximum of fiv e members, appointed by the Minister one of whom shall be a ppointed to chair the board. (3) The members of the Board shall be independent members who are not involved in any way in the preparation of environmental or other assessments falling within the jurisdiction of the Board. (4) The Board shall seek the opinion of the Authority, which shall make appropriate reference to applicable standards and regulations regarding the quality of assessments audits, monito ring, studies and associated environmental information required by th e Authority to fulfil its function, following which it will asses s applications for such registra tions and approve those that meet the requirements for registration. T he Board shall give reasons for its decisions. (5) The decision of the Board to grant or to refuse an application for registration in the Register kept by the Author ity shall be notified in writing to the applicant without delay. (6) The Board may direct the Authority to update the Register at such regular intervals as it may deem fit by the inclusion o f other disciplines in the Register, which disciplines might have in th e meantime evolved. (7) The decisions of the Board shall be final. An appeal shall lie to the Tribunal only on the grounds that the Board has, in its decision, wrongly applied the provisions of this Act or any regulations issued thereunder, or the decision of the Board constitutes an abuse of discretion or is manifestly unfair, and without prejudice to the aforesaid, the discretion of the Board may not, so long as it has been exercised properly, be queried by t he *not yet in force. 24 [CAP. 549. ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION Tribunal. An appeal from a partial decision of the Board may on ly be filed together with an appeal from the final decision of the Board. (8) The decision of the Board sh all be binding if it is supporte d by the opinion of a majority of its members, and the dissenting member or members, if any, may express his opinion separately; and all decisions of the Board shall be delivered in public and shall be published as soon as practicab le after the sitting at which they are given. (9) The Minister may, after consultation with the Board, make regulations to give better effect to the provisions of this art icle and, without prejudice to the general ity of the foregoing, he may: (a) establish criteria that applicants are expected to meet in order to qualify for registration; (b) establish the procedure to be followed by the Board; (c) p r e s c r i b e a t a r i f f o f f e e s f o r r e g i s t r a t i o n w i t h t h e Board. Powers of the Registration Board. 34.* (1) The Registration Board may, out of its own motion, or at the request of the Authority, cancel any certificate granted under the provisions of article 33 or refuse any application for a re newal of the registration, when th e holder of that certificate: (a) is found guilty by a court of criminal jurisdiction of a crime committed through fraud, corruption, false declaration, imprudence, carelessness, unskillfulness in an art or profession, or non-observance of regulations; or (b) is found guilty by a court of criminal jurisdiction of any offence under the provisions of this Act or of any regulations made thereunder; or (c) has, in the opinion of the Authority and the Board, submitted sub-standard or deliberately misleading work in an environmental assessment or other studies; or (d) has participated in the prep aration of an environmental assessment in a consultant role when he was not registered in th e Register; or (e) was the recipient of a certificate issued under the provisions of article 33 bas ed on information which is false or misleading; or (f) fails to pay the yearly renewal fee. (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-article (1), the Board may opt for a suspension, rather than cancellation of the certi ficate, in the circumstances speci fied in sub-article (1)( d) and ( f). (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-article (1), if a person participates in a consultant role in the preparation of an environmental assessment without being registered in the Regist er, *not yet in force. ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION [CAP. 549. 25 he shall subsequently be barred from registering or participati ng in any assessments in Malta for a period to be decided by the Boar d which period shall in no cas e be less than three years. 3. Common Provisions Members of the Authority, etc., to be deemed public officers for certain purposes. Cap. 9.