Environmental Alert – July 2024

Law No. 32099: Law for the Protection, Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands in the National Territory

On July 20, 2024, Law No. 32099, Law for the Protection, Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands in the National Territory, was published in the Official Gazette El Peruano.

The most relevant aspects of the law are as follows:

1. Scope: The law is mandatory for the three levels of government and for any natural or legal person that carries out or intends to carry out activities in wetlands and their environment.
2. Authority: The Ministry of the Environment is the technical and regulatory authority at the national level for the integrated management of wetlands, as part of which it has, among other functions, to issue prior favorable opinions on provisions and instruments related to wetlands.
3. Prohibited activities: The law prohibits and classifies as infractions activities that affect wetlands, their components and associated assets, which are carried out without authorization from the competent authority. In this line, it provides that, within ninety calendar days, the competent authorities must approve or update their tables of infractions and penalties to incorporate such infractions.
4. Wetland buffer zone: Wetland buffer zones include the area adjacent to the marginal strip and are established by local governments, considering the criteria approved by the Ministry of the Environment and the Integral Wetland Management Plans approved by regional governments.
5. Integrated Wetland Management Plan: Regional governments must approve the Integrated Wetland Management Plan for wetlands in their jurisdiction, considering their components, marginal strips, buffer zones, and economic activities permitted by the legal system.
6. National Interest and Public Need: The protection, conservation and sustainable management of the country’s wetlands, as well as eleven wetlands, lagoons, estuaries and moors is declared of national interest and public need.

The Executive Branch has one hundred and twenty calendar days to approve the regulations of the law, the criteria for the establishment of wetland buffer zones, the identification of prioritized wetlands, and the guidelines for the preparation of the Wetlands Environmental Management Plan, among others.

For further information, please contact Francisco Tong (ftong@estudiorodrigo.com), Francisco Barrios (fbarrios@estudiorodrigo.com, Jenny Caldas (jcaldas@estudiorodrigo.com) and/or Úrsula Zavala (uzavala@estudiorodrigo.com).