environmental law & climate change

Hungary's national settlement planning and construction requirements are currently governed by Government Decree 253/1997. (XII. 20.) (OTÉK), which outlines the regulations on which construction is planned and licensed. On 1 October 2025, Act C of 2023 on Hungarian Architecture entered into force, and together with an upcoming government decree on urban planning and building requirements (effective from 1 January 2025), it is expected to reshape the future of properties in Hungary. Until 30 June 2027, OTÉK and the Decree must be applied in parallel. The regulations will promote environmental awareness and sustainability, incorporating a new set of principles and restrictions on zoning for new construction, of which we have highlighted a few for your attention.

The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is a landmark regulatory instrument that imposes a special price on the greenhouse gas emissions of goods imported into the EU. Introduced in 2023, the CBAM primarily aims at addressing carbon leakage, which occurs when companies relocate production to countries with less stringent climate policies than those in the EU. It seeks to prevent unfair competition between EU and non-EU producers resulting from carbon leakage by ensuring that the same carbon costs are applied to imported products as to those produced within the EU.

In Austria, photovoltaic plants (PVPs) are increasingly being installed near existing wind farms (WFs) to share grid connections. These hybrid parks offer an innovative solution for the use of renewable energy but raise legal questions concerning grid connection and environmental law.

At the end of 2023, the Bulgarian Energy from Renewable Sources Act was amended to facilitate the development of new renewable energy projects. Key changes in the law include the establishment of administrative assistance units at the municipalities to help investors with the permit application process, updated rules for grid connection, the designation of priority zones for the development of wind parks, and the introduction of a grid bond (either a deposit or a bank guarantee) during the grid connection procedure to prevent speculation with available grid capacity.

After "unpacking" the EU Nature Restoration Law ("NRL") in last year's roadmap, the NRL entered into force on 18 August 2024 and is now directly applicable in all EU Member States. However, this was only achieved after a nail-biting procedure in the Council of the EU, where the necessary majorities were only secured when the Austrian Minister deviated from the national coalition agreement. But what does the entry into force of the NRL mean for stakeholders?

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations have announced that agricultural production must increase by 60% by 2050 to meet the demands of a growing, more urbanised and richer population. Over the past 40 years, the world has lost a third of its arable land due to erosion and pollution.