236 Freedom of environmental information in the EU EurUP 5 | 2006 The UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters – also called the Aarhus Convention – was signed on 25 June 1998 and came into force on 30 October 2001. In its first pillar, it grants every applicant the right of access to environmental information held by public authorities. The European Community, one of curre