The European Commission launched the screening process with Turkey on 20 October 2005, which is expected to last one year. The screening process of the environment chapter which is considered to be the most challenging one among the 35 chapters has recently been completed.

The explanatory screening meeting took place between 3-11 April 2006 in Brussels. The Commission gave a brief summary of the EU Environmental Acquis and informed Turkey about the recent developments with respect to the legislations that are on the way. A large number of participants from Turkey participated in the meeting.

Following the explanatory screening, the Commission sent a number of questions to be answered prior to the detailed screening. Intensive works have been carried out with the participation of all stakeholders during this process.

During the detailed screening meeting that took place between 29 May-2 June 2006 in Brussels, approximately 60 presentations were made by the Turkish delegation. The Commission asked a number of additional questions to clarify the picture to see the level of compliance with the EU Acquis. Currently, the Commission is about to prepare the Screening report that will be sent to Turkey in Autumn 2006.