In terms of urban planning, the DOM of each municipality has the main authority over land development and zoning. DOMs are overseen by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

For environmental matters, the Environment Ministry has the main authority, although the Environment Assessment Service (Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental or SEA) is in charge of evaluating projects with environmental impact in Chile. Finally, the Environmental Superintendence is in charge of overseeing the regulations.

In relation to urban planning issues, the applicable laws are the General Law of Urban Planning and Construction, the Organic-Constitutional Law of Municipalities and the General Ordinance of Urban Planning and Construction. At a local level, the Master Plan of the county, and the Law on General Grounds Environment (Law 19,300) govern environmental issues.

To build in an urban area, a building license from the DOM is required. For minor work in an urban area, a permit is still necessary, but at a lower charge and with briefer approval periods.

At the end of the construction, and before start using the building, the construction must be reviewed by the DOM, which must issue a certificate of Final Reception of the Work. This certificate is mandatory for using the premises.

Finally, to build in rural areas, a special certificate issued by the Agricultural and Livestock Service (Servicio Agricola y Ganadero or SAG) must be requested.

No, but the city, in accordance with the General Ordinance of Urban Planning and Construction, may take charge of cleaning vacant lots. Also, if a building poses a risk to a community, a dilapidated building claim may be raised.

However, on 1 June 2016, Law No. 20920 regarding “Waste management, the extended liability of the producer and the encouragement of recycling” was published in the Official Gazette. This legal reform attempts to redefine the current approach to waste management in our country and has positioned Chile as a pioneer in Latin America by establishing a recycling public policy.

One of the underlying principles of this act is the “polluter pays” principle, that is, the generator of the pollution is responsible for it’s waste, as well as for internalizing the costs and negative externalities associated with its waste management (Article 2 of the Waste Management Act).

Certain minimum energy performance requirements are described in Decree No. 327, and vary according to building type. Also, currently being discussed in Congress is a law that expressly regulates energy performance requirements.

There are some regulatory measures such as Decree D.S. No. 157, of 2007, which establishes rules for the recovery of neighborhoods, and the Environmental Law, which establishes controls for the projects’ sustainability and also creates a fund for their protection (Art. 66).