All industrial projects in Qatar must have an environmental clearance certificate from the Supreme Council for Environment and Natural Reserves, according to a local newspaper report.

The supreme council's environmental impact assessment (EIA) section will conduct an evaluation of the project free of charge, the Gulf Times said in a report.

The procedure is "much simpler" for smaller companies and usually takes seven days to clear, according to Dr Niranjan Bagchi, an environmental engineer at the council.

An application for renewal of licence by small-scale industries is routinely forwarded to the Supreme Council for recommendation. Its officials visit the plant and lay down the environmental criteria, the report said.

Various international standards were taken into account before finally formulating the rules of assessment, according to Bagchi.

He said the local rules are based more on the World Bank standards, as they are easily achievable and familiar to all major financial leading agencies.

Once the standards are issued, the existing industries have to be verified for their compliance through an environmental monitoring programme (EMP), Dr Bagchi noted.

Since many older industries are not complying with the standards, the technical committee has agreed that the compliance period would be negotiated. But such periods are legally "locked-in" so that the industries ensure implementation.

Pending full compliance, the industries need to get a "consent to operate" from the supreme council and this "consent" can be withdrawn in case of non-compliance, Dr Bagchi said.