Artikel 2

For the purposes of this Protocol,
1. “Party” means, unless the text indicates otherwise, a State or a regional economic integration organization referred to in article 24 which has consented to be bound by this Protocol and for which the Protocol is in force;
2. “Convention” means the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, done at Aarhus, Denmark, on 25 June 1998;
3. “The public” means one or more natural or legal persons, and, in accordance with national legislation or practice, their associations, organizations or groups;
4. “Facility” means one or more installations on the same site, or on adjoining sites, that are owned or operated by the same natural or legal person;
5. “Competent authority” means the national authority or authorities, or any other competent body or bodies, designated by a Party to manage a national pollutant release and transfer register system;
6. “Pollutant” means a substance or a group of substances that may be harmful to the environment or to human health on account of its properties and of its introduction into the environment;
7. “Release” means any introduction of pollutants into the environment as a result of any human activity, whether deliberate or accidental, routine or nonroutine, including spilling, emitting, discharging, injecting, disposing or dumping, or through sewer systems without final waste-water treatment;
8. “Off-site transfer” means the movement beyond the boundaries of the facility of either pollutants or waste destined for disposal or recovery and of pollutants in waste water destined for waste-water treatment;
9. “Diffuse sources” means the many smaller or scattered sources from which pollutants may be released to land, air or water, whose combined impact on those media may be significant and for which it is impractical to collect reports from each individual source;
10. The terms “national” and “nationwide” shall, with respect to the obligations under the Protocol on Parties that are regional economic integration organizations, be construed as applying to the region in question unless otherwise indicated;
11. “Waste” means substances or objects which are: a) Disposed of or recovered;
b) Intended to be disposed of or recovered; or
c) Required by the provisions of national law to be disposed of or recovered;
a) Disposed of or recovered;
b) Intended to be disposed of or recovered; or
c) Required by the provisions of national law to be disposed of or recovered;
12. “Hazardous waste” means waste that is defined as hazardous by the provisions of national law;
13. “Other waste” means waste that is not hazardous waste;
14. “Waste water” means used water containing substances or objects that is subject to regulation by national law.