The Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MADS) issued Resolution 0940 of July 28, 2026, adopting the new General Methodology for the Preparation and Presentation of Environmental Studies (MGEPEA), which replaces the methodology that had been in force since 2018.

The new MGEPEA is the mandatory technical framework for the preparation and submission of the Environmental Diagnostic of Alternatives (DAA) and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), redefining the standards applicable to the environmental studies required in environmental licensing procedures.

The main developments introduced by the new methodology include the following:

1. Human rights and environmental justice approach: Human rights due diligence is incorporated as a cross-cutting principle, requiring environmental studies to identify potential impacts on fundamental rights and to establish measures to prevent or mitigate them.
2. Climate Change Management Plan: A standalone plan is introduced requiring a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventory, mitigation targets, climate risk assessment, and adaptation measures, with particular relevance for energy, infrastructure, oil and gas, mining, and transportation projects.
3. Stakeholder engagement: Community participation and engagement are restructured through defined phases, a differentiated approach, traceability of stakeholder input, virtual engagement mechanisms, and specific protection measures for environmental defenders in high-risk contexts.
4. Socio-environmental conflict: A dedicated component is introduced to identify, characterize, and assess socio-environmental conflicts, their underlying causes, and the associated risks to community leaders and environmental defenders within the project’s area of influence.
5. Ecological connectivity and fragmentation: The methodology strengthens the analysis of the biotic component, with implications for the delineation of the area of influence and the definition of environmental management measures.
6. Systematized Environmental Management Zoning: A systematic procedure based on decision matrices is introduced, linking environmental sensitivity with the standardized potential for impact modification, thereby enhancing the traceability of decisions and reducing technical discretion.
7. GHG emissions inventory: Projects must identify emission sources and quantify greenhouse gas emissions for each project phase, expressed in tonnes of CO₂ equivalent and, where applicable, verified by an independent third party.
8. Nature-based solutions: Nature-based solutions are incorporated as an approach for designing environmental management measures, climate change adaptation, and risk reduction, prioritizing alternatives that make use of ecosystem processes and services.
9. Prospective scenarios: A dedicated component is introduced for noise, landscape, oceanography, and climate change, enabling the assessment of how impacts may evolve beyond the project’s planning horizon..
10. Green infrastructure and landscape integration: Green infrastructure and landscape integration are incorporated as technical design criteria aimed at preventing impacts and improving the environmental and landscape compatibility of projects.

Other notable changes include the transition from the previous geographic information model to the Geographic Storage Model ((Modelo de Almacenamiento Geográfico, MAG); an expanded assessment of ecosystem services; a strengthened multi-criteria evaluation under the Environmental Diagnostic of Alternatives (DAA); the explicit recognition of residual, cumulative, and synergistic impacts; and the replacement of the decommissioning and abandonment plan with a decommissioning and environmental closure plan.

Taken together, these changes raise the standards for the preparation of environmental studies and require greater early-stage planning, interdisciplinary coordination, and stakeholder engagement by project developers. They also demand enhanced technical expertise in areas such as climate change, human rights, and ecological modelling, while introducing new regulatory challenges for the preparation and review of environmental studies and the management of environmental licensing risks. 

At Brigard Urrutia, we remain available to assist you in analyzing the implications of this new regulation for your projects from an environmental legal perspective.