Artificial Intelligence is already influencing inspections, investigations, prosecutions and judgments in ways we barely notice. Our international partners in Europe have launched the 2026 IMPEL Survey on AI in Environmental Protection through the ARTIC Project (ARTificial Intelligence for Compliance), and AELERT is encouraging regulators across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands to participate.

This is a practical, experience-based survey designed to map how AI is currently being used (and considered for future use) in Environmental Compliance Assurance (ECA) and the support activities that sit around it — from intelligence triage and casework to decision support, evidence handling and operational planning.

Why this matters for our region

AI tools are developing quickly, but the governance, legal, ethical and capability questions are where regulators often need the most shared learning. By contributing, Australasian and Pacific regulators can ensure the findings reflect our operating realities — including geographic scale, resourcing constraints, data availability and the unique regulatory contexts across our jurisdictions.

What the survey is trying to learn

The survey aims to:

• Map current and emerging AI uses in ECA
• Identify practical challenges, plus legal and ethical concerns
• Understand future needs for capacity, guidance and cooperation
• Support knowledge exchange and collaboration across networks

You don’t need to be an AI expert — your day-to-day perspective is what’s most valuable. The survey welcomes multiple responses per organisation, whether you respond as an individual practitioner, with input from a unit/team, or with an organisation-wide perspective.

Practical details

• Time: ~40–50 minutes
• Partial responses are welcome (skip questions or use “Don’t know” where needed)
• Some questions are Europe-specific — you can skip or explain in free-text fields
• A PDF version is available to support internal consultation:
  https://public.3.basecamp.com/p/KZBRdw9UPmsrt4P4hAmNxgRZ/vault
• Data review checkpoint: 31 May 2026 (survey remains open, with periodic analysis)

How AELERT will use this

With explicit consent at the end of the questionnaire, responses submitted through the AELERT pathway will be shared with AELERT’s governance structure. This will help AELERT develop materials, resources and training, and inform content for the AELERT 2026 Conference program — ensuring practical benefit for regulators across our region.

Take the survey: 2026 IMPEL Survey on AI in Environmental Protection: Mapping Current Use, Future Potential, and Implementation Needs

Questions can be directed to the team at IMPEL: giuseppe.sgorbati@impel.eu | F.CARELLA@arpalombardia.it | fotini.stamati@impel.eu (Data processing queries: info@impel.eu).