Extended Organisational Base Governmental Administration of Care of Environment Enacted
On November 5, 2003, the Law No. 525/2003 Coll. re-enacted the governmental administration of care of the environment. At the same time, the Slovak Parliamentary Law No. 595/1990 Coll. on governmental administration for environment, having been amended seven times during the next following years, was cancelled.
Most of those amendments resulted in cancellation or modification of its provisions, and thus the Law had become obsolete.
The Slovak Commission for Environment was transformed already on August 25, 1992 (the Slovak Parliamentary Law No. 453/1992 Coll.) to the Slovak Ministry of Environment. In 1996, after integration of the local governmental authorities, 38 district environmental offices and 121 local environmental offices were closed, and according to the Law No. 222/1996 Coll., they were replaced by environmental departments. The Slovak Environmental Inspection was changed as well. Several competences of the governmental administration of care of the environment had been gradually transferred to the municipalities. According to the Law No. 302/2001 Coll. on regional self-government, the self-government of individual regions should also gradually participate in creation and preservation of the environment.
The Governmental Environmental Fund was also dissolved, and has been partially replaced by the Program for Support of Realisation of Environmental Measures.
The competences of the Slovak Ministry of Environment, and thus the sector thereof were modified and amended not only by special regulations, but also by the „Great Competence Law“ No. 575/2001 Coll. on organisation of activities of the Government and organisation of central governmental authorities, as amended by later laws, particularly the Law No. 139/2003 Coll., having allocated the whole water management and fishery to the competence of the Slovak Ministry of Environment, except for fish farming and the excluded „Building Order and Zoning, Save for Ecologic Aspects“.
In aggregate, as of January 1, 2004, after change in the competence, the Slovak Ministry of Environment has the following competences stipulated by the laws:
I. Scope of Competence (nature protection and regulation of exploitation of landscape)
Protection of nature and landscape, including management of facilities, caves, and selected protected zones
Ecologic aspects of zoning
Assessment of effects on the environment
Regulation of trade with endangered species of wide animals and wide plants
Application of genetic technologies and genetically modified organisms
II. Scope of Competence (environmental planning, legislation, organization, and information)
Preparing environmental concepts, determining the principles of environmental protection and obligations in protection thereof
Preparing bills and other generally valid legal regulations, publication thereof, and upon discussion in the proceedings for comments, furnishing documents to the Slovak Government for approval and publication, taking care of proper legislation applicable for the issues belonging to its competence
Issuing statutes for special professional organizations, regional environment offices and the SEI
Establishing special professional organization and granting consents to regional environmental offices for establishment of special professional organizations
Establishing permanent or temporary offices of regional environmental offices and district environmental offices, determining the territorial districts which belong to the competence of the individual office of a regional environmental office, and determining the municipalities which belong to the competence of the individual office of a district environmental office
Preparation, performance, and regular assessment of the operating program in the matters of care and performance of the national plan and the regional operating programs and in preparation of the economic and social development program of the regional self-government
Review of the issues relating to the care of environment and analysing the achieved results
Publishing materials of programming, concept and strategic character, and texts of proposed legal regulations
Providing environmental education and promotion
III. Scope of competence (water management)
Water management, protection of quality and volume of water, and rational exploitation thereof
Public water mains and public sewerage
Fishery, except for fish farming
IV. Scope of Competence (geologic works)
Governmental geological administration, geologic research and survey
Keeping complete records of exclusive deposits, records of certificates for a future deposit, determining a survey territory and the organization which shall keep records on the exclusive deposit and shall be responsible for protection thereof
Ascertaining, registration, protection, and liquidation of old mines and the consequences thereof, which impair the public interest
Verification of existence of a deposit of a selected mineral, issuing a certificate on existence thereof, and remuneration of the discoverer
Determination of classification and calculation of reserves in selected deposits
V. Scope of Competence (reducing contamination)
Air protection and climatic system of the Earth
Protection of the Earth´s ozone layer
Integrated prevention and control of contamination of the environment
Prevention against serious industrial accidents
Environmentally oriented control and audit system
Assessment and strategy of limiting the environmental risks of chemical substances
Environmental labelling of products
Waste and waste management
Packages and waste from packages
VI. Scope of Competence (preparation and realisation of projects)
Fulfillment of the main tasks relating to the main objectives of support of the regional development
Selection of projects and independent expert assessment thereof
Assessment, cordination, control, support, and realization of environmental programs and projects, particularly the Program for Support of Realisation of Environmental Measures
Use of funds from the EU funds
VII. Scope of Competence (international co-operation)
Performance of tasks relating to negotiation and performance of international agreements, development of international relations and international co-operation, including the tasks arising for the Slovak Republic from international agreements as well as from its membership in international organizations
Coordination international co-operation and process integration do international structures, including co-operation with the EU authorities
VIII. Scope of Competence (human resources)
Responsibility for professional preparation of employees of regional environmental offices, district environmental offices, the Slovak Environmental Inspection, and the municipalities, and verification of their qualification for performance of some duties
Proposing to the Slovak Government to appoint and recall directors of regional environmental offices and district environmental offices
Preparing draft systemization and any changes therein, and fulfillment of any other tasks arising from a superior service office and service office, being the Ministry according to the Law No. 312/2001 Coll. on civil servants and the Law No. 428/2002 Coll. on personal data privacy, and the supplementary regulations thereto
Several tasks of professional, agency, and service character should not be performed directly by the governmental environmental authorities, but by budgetary organisations and contributory organisations managed by the Slovak Ministry of Environment.
Such organizations include since January 1, 2004:
Slovak Environmental Agency in Banska Bystrica
State Nature Protection of the Slovak Republic in Banska Bystrica
Slovak Hydrometeorologic Institure in Bratislava
Reserach Institute of Water Management in Bratislava
Slovak Caves Management in Liptovsky Mikulas
Slovak Mining Museum in Banska Stiavnica
Zoological Garden in Bojnice.
Information and Contact
RNDr. Jozef Klinda Slovak Ministry of Environment Environmental Concepts and Legal Department Nam. L. Stura 1, 812 35 Bratislava Tel.: 00421 2 5956 1111 Fax: 00421 2 59562222
