Ministry of Environmental Protection, Physical Planning and Construction
CROATIA
Croatian Report on new
Environmental Protection Law
2 nd ECENA Plenary meeting
Brussels, BELGIUM
September 17-18, 2007
Josipa Blažević-Perušić, B.Sc. Arch.
State Secretary
Anita Pokrovac-Patekar, B.Sc. Pharm.
Senior Environmental Inspector
MEPPPC
……focused on introducing
integrated approach in new
Environmental Protection Law
through
 Practise from existing system in
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Croatia
Vision
Integrated approach in new
Environmental Protection Law
Further activities to be realised
(2008-2009)
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MEPPPC
We are in course of the
harmonisation of legislation

In addition to MEPPPC, central state
administration bodies with environmental
competences are:
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management
Ministry of Culture
Ministry of Health and Social Welfare
Ministry of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship
Ministry of the Sea, Tourism, Transport and Development

Also active in environmental protection are:
Environmental Agency
Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund
Croatian Waters
State Institute for Nature Protection
National Meteorological and Hydrological Service
State Directorate for Protection and Rescue
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MEPPPC
Good practise from existing system
in Croatia
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Spatial planning has been recognised as a
powerful tool based on it’s integrated and
multy-disciplined nature for environmental
prevention and protection since early 1980
Sustainability comes out from the positive
synergic development of the economic,
social, environmental and cultural dimension
of the society, but sustainability is also a
general aim of the spatial planning
Spatial planning and environmental
protection have been developing in the same
direction within the common ministry
to promote the sustainability
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MEPPPC
Good practise from existing
permitting system in Croatia
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Implementation of EIA started also as far back
as in 1980 and after short time was included in
procedure of issuing
location permit
All aspects and requirements related to
environmental protection, defined within EIA
decision were included in
building permit
(nature, water, soil, air protection, noise...)
After the confirmation of fulfilling all
prescribed and determined requirements for
building in construction sense and
environmental point of view as well
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using permit is issued
MEPPPC

Continuing with this tradition,
existing permitting procedure is the
framework for new approach and
transposition of IPPC Directive into the new
environmental Law

Therefore, there are no demands for
significant increasing the administrative staff
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MEPPPC
3 key strategic principles
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The integrated approach, which is based on
the understanding of the environment as
whole, and aims at ensuring that all
environmental impacts are considered
together through an integrated permitting
procedure
The flexible approach leaving discretion to
competent authorities to take local situations
into account
The concept of the “Best available
techniques”, which plays a crucial role in
permitting
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MEPPPC
Vision

An umbrella law

In accordance with EU environmental aquis
new Environmental Protection Act covers
provisions of directives relating to:
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environmental impact assessment
strategic environmental assessment
access to information and public participation
IPPC environmental permitting
SEVESO II
environmental monitoring and reporting
environmental liability
Integrated approach both in prevention and
protection of all environmental components 8
MEPPPC
The procedural and institutional
approach for issuing IPPC permits

Article 7 of the IPPC Directive stipulates:
Member States shall take all the measures
necessary to ensure that the conditions and
the procedure for the grant of the permit are
fully coordinated, where more than one
competent authority is involved in order to
guarantee an effective integrated approach by
all competent authorities
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MEPPPC
Permitting Procedure/1

The decision on the request for determining
integrated environmental protection requirements – IEPR
for an installation shall be made by the MEPPPC
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The request for determining IEPR for installations
shall be submitted simultaneously with the request for environmental
impact assessment
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The request shall contain
the Study on the conceptual technical and technological design for the
installation in relation to IEPR, which are determined by a decision on
the environmental acceptability of a project and IEPR. It will be a
constituent part of the conceptual design of the installation

The conceptual design of the installation
shall be a constituent part of the request for issuing a location permit in
accordance with a special regulation
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MEPPPC
Permitting Procedure/2
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In the procedure for issuing the building
permit for the installation, the authorised
auditor shall confirm that the technical design
proves that all IEPR have been fulfilled as
established in the location permit
In the procedure for issuing the using permit
for the installation, after putting the
installation into trial operation, the
environmental protection expert from the
MEPPPC shall verify whether the determined
environmental protection requirements have
been fulfilled
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MEPPPC
Using Permit

Construction Part
Permanent

IPPC Part
IEPR contained in the
installation using permit
shall be determined for
the application period of
five years from the day
the using permit
becomes legally valid
What’s also important?
Co-ordination of the inspection bodies in
environmental sector
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MEPPPC
Agreement on Co-operation
between inspection services
in the field of environment/1
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to co-operate in the implementation of co-ordinated
inspection controls related to the environment or
individual environmental components and burdens
to develop a manual on the implementation of coordinated inspection controls in line with RMCEI
to co-operate
 by exchanging data which have an impact on
environmental protection, particularly on the
preparation and performance of co-ordinated
inspection controls, and
 by using services of authorised persons
(professional institutions, laboratories, agencies,
etc.) for purposes of inspection control,
remediation of consequences of major accidents
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and other activities
Agreement/2
MEPPPC
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Co-ordination role of Environmental
Protection Inspection
Joint annual work plan and programe
Joint reporting

joint annual reports on the performed coordinated inspection controls and on other
activities shall form a constituent part of
the annual work report of the
environmental inspection, which shall be
submitted by the MEPPPC to the Croatian
Government
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MEPPPC
New Environmental Protection
Law
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At present (September 17th, 2007) has
been adopted by the Croatian
Government
The adoption procedure before
Parliament is in course and is expected
to be completed till the end of
September
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MEPPPC
Further activities to be realised
(2008-2009)

Adoption of subordinate regulations
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MEPPPC
Thank you for your attention
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