SPAIN
Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs
The Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs makes proposals and develops
the implementation of the governmental policy in the fighting against the climate change,
sustainable rural development, and the protection of natural heritage, biodiversity, sea matters,
and water, agricultural, cattle raising, forest, fishing and alimentary resources. Its strategic aim
is the fighting against the climate change and the encouragement of a model of sustainable
development in its double dimension: on the one hand the territory and biodiversity protection
and, on the other, the agricultural, cattle raising, forest and fishing productive factors defence,
from an integrating perspective.
Spain is organized in a decentralized way. Therefore the Autonomous Communities and Cities
are taking on the environmental competences, which have been transferred to them, and so
they play a decisive role in the definition and implementation of the environmental policy in
close coordination with the General State Administration. Each of these Autonomous
Communities has a competent organization for environmental matter and has the ability to
create their own Environmental Agency or similar.
Legislation
Royal Decree 1130/2008, of 4th July, by which the basic organic structure of the Ministry of the
Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs is developed. It takes on the competences of the
Ministry of Agriculture, Fishing and Food and the Ministry of Environment, this last created in
1996. The superior directive bodies that develop the environmental policy are the Secretariat of
State for Climate Change, the Secretariat of State for Rural Affairs and Water, and the General
Secretariat of the Sea. The Directorate-General for Environmental Quality and Assessment
depends on the Secretariat of State for Climate Change, and it takes the competence of being
the National Focal Point of the European Environmental Agency.
Responsibility Areas
(Environmental matter and sustainable development)
Climate Change: development of the climate change policy in accordance with the common
(EC) and international policy; establishment of adaptation and mitigation measures; emissions
commerce and flexibility mechanisms; carbon sinks; coordination of plans and programmes
related with climate change. These competences are developed by the Spanish Office of
Climate Change.
Environmental Quality: development of the policy for the prevention of pollution, and
environmental control, quality and assessment; coordination of plans and programmes related
with waste, polluted soils, pollution (air) and environmental impact; environmental impact
assessment; development of environmental indicators systems; risk evaluation for chemical
products; development of mechanisms for the integration of the environmental aspects in the
productive sectors. These competences are developed by the Directorate-General for
Environmental Quality and Assessment, besides of being the National Focal Point of the
European Environmental Agency and the EIONET Network, as well.
Natural Environment and Forest Policy: conservation and management of the Natura 2000
network and the Protected Natural Spaces-PNS (ENP, in Spanish), as well as their integration
in the sustainable rural development; development of strategies, plans and programmes for the
stimulation of the conservation and restoration of natural heritage and biodiversity; conservation
of genetic resources, flora, fauna, habitat, landscapes, ecosystems and natural areas,
particularly the most delicates and the degraded ones; participation in the development of
programmes for the forest protection, defence against the forest fires and forest health; the
hydrological-forest restoration; carrying out programmes against desertification; development of
the Spanish Inventory of Natural Heritage and Biodiversity. These competences are developed
by the Directorate-General for Natural Environment and Forest Policy, as well as by the
Autonomous Organization for National Parks and the National Centre for Environmental
Education (CENEAM).
Sustainable Rural Environment: development of the Agri-environmental measures, forestation
of agrarian lands, compensation of the agrarian incomes in unfavourable areas, strengthening
of the participation of women and young people in rural development; establishment of new
technologies and revamping of agrarian exploitations; encouragement of renewable energies
(bio-mass and bio-fuel) in agriculture, as well as saving and energy efficiency in this sector.
These competences are developed by the Directorate-General for the Sustainable Development
of Rural Environment.
Water resources Management: National Hydrological Plan implementation, in all its aspects;
checking of the Hydrological Plans of the Basin Organizations, the information about water
quality, execution of researches, projects and operation and conservation works for the Public
Waters Domains and their infrastructures; continental waters quality vigilance, and also
vigilance of activities susceptible of cause pollution or degradation of the public waters domains;
establishment of measures for the re-use of purified water and water saving; control of the
groundwater good condition; irrigation plans modernization and emergency works in case of
catastrophic damages. These competences are developed by the Directorate-General for
Water, in coordination with the Basin Organizations of the Autonomous Communities.
Marine Environment: demarcation and management (occupation, use, guardianship and Coast
Guard) of the Terrestrial-Maritime Public Domain; Coast Demarcations and Coast Provincial
Services management; protection and conservation of beaches, coastal sand dune systems
and littoral wetlands; coordination of the actions that may contribute to the coast and sea
sustainability with other public administrations; checking and inspection of the defence works;
development of strategies for the biological diversity and genetic resources conservation in the
marine ecosystems and for marine species included in the National Catalogue of Threatened
Species; preparation of preliminary reports for the environmental impact declaration in the
marine environment; strengthening and supervision of researches about fighting pollution
systems; assessment of damages produced by maritime and coastal pollution coming from
dumping contaminant substances, as well as development of sectorial plans for coastal
protection. These competences are developed by the Directorate-General for the Sustainability
of the Coast and the Sea.
Tasks: all the tasks related with the above mentioned competences, and it is worth mentioning
among them:
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Establishment and monitoring of national plans and strategies: 2006 National
Climate Change Adaptation Plan (PNACC/NCCAP), National Assignment Plan
of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Rights for 2008-2012, Spanish Climate Change
and Clean Energy Strategy 2007-2012-2020, Spanish Air Quality Strategy,
Solvent Management Plan, National Plan for the Implementation of the
Stockholm Convention and Regulations on Persistent Organic Pollutants
(POP/COP)
International Conventions: Kyoto Protocol, Geneva, Montreal, etc.
Development of the National Integrated Plan for Waste 2008-2015(NIPW/PNIR)
and National Recovery Plans for Polluted Soils
Management of the Basic Information System on Acoustic Pollution (SICA)
Management of the Spanish Inventory System for Emissions into the
Atmosphere
Management of the Spanish Register of Emissions and Pollutant Sources
(EPER-Spain / E- PRTR)
Management of the IPPC Industrial Facilities Inventory
Program for the implementation of the 2001/81/CE Directive on national
emission ceilings for certain atmospheric pollutants.
Establishment of the REACH Regulation and REACH Reference Centre
Coordination of the implementation of the EMAS Regulation
National Focal Point of the European Environmental Agency and the EIONET
Network in Spain
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Production of the Environmental Indicators Database (BPIA)
Public Waters Domains regulation (threatened water reuse, volumes effective
control, damages assessment, etc.)
Surface waters management (vigilance, operative and research control, as well
as control of protected areas)
Swim Areas Control Network and Nitrate Control Network
Groundwater control
Actions for the Water Management and Use (AGUA Program)
National System of Flood Hazard zones Cartography
Development of Drought Special Plans
Water Register elaboration (since 1986)
Dumping control (census, permissions, prevention)
Safety maintenance in dams and reservoirs
Dams Inventory with cartographic information
Hydrogeologic Drill Holes Catalogue
Implementation and Monitoring of the National Hydrological Plan, as well as the
Basin Plans through the Hydrographical Confederations
Water Information System
Threatened species conservation strategies and plans (brown bear, imperial
eagle, Iberian lynx, bearded vulture, grouse)
National Catalogue of Threatened Species
Development and maintenance of the Vascular Flora Red List, Red Books of
Invertebrates (lepidopterous, orthopterous, arthropods of the Habitats Directive)
and Vertebrate Red Book
Natura 2000 network
Spanish Strategic Plan for the Wetlands conservation and rational use
Biodiversity Data Bank
National Forest Inventory (IFN3) and Forest Map of Spain
Defence against Forest Fires Program
Development and maintenance of other national Inventories (biodiversity, soil
erosion, wet areas, natural protected areas, water birds)
Forest Strategy and development of the Spanish Forest Plan
European network of forest damage: Forest Damage Inventory
Livestock roads recovery
National Action Program against Desertification (PAND)
LUCDEME Project (Fighting against Desertification in the Mediterranean) and
RESEL network
Marine biodiversity: research projects, marine and coastal areas protection,
inventories, catalogues and databases, MEDACES (Mediterranean Database of
Cetacean Strandings), Cetacean National Inventory
Migrant bird ringing
International Conventions: Bonn, Bern, CITES, Biological Diversity, Ramsar,
Barcelona, Ospar, ACCOBAMS, etc.
More information (including Organisational Chart):
http://www.marm.es/