LAW ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
CHAPTER 1.
1.1. ENVIRONMENT shall mean the system functioning in nature
and comprising its interconnected components ( the earth's
surface and entrails, air, water, soil, flora and fauna, organic
and inorganic matter), as well as natural and anthropogenic
ecological systems.
1.2. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION shall mean the protection of
the environment from physical, chemical, biological or other
hazardous effects arising from the utilization of natural
resources.
1.3. NATURAL RESOURCES shall mean the elements of organic
and inorganic nature which are used or may be used by man in
order to satisfy his needs.
1.4. ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM shall mean the functional system of
organic and inorganic elements, the components of which are
joined by their interrelations, and the processes of metabolism
and energy exchange.
1.5. NORMS OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY shall mean the
restrictions approved by a competent state body determining the
impact of economic activities on the environment.
1.6. STANDARDS OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY shall mean the
normative technical documents approved by a competent state body,
prescribing the obligatory technical characteristics (norms,
conditions, requirements) for production and other areas of
standardization in the preservation of the environment and the
health of the people.
1.7. LIMITATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES shall mean the
establishment of norms of utilization of natural resources,
taking into consideration the information related to the amount
of natural resources, their renewal, and preservation for the
future.
1.8. INJURIOUS EFFECTS TO THE ENVIRONMENT shall mean the
deterioration or loss of the natural functions of the ecological
system or its components.
1.9. ECOLOGICAL MONITORING shall mean a systematic
observation of the environment, including its state and the
dynamics of its components, as well as an assessment and forecast
of the anthropogenic effects.
1.10. ECOLOGICAL EXAMINATION shall mean the compliance of
planned, designed and executed economic activities with the laws,
legislative acts and standards of environmental protection,
ascertainment of the degree of existing and possible ecological
threats, as well as the professional assessment of the
expediency of such activities.
1.11. ECOLOGICAL INFORMATION shall mean all of the
information concerning the state of environmental quality.
1.12. ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES shall mean economic and other
activities affecting the environment.
Article 2. Objectives of the Law
2.1. This Law shall establish the main rights and duties of
legal and natural persons guaranteeing:
2.2. Other laws and legislative acts regulating the
utilization of natural resources and environmental protection
shall be adopted on the basis of this Law.
Article 3. Units of Environmental Protection
The units of environmental protection shall be the
environment of the territory of the Republic of Lithuania and
natural resources which are under the jurisdiction of the
Republic of Lithuania.
Article 4. Principles of Environmental Protection
4.1. In the Republic of Lithuania, environmental protection
shall be the concern and duty of the State and of each of its
inhabitants.
4.2. The policy and practice of the administration of
environmental protection shall direct social and individual
interests towards the improvement of environmental quality,
encourage the users of natural resources to seek ways and means
to avoid or diminish hazardous impact on the environment, and to
make technological processes ecologically safe.
4.3. Natural resources must be utilized in a rational and
composite way, taking into consideration the possibilities of
preservation and renewal of nature, as well as natural and
economic specifications of the Republic of Lithuania.
4.4. Environmental protection shall be based on
comprehensive, correct and timely ecological information.
Article 5. Competence of the Supreme Council of the
Republic of Lithuania in the Field of
Environmental Protection
The Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania, shaping
the state policy of environmental protection shall: 1)
approve the main trends of the policy of environmental protection
and the utilization of natural resources;
2) approve the long-term and purposive programmes of the
state pertaining to environmental protection, as well as the
subsidies from the State budget aimed at financing the measures
of environmental protection;
3) create the system of state bodies implementing the
policy of environmental protection and the utilization of natural
resources; and
6.1. In the Republic of Lithuania, the state administration
of environmental protection, pursuant to their competence, shall
be carried out by the Department of Environmental Protection, the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania, and the local
governments. Each of these institutions shall be responsible for
the implementation of functions prescribed to them by laws.
6.2. The Department of Environmental Protection of the
Republic of Lithuania, shaping and implementing the state policy
of environmental protection shall:
1) prepare, and, in conjunction with the Government of the
Republic of Lithuania, submit for approval to the Supreme Council
of the Republic of Lithuania the main trends of the policy of
environmental protection and utilization of natural resources, as
well as long-term and purposive state programmes related to the
protection of the environment and utilization of natural
resources;
2) prepare, and, in conjunction with the Government of the
Republic of Lithuania, approve the proposals of environmental
protection which are of national significance, as well as other
projects of environmental protection, and provide the mechanism
for their implementation;
3) prepare draft laws on environmental protection and adopt
legislative acts concerning the issues of environmental
protection and utilization of natural resources;
4) approve the limits of the utilization of natural
resources, provide the order of the registration of natural
resources and terms of their utilization;
8) coordinate and, pursuant to its competence, implement
international treaties and obligations of the Republic of
Lithuania on the issues of environmental protection and
utilization of natural resources; and, upon the authorization of
the Supreme Council or Government of the Republic of Lithuania,
sign such treaties;
9) carry out the state control of the utilization of natural
resources and environmental protection and control the
implementation of international treaties and obligations;
10) organize and coordinate purposive scientific research
works in the field of environmental protection;
11) submit proposals to the Supreme Council of the Republic
of Lithuania concerning the establishment of protective zones,
and declare areas of the environment national natural monuments;
and
6. 3. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania,
implementing the national policy of environmental protection,
shall:
1) prepare, and in conjunction with the Department of
Environmental Protection, submit for approval to the Supreme
Council of the Republic of Lithuania, programmes and proposals of
national significance related to the utilization of natural
resources and environmental protection;
2) establish, finance and supply programmes, plans, and
projects for environmental protection of national significance,
and finance purposive research works;
3) keep the registration of state national resources and,
within the established limits, distribute national resources to
users;
5) prepare draft projects of norms and standards of
environmental quality, and promote the introduction of
ecologically safe technology and production by users of natural
resources;
6) in conjunction with the Department of Environmental
Protection of the Republic of Lithuania, conclude international
treaties of the Republic of Lithuania related to the utilization
of natural resources and environmental protection, and implement
them in accordance with their competence;
7) coordinate the activities of the bodies of state power
and local governments concerning the utilization of natural
resources and environmental protection; and
6. 4. Local governments, implementing the policy of
environmental protection on their territories:
1) shall organize the implementation of laws on
environmental protection and decisions of the Department of
Environmental Protection and the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania in the field of environmental protection, and within
the limits of their jurisdiction, adopt decisions concerning the
utilization of natural resources and environmental protection,
ascribed to them by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania,
and supervise their implementation;
2) shall prepare, approve and implement the programmes,
plans, and projects of environmental protection and utilization
of national resources in the territory under their jurisdiction;
3) shall form and have at their disposal local government
environmental protection funds, shall establish the amount of
subsidies allocated for environmental protection, and shall
document the necessity of subsidation from the state budget;
5) may, in agreement with the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania and the Department of Environmental Protection,
establish norms on their own territory which are stricter than
state standards, and may create local nature preserves and
monuments; and
6) shall carry out other activities prescribed to them by
laws.
CHAPTER 2.
THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF CITIZENS AND PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS OF THE
REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
Article 7. Rights and Duties of Citizens and Public
Organizations
Citizens and public organizations shall have the right:
2) to take part in the discussion and implementation of
programmes and projects of economic activities;
7) to demand that state authorities and institutions
organize ecological education and instruction, and to freely
advocate concepts of environmental protection; and
8) to insist upon the punishment of persons guilty of
endangering the environment, and of officers, who have improperly
carried out the duties of environmental protection ascribed to
them;
Article 8. Duties of State Authorities, Administrators,
and Inspectors in Guaranteeing the Rights of
Citizens and Public Organizations
State authorities, administrators, and inspectors, pursuant
to their jurisdiction, must:
1) establish ecologically based standards of environmental
protection which can be achieved by technological means,
supervise their changes, and inform the public thereof;
2) either comply with or justifiably decline the proposals
of citizens or public organizations concerning environmental
issues;
3) publicly announce plans of economic activities which may
have a hazardous impact on the environment;
4) prevent the violation of laws, norms and standards of
environmental protection by subjects engaged in economic
activities;
5) either carry out or justifiably decline to carry out a
state ecological examination if the public so requests;
6) evaluate the findings of state ecological examinations,
and either take them up as matters of importance or justifiably
turn them down;
7) guarantee that the damages caused to the environment by
unlawful activities be redeemed, and persons guilty of these
damages be punished;
9) encourage the participation of citizens and public
organizations in environmental protection.
Article 9. Duties of Citizens and Public Organizations
Citizens and public organizations of the Republic of
Lithuania must protect the environment, use natural resources in
an economical way, and avoid violation of the rights and
interests of other users of natural resources.
Article 10. Rights and Duties of Foreign Citizens and
Stateless Persons
Foreign citizens and stateless persons must abide by the
rights and duties of the citizens of the Republic of Lithuania as
established by this Law, if other laws of the Republic of
Lithuania do not provide otherwise.
CHAPTER 3.
UTILIZATION AND REGISTRATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES
Article 11. The Object of the Utilization of Natural
Resources
The object of the utilization of natural resources shall be
the existing natural resources which are in the jurisdiction of
the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 12. Objects of Special Utilization
12. 1. The objects of special utilization shall be:
1) protected territories: reserves of the state, national
parks, regional parks, natural reserves, protective zones, and
areas of local significance and special purpose;
2) the natural framework, identified and formed as the
system of territories of ecological compensation, consisting of
protected and other ecologically significant and sufficiently
natural territories which maintain the stability of the
landscape; and
12. 2. Protection of the objects used for special purpose
shall be regulated by separate laws.
Article 13. State Registration of Natural Resources
The procedure of state registration of natural resources, as
well as the custody of the cadastre shall be determined by the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania and the Department of
Environmental Protection.
Article 14. Users of Natural Resources
14.2. The basis of the utilization of natural resources
shall either be the right of ownership or the right of
utilization.
14.2. The users of natural resources must:
4) take measures to avoid endangering the environment, and
in the event that hazardous effects do occur, must immediately
eliminate the cause of such effects and inform the appropriate
officers and institutions of the occurence;
6) redeem the damages caused by unlawful activities which
have hazardously affected the environment; and
15.1. Legal and natural persons, applying for permit to
engage in economic activities, shall, at their own expense,
prepare and submit to the Department of Environmental Protection
of the Republic of Lithuania documents concerning possible impact
of such activities on the environment.
15.2. The Department of Environmental Protection of the
Republic of Lithuania shall evaluate the documents concerning the
possible impact of economic activities on the environment and
present a motivated conclusion, which is requisite in order for a
state institution to issue a permit to engage in economic
activities.
15.3. The procedure of the preparation of documents
concerning the possible impact of economic activities on the
environment shall be established by the Department of
Environmental Protection of the Republic of Lithuania in
conjunction with the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 16. Planning of Economic Activities
16.1. Legal and natural persons wishing to construct,
reconstruct, or expand units of economic activities must prepare
project documentation. Such documentation must include means to
utilize natural resources rationally, to avoid industrial
accidents and eliminate their causes and consequences, and to
guarantee the observation of the norms of environmental quality.
Such project documentation shall be coordinated with the
Department of Environmental Protection of the Republic of
Lithuania.
Article 17. Construction, Reconstruction, or Expansion
of Units of Economic Activities
17.1. Legal and natural persons may construct, reconstruct,
or expand units of economic activities only if they have project
documentation which is in compliance with the requirements
provided for in Article 16 of this Law.
17.2. Parties involved in the construction, reconstruction,
or expansion of units of economic activity who do not have
project documentation as detailed in Article 16 of this law, or
who are not complying with the requirements of environmental
protection, or who, in the process of construction,
reconstruction or expansion of these units violate restrictions
of environmental protection, shall be liable in the manner
established by law.
17.3. The imposition of liability shall not prevent
institutions of administration and control of environmental
protection established in Article 6 of this law, as well as their
officials, from discontinuing, in the established manner,
activities of construction, reconstruction or expansion.
Article 18. Pre-operation Review of Newly-Built,
Reconstructed, or Expanded Units of Economic
Activities
18.1. The operation of newly-built, reconstructed, or
expanded units of economic activities shall be permitted only if
they comply with the requirements of environmental protection
set forth in the documentation of their construction project.
18.2. Officials of the Department of Environmental
Protection shall be present in the review of newly-built,
reconstructed, or expanded units of economic activities.
Article 19. Operation of Units of Economic Activities
19.1. Prior to operating units of economic activities, legal
and natural persons must obtain a permit ( ecological passport)
for the utilization of natural resources and the discharge of
pollutants into the environment in the manner established by the
Department of Environmental Protection. 19.2. Legal and
natural persons shall operate units of economic activities under
the conditions established in the permit for the utilization of
natural resources and the discharge of pollutants into the
environment and shall not exceed the norms and standards of
environmental quality.
19.3. Legal and natural persons, while operating units of
economic activities which are potentially hazardous to the
environment, must, at their own expense, monitor the degree of
environmental pollution and its impact on the environment,
guarantee that information concerning the pollution be available
to the public, and provide conditions for pollution control.
19.4. Legal and natural persons, while operating units of
economic activities, must keep records of the utilization of
natural resources and the discharge of pollutants in the manner
established by the Department of Environmental Protection of the
Republic of Lithuania.
19.5. Legal and natural persons operating units of economic
activities which do not require permits for the utilization of
natural resources and the discharge of pollutants into the
environment, must comply with the norms and standards of
environmental quality established for such units.
Article 20. Production and Use of Toxic and Injurious
Chemicals
20.1. Legal and natural persons using toxic and injurious
chemicals must comply with the regulations promulgated by
competent state institutions for the utilization, storage,
transportation or dumping of such materials. These persons shall
be responsible for all costs incurred for utilization, storage,
transportation, and dumping.
20.2. Production or importation of toxic or injurious
materials in or into the Republic of Lithuania shall be
permitted only following the state examination.
20.3. Lists of toxic and injurious materials, prepared by
respective departments, shall be approved or renewed by the
Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania and the
Department of Environmental Protection.
20.4. Regulations for the production, transportation, use,
storage and dumping of chemicals having a hazardous impact on the
ozone layer shall be established by the Department of
Environmental Protection of the Republic of Lithuania.
20.5. The importation, stationing, or production of chemical
weapons of mass destruction is prohibited in the Republic of
Lithuania.
Article 21. Production and Use of Radioactive Matter
21.1. In the Republic of Lithuania, both the reprocessing of
radioactive matter used for the production of nuclear weapons or
for fuel elements of nuclear power plants and the reprocessing of
spent nuclear fuel is prohibited.
21.2. In the Republic of Lithuania, the importation,
stationing or production of nuclear weapons is prohibited.
21.3. Regulations for the record- keeping, importation, use,
transportation, storage, and dumping of radioactive matter, as
well as norms of radiation safety shall be established by the
Department of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Health
of the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 22. The Production, Propagation, and Use of
Microorganisms
22.1. Regulations and standards concerning registration of
the sources of microorganisms and other biological pollutants,
and of their production, propagation, importation,
transportation, use, storage and treatment, shall be established
by the Department of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of
Heath of the Republic of Lithuania.
22.2. In the Republic of Lithuania, importation, stationing,
and production of biological weapons is prohibited.
Article 23. Waste Management
23.1. Users of natural resources must keep records of waste
and must comply with regulations concerning the identification,
utilization, storage, dumping, and treatment of waste. Users
shall also be responsible for costs incurred from the management,
storage, dumping, and transportation of waste.
23.2. Legal and natural persons shall be liable for toxic,
injurious, and radioactive waste which is the result of
production until it is recycled or treated in the established
manner.
23.3. Sites for the containment, storage, dumping, and
treatment of toxic and radioactive waste shall be allotted by
the Government of the Republic of Lithuania in the established
manner.
23.4. Toxic, injurious, and radioactive waste shall be
stored, dumped, and treated in special installments or storage
facilities.
23.5. The management of toxic, injurious, and radioactive
waste shall be regulated by the Department of Environmental
Protection. All other waste shall be managed by local
governments.
23.6. The importation of waste into the Republic of
Lithuania for storage, treatment, or dumping is prohibited.
23.7. The regulations for transit transportation of toxic
and radioactive materials shall be established by international
treaties of the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 24. Emergency Situations
24.1. An emergency situation is a hazardous environmental
state which, as the result of nature, accidents, economic
activity, or other events, exceeds standards of environmental
quality.
Areas in which an emergency situation has occurred shall be
declared zones of ecological danger or ecological disaster.
24.2. In accordance with the Department of Environmental
Protection, areas in which the permissible concentrations of
pollutants are constantly exceeded shall be declared zones of
ecological danger by the respective local governments.
24.3. In accordance with the Department of Environmental
Protection, areas in which, as the result of nature, accidents,
economic activities, or other events, the environment has either
degraded irremediably or has become unsuitable for living shall
be declared zones of ecological disaster by the Government of
the Republic of Lithuania.
24.5. In zones of ecological danger or disaster, activities
hazardous to either the people or the environment shall be
suspended, restricted, or prohibited. The administration of zones
of ecological danger shall be determined by the local
governments. In zones of ecological disaster the administration
shall be determined by the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania in conjunction with the Department of Environmental
Protection.
24.6. In the event of an emergency situation, the subjects
of economic activities shall eradicate both the cause and the
consequences, shall inform the public, the local governments, the
Ministry of Health, the Government, and the Department of
Environmental Protection, and shall fulfil other regulations
established by the administration.
24.7. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania and the
local governments shall have the right to utilize special
services, organizations, and residents in order to eradicate the
causes and consequences of ecological disasters, and to adopt
decisions concerning the evacuation of inhabitants.
24.8. Costs incurred from the eradication of ecological
disasters shall be the responsibility of the legal and natural
persons at fault. In other cases they shall be the responsibility
of the State.
CHAPTER V
THE SYSTEM OF MONITORING THE ENVIRONMENTAL STATE AND RESTRICTING
NEGATIVE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
Article 25. The System of Monitoring the Environmental
State
25.1. A uniform system of ecological monitoring shall be
established for the surveillance of the environmental state and
its components. Local governments, ministries, departments, and
other users of natural resources shall administer municipal,
branch, and enterprise monitoring.
25.2. The content, structure, and procedures of enterprise,
municipal, and complex monitoring shall be established in
accordance with the monitoring regulations which are sanctioned
by the Department of Environmental Protection upon agreement with
the Government.
Article 26. The System of Restricting Negative
Environmental Effects
26.1. The negative effects of economic activities on the
environment shall be restricted by norms, standards, limitations,
legal measures, and economic regulations.
26.1 In the Republic of Lithuania, standards of
environmental quality shall be established concerning the
concentration of pollutants in the environment and in the
individual components of the environment, the discharge of
pollutants into the environment, the utilization of chemicals and
other substances which are hazardous to the environment, the
utilization of natural resources, noise, vibration,
electromagnetic fields and other effects, radiation safety, and
general anthropogenic activities.
26.3. An ecological examination must be carried out before
the production, manufacturing, and introduction of new technology
takes place.
Article 27. The Ecological Examination
27.2. The Department of Environmental Protection shall
organize and carry out the state ecological examination. State,
departmental, and public ecological examinations shall be
executed according to the laws and regulations already
established.
Specialists from both Lithuanian and international
organizations may be asked to join the state ecological
examination commission.
27.3. The verdict of the state ecological examination is
obligatory for all legal and natural persons.
CHAPTER VI
THE ECONOMIC MECHANISM OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Article 28. Economic Means of Environmental Protection
Ecological and economic interests of the State shall be
coordinated by the economic mechanism of environmental protection
set forth in the laws and other legal acts of the Republic of
Lithuania. This consists of:
7) other ecological taxes and measures.
Article 29. Implementation Methods of Economic
Environmental Protection Measures
The introduction of low waste technology and the
manufacturing of ecological production shall be promoted by tax
reduction, credit privileges, and state subsidies.
Article 30. State Financing of Environmental Protection
Measures
30.1. Environmental protection measures shall be financed by
the users of natural resources, the state government, and local
governments, in accordance with appropriate legislative acts.
30.2. State budget funds allocated for environmental
protection shall be utilized in accordance with the directions
and programs determined by the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania and the Department of Environmental Protection.
30.3. Additional sources of environmental financing shall be
the State Fund for Environmental Protection and the local
government funds for environmental protection.
30.4. The Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania shall
establish the procedure for the formation and distribution of the
State Fund of Environmental Protection.
CHAPTER VII
LIABILITY FOR VIOLATION OF THE LAW OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AND THE SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES CONCERNING ISSUES OF
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Article 31. Legal Responsibility
Legal and natural persons who violate the regulations of the
law of environmental protection shall be subject to
disciplinary, administrative, material, and criminal liability
under the laws of the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 32. Forms of the Compensation for Damage
Caused to the Environment by Unlawful
Activities
Legal and natural persons who, by way of unlawful
activities, cause damage to the environment, to the life or
health of a given person(s), or to the property or interests of
other legal and natural persons, must compensate all losses, and,
if possible, must to restore the environmental state of the
object in question.
The Government of the Republic of Lithuania, upon the
agreement of the Department of Environmental Protection, shall
establish the methods and rates to compensate for damages caused
to the environment.
Article 33. Claims for Compensation of Damage Caused
by Unlawful Activities
The following natural and legal persons shall have the right
to make claims for damages caused by unlawful activities:
34.1. Local governments, the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania, the Department of Environmental Protection, the
Supreme Council, Arbitration, and the Court shall, within their
jurisdiction, settle disputes on issues concerning environmental
protection in the manner established by law.
34.2. Disputes between legal and natural persons of the
Republic of Lithuania and foreign states shall be settled in the
manner established by law of the Republic of Lithuania, unless
international agreements of the Republic of Lithuania provide
otherwise.
CHAPTER VIII
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA IN THE
AREA OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Article 35. The Participation of the Republic of
Lithuania in International Cooperation on
Issues Concerning Environmental Protection
35.1. The Republic of Lithuania, guiding itself by
universally recognized and proclaimed principles, shall conclude
international agreements on issues concerning environmental
protection, and shall participate in the activities of
international environmental protection organizations.
35.2. The Republic of Lithuania, cooperating with other
states on issues concerning environmental protection, shall:
36.1. The laws of the Republic of Lithuania must comply with
international agreements, ratified by Lithuania, on issues
concerning environmental protection and universally recognized
norms of environmental protection.
Lithuania on issues concerning environmental protection
establishes regulations other than those provided by the laws of
the Republic of Lithuania, the regulations must conform with the
norms and standards of environmental quality established in the
Republic of Lithuania.
Bronius Kuzmickas
Vice President
Supreme Council
Republic of Lithuania
Vilnius,
21 January, 1992
No.I-2223