Report on implementation of the NATURA 2000 NETWORK in Europe

Report ID: 50

Characteristics of the Natura 2000 network

Natura 2000 is an EU wide network of nature protection areas established under the 1992 Habitats Directive.
As stated in the European Commission strategy to protect Europe's most important wildlife areas, the aim of the network is to assure the long-term survival of Europe's most valuable and threatened species and habitats. It comprises Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) designated by Member States under the Habitats Directive, and Special Protection Areas (SPA) designated under the 1979 Birds Directive.

The establishment of protected areas also fulfils a Community obligation under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.

The selection of Natura 2000 sites is based exclusively on scientific criteria, such as the size and density of populations of target species and the ecological quality and area of target habitat types present on the site.

The Directive does not lay down rules regarding the consultation process to be followed in selecting the
sites. This is for Member States to determine.

The directives do not say how much land and marine areas are to be included in Natura 2000 network. This will depend on the biological richness of the different regions. If, for example, a Member State is particularly rich in specific species and habitats, it is expected to designate sites in proportion to this wealth of biodiversity.

Although the establishment of Natura 2000 is not yet complete, an area equivalent to more than 15% of EU territory has now been proposed for conservation under the network.

Natura 2000 is not a system of strict nature reserves where all human activities are excluded. Human activities can continue on Natura 2000 sites, provided the future management is compatible with the objectives of biodiversity protection.

New activities or developments within Natura 2000 sites are not prohibited a priori, but are to be judged on a case by case basis. Procedure is defined in the Habitats Directive for assessment and subsequent decisions relating to development proposals that are likely to have an impact on designated sites.

Member States must ensure full compliance with the legal requirements of Natura 2000, regardless of whether they are in receipt of structural funds. However, it is particularly important to ensure compliance in situations that involve Community funded programmes.

In the light of this concern the Commission has already informed Member States that failure to present lists of Natura 2000 sites could result in the suspension of payments under certain structural funds programmes.

The threat of suspension of payments from such programmes was a precautionary measure to ensure that
Community funded programmes would not contribute to irreparable damage to sites before they have been officially proposed for protection under Natura 2000 policy.

Report on auditing the flood control preparedness in the Upper Tisza region

Report ID: 73

The area of the basin of the Upper Tisza is one of Europe’s wettest regions, at high risk from floods. The fundamental cause of the frequent and sizeable floods characteristic of the region, is the hydrometeorological and sinoptic situation, as well as the special location and structure of the beds of mountain rivers, soils and mountain rocks. Floods cause major damage to Ukraine and Hungary alike, and this determines to a large extent the parties’ cooperation in preventing the damaging effects of water and averting the consequences of floods.

The execution of a parallel audit covering the flood control preparedness in the Upper Tisza Region was preceded by an agreement signed in Budapest, on 4 March 2004, by the Presidents of the State Audit Office of Hungary and the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine aimed to monitor the implementation of the contents of the Transboundary Water Agreement signed between their respective countries in 1999, which serves as international legal basis for the cooperation between Hungary and Ukraine in respect of transboundary waters.

The parallel audit was integrated, in case of the Hungarian State Audit Office, in the performance audit task entitled “Audit of Preparations for the Prevention of Natural Disasters”, while in the case of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine it was a part of the task entitled “Analysis and Audit of the Execution of the State Programme Covering the Complex Flood Control Preparedness of the Catchment Area of the Tisza River and the Sub-Carpathian Region for the Period 2002 to 2006 and the Forecast until 2015”. The audit offices submitted their respective reports to the legislative bodies of their countries.

The joint report presents the summary of the findings made on the Hungarian and Ukrainian sides, as well as the details of the joint conclusions concerning the fields of cooperation, which cover the transboundary waters.

SOURCE: https://rp.gov.ua/IntCooperation/IntAudits/?id=47&lang=eng

Building of the Litschberg Basic tunnel and the Szekszrd Danube bridge

Report ID: 76

In the summer of 2002, the Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO) celebrated the 125th anniversary of its founding. Friendships among the invited foreign guests were strengthened and there was a resolve to
continue the successful cooperation. An agreement was made with Hungary to organise a parallel audit
on investments in the area of transport infrastructure and to focus on the following topics:

• The Szekszárd bridge construction investment within the context of motorway investments in Hungary
• Tunnel construction investments within the context of the New Rail Link through the Alps (NRLA).

Apart from reinforcing and intensifying relations, the joint activities are intended to contribute to enhancing the specialist knowledge of both audit authorities.

In order for this approach to take place, delegations visited Hungary in the summer of 2003 and visited Switzerland in the spring of 2005. The revised work is now published in a joint report which will be released by both audit authorities within the scope of EUROSAI and EU activities.

National parks in Polish-Slovak border area Audit Report

Report ID: 145

In 2005, the Supreme Chamber of Control of the Republic of Poland (NIK) and the Supreme Audit Office of the Slovak Republic (NKU),  performed a parallel audit of the functioning of national parks with regard to preservation, sustainable use and restoration of natural resources.

The audit was carried in accordance with the agreement on cooperation concluded between the NIK and the NKU on 9 February 1998 on the basis of the INTOSAI auditing standards. The total area of the audited national parks located in the borderland between Poland and Slovakia was 46,340 hectares on the Polish side, and 107,355 hectares on the Slovak side.

The objective of the audit was to assess:

• the effectiveness of the tasks performed with a view to conserve natural resources in selected national parks as well as to examine whether the resources and funds of the parks had been used in an economical and efficient manner,

• the impact of the binding legal regulations on ensuring appropriate protection of ecosystems of national parks,

• the effectiveness of the activities taken by wildlife conservation bodies.

Source: https://www.nku.gov.sk/documents/10272/1542112/2007+-+National+parks.pdf

Environmental audit on the three-border area of Hungary Slovenia and Austria

Report ID: 190

The territory of Hungary includes the deepest parts of the Carpathian basin, the country’s rivers originate in the neighbor countries and their catchments areas are also located mostly there. Due to this fact of Hungarian natural geography and to the prevailing movement of air in the region, the water and air pollutions occurring in the neighbor countries can speedily reach Hungarian territory and the chance of prevention is small. Intensive international cooperation is required for the timely protection against, respectively the treatment of unfavorable environmental impacts, which can affect the country. The government is to coordinate the enforcement of citizens’ rights for a healthy environment with the implementation of environmental treaties and agreements concluded with other countries and international organizations. Interstate treaties were concluded with the aim to protect surface waters and source water bodies in the border areas, and continuous and organized cooperation is in place on the basis of treaties between the local and central agencies of the neighboring countries. The audit targeted primarily the activities of and cooperation between the institutions, authorities being responsible at the regional level. In addition, the total amount of resources coming into the region for funding the running and capital expenses of nature and environment protection was quantified, and the audit included also an assessment of the cooperation realized between the competent bodies of the countries. The audit strove to find an answer to the question of what influence the above-mentioned resources and activities had on meeting the objectives of environment and nature protection, on the condition of environmental elements (i.e. air, waters, soil). The audit assessed also the risk factors with a potential bearing on the environmental condition of the region in question. The audit covered the government ministry responsible for the governance and control of environment and nature protection, as well as the institutions being under its control and providing specific technical services regionally. Activities of concerned local governments were also covered by the audit. The years 2000-2004 and the first quarter of 2005 were subject to the audit.