The Italian Environment Protection and Technical Services
Agency, APAT (Agenzia per la Protezione dell'Ambiente e per i
servizi Tecnici), established in 1999 by the
Legislative
decree No 300/1999, par.(38), carries out scientific and
technical activities at national level, providing protection,
enhancement and improvement for the environment, the water
resources and the soil. The set up of the Agency, as enacted by the
Italian Head of State Decree, the
DPR No. 207/2002, was
accomplished by merging the former National Environment Protection
Agency, ANPA (Agenzia Nazionale per la Protezione dell'Ambiente),
and the National Technical Services Department, DSTN (Dipartimento
per i Servizi Tecnici Nazionali), formerly part of the Premier
Cabinet Office.
Law by decree No. 262/2006, converted with amendments into the Law
286/2006, establishes that APAT is a public law juridical person
with scientific and technical autonomy, self-government as regards
policy development, strategic and operational objectives. The
Agency also owns its operational budget and acts under the
vigilance and policy guidance of the
Italian Ministry for the Environment
and the Protection of Land and Sea. Besides APAT operates under
the control of the Corte dei Conti, the Italian institution for the
public finance audit.
The Chairman, the Board of Directors and the Board of Auditors are
bodies of the Agency.
The technical-administrative management is carried out by an
Executive Director, who is also responsible for the fulfilment of
the Board of Directors resolutions.
The new Statute, that is supposed to acknowledge the organizational
modifications established by Law by decree No. 262/2006,
hasn’t come into force yet. Up to that time, the Statute and
all the rules provided by DPR No. 207/2002 are still in force, but
just if they are consistent with the same Law by decree No.
262/2006.
The Agency performs specific activities, according to a three
annual programme, updated every year, which sets priorities,
strategies, aims and resources, in order to accomplish the
directives of the Ministry for the Environment and the Protection
of Land and Sea. With regard to its functions, the Agency also
carries on activities of consulting, service and support to the
Public Administration.
The Agency is organized in Departments, Interdepartmental Services
and Offices directly subjected to the Executive Director.
In order to promote the coordinated development of the national
environmental controls system, the Executive Director chairs a
Federal Board (Consiglio Federale) inside Apat, composed by the
legal delegates of the ARPAs and APPAs (the Environment Agencies of
the Italian regions and autonomous provinces) and a delegate of the
Conferenza dei Presidenti delle Regioni, the Italian regional
Presidents Association.
