Ministerial Decree No. 362 validating the Regulation on the Ministry of Environmental Protection.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection is the authorized institution in the sphere of environmental protection, rational nature management, hydrometeorology, entitled to carry out the state supervision over the activity of the ministries, institutions, organizations and enterprises irrespectively of the form of departmental subordination and the form of property (for the physical persons), to carry out the common environmental policy for the purpose of ensuring sustainable socio-economic development and environmental safety of the population. The Ministry and its territorial branches shall form the integral system of monitoring and supervision in the sphere of hydrometeorology, environmental protection and nature management. The Ministry shall have the following tasks: 1) carrying out common state environmental policy in the sphere of land tenure, water management, forestry, mining, the use and the protection of the atmospheric air, the use of wildlife (including fish) and vegetable realm, protected areas and hydrological processes; 2) ensuring access to ecological information regarding the state of environment; 3) early warning system development; 4) organization and coordination of the environmental rate setting. The Ministry shall carry out the following functions: 1) data collection and reporting; 2) granting access to the governmental bodies and the population to environmental information including natural disasters; 3) elaboration and validation of environmental standards; 4) environmental audit. The Ministry shall issue licences for the following activities: 1) emissions and discharge of pollutants; 2) extraction of minerals; 3) disposal of industrial and domestic waste; 4) special water management; 5) water-well drilling; 6) prospecting.