The present Republic of Cyprus became independent in 1960. Since 1974, the part of the Island is occupied by the Turkish Government and the Southern Cyprus is the part controlled by the present Government of the Republic of Cyprus. The executive power is exercised by the President of the Republic through a Council of Ministers composed of 11 Ministers appointed by him, the legislative powers by the House of Representative1 and the judiciary powers by the island's separate and independent judiciary - the Supreme Court of the Republic, the Assize Courts and the District Courts -. In addition there are the Independent Offices of the Republic which do not come under any Ministry i.e. the Attorney-General's Office, the Audit Office of the Republic, the Public Service Commission, the Planning Commission, the Planning Bureau and the Educational Service Commission.
In general terms the Council of Ministers is the supreme body of the country responsible for the preparation, design and approval of the general economic, social and environmental policies of Cyprus. The Planning Commission, headed by the President of the Republic, is established by decision of the Council of Ministers and is the country's central planning agency at the top of the planning structure of the Government. The Planning Bureau is the economic and administrative arm of the Planning Commission staffed with economists and managers. The Bureau is administratively attached to the Minister of Finance, but its Permanent Secretary reports directly to the Chairman of the Planning Commission.
From an administrative point of view, Cyprus is divided into six Districts (Nicosia, Famagusta2, Limassol, Paphos, Larnaca and Kyrenia3). At the head of each District, there is a District Officer who is essentially the extended arm of the Central Government and usually a powerful person. He reports and is accountable to the Minister of Interior. The general local administrative structure in Cyprus operates through a 3 level structure of independent bodies (whose members are elected by universal suffrage of Cyprus citizens), with the Municipal Councils at the top, Improvement Boards in the middle and Village Commissions at the lowest level.1
2 Famagusta is located in the Northern part of Cyprus and is presently under Turkish control.
The government agencies having authority over the development of aquaculture operations are manifold and exist at all levels: central, intermediate and local.
At central level they are:
At intermediate level there are:
Finally at local level: the Irrigation Associations.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources is the main Ministry for policy making in connection with fisheries2 development and related aspects, such as marine environment protection, fishing effort control, research, conservation of waters3 etc..
2 The term fisheries includes here capture fisheries and aquaculture.
The Department of Fisheries, created in 1964, employs about 50 persons whom 11 are scientists. The Department deals with the following subject matters: fishery development and management, aquaculture development and management, research work in relation to the above, pollution combating, monitoring and research, conservation work on aquatic species (turtles etc.) and habitats, hydrography and oceanography, development and management of recreation fishing and law enforcement. The facilities available to the Department for purposes of water quality monitoring are: a water quality laboratory, a biological laboratory and a chemical laboratory. In addition, the Department is using other laboratories, for instance the Central Government Laboratory, the laboratory of the Agriculture Department or of the Geological Department. The Culture and Inland Waters Division, within this Department deals with research and development work in aquaculture both in fresh and marine waters inter alia by means of its two state owned aquaculture stations.1 The research areas for aquaculture development are:
This Department is empowered to issue the aquaculture licences. Aware of the importance of collaborating with other Departments the DOF maintains close relations and consultations with the other departments of the Ministry, and inter alia those listed hereinafter. Further, the DOF is the focal point for MEDPOL2 for the development of measures for control of pollution from land-based sources, for co-operation in cases of maritime emergencies and for the programme on especially protected areas.
Finally, within the DOF a “Technical Committee on Aquaculture Development” is in the process of being created under the auspices of MEDRAP II.3 The terms of reference of this technical committee have still to be finalized. The understanding is that this body will be a forum for discussion between the DOF, the Planning Bureau, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the fish farmers and its role will be an advisory one in aquaculture development for Cyprus. This committee should be composed of representatives of the DOF, the Planning Bureau, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, of the Pancyprian Aquaculture Association1 and the Cyprus Fish Farmers Association.2
This department deals with fish pathology related problems, import conditions for animals, including fish, and the prevention and eradication of animal infectious diseases.
This Department is responsible for proposing to the Minister policies for those water resources and development waterworks which are relevant to irrigation and other agricultural aspects of water planning. In addition through this Department, the Ministry acts as a technical agency for water resources planning, design, construction and maintenance in connection with all types of water works and sewage treatment plants.
The Director of the Water Development Department chairs the “Sewerage Standards Technical Committee” which sets standards for effluent discharge and effluent treatments, whether effluents from industrial or non industrial sources. This Technical Committee is presently working on the standards for effluent discharge into the sea given the fact that problems arose recently as regards the discharge of effluents from central sewerage treatment installations of coastal towns into the sea.
In the forthcoming years, the Cyprus Government intends to set up a semi-governmental organization for the purposes of coordinating and organizing the country's water supply works. The WDD is likely to play a key role in this new organization.
This Department which deals daily with the exploitation of the Island's natural resources such as mineral deposits, groundwater and non metallic minerals, can be very helpful to the DOF in that it contributes to the analysis and preservation of environmental features and the improvement of the environmental quality for purposes of soil conservation.
2 This group represents the owners of the fish farms.
This Service was created in 1981 and its main responsibilities are:
coordination and monitoring of the implementation of environmental programmes, measures and policies;
provision of advisory services to governmental bodies on environmental matters;
identification of environmental problems, provision of information and promotion of environmental awareness;
preparation of specialized studies and reports on the state of the environment;
preparation of proposals for programmes and measures relevant to environmental policies, including proposals for environmental quality standards;
co-ordination of co-operation between various Government sectors and international organizations on environmental matters; and
evaluation of environmental impact assessments and monitoring their application.
The decisions related to environmental impact assessments and the control over enforcement of decisions is in the hands of relevant ministries, with the Environmental Service and/or the Inter-Ministerial Environment Committee expected to play a coordinating role.2 Presently this Service is understaffed and yet not ready to fulfill this role. With regards to the protection of the environment it is important to mention that Cyprus is still in the process of implementing a comprehensive national environmental policy as well as the institutional and legal framework supporting the implementation of that policy. Everything is going rather slowly, and in an uncoordinated and fragmented way. Consequently several sectoral environmental policies were elaborated as the need for them arose.
This Ministry is the principal Ministry concerned with the legal aspects of water and land resources planning, development and management. It exercises powers through its Town and Country Planning Department and its District Officers located in each of the six Districts of the Island. Because the Ministry of Interior has a large jurisdiction over local government matters, it unavoidably has a wide policy function to fulfil in connection with land uses, coastal zone management, tourist development, water supply/uses, etc., several matters which might impinge on the development of aquaculture.
The Town and Country Planning Department is responsible for preparing the Island's Plan, local plans, area schemes for parts of the local plan areas, and statements of policy for rural areas. As seen, it is the authority granting the Planning permission, an essential document, a precondition for effectively starting aquaculture operations. In addition, the Town and Country Planning Law, 1972 mainly administered by this Department (and the Planning Board) is by far the most essential piece of legislation regulating land development with far reaching environmental implications. In this respect, the Town and Country Department by means of the Planning permission tries to link the timely identification of potential environmental problems associated with future developments envisaged in the country.
As yet, even though the development control sections of the Town and Country Planning Law, 1972, have been implemented, the control of building development still lies simultaneously with the Municipalities and District Officers by reason of their powers to issue building permits. In the exercise of their powers they are now (since Dec.'90) guided by development plans prepared by and advised by the Department' Officers which are legally binding on them.1 However, as this situation is new, the intensity of control over developments in the country will depend on the extent to which the Minister exercises his overriding powers and to whom he delegates his powers. Indeed the implementation of this Law is still in its infancy and it is too early to foresee how effective the management tools provided for will be. Past experience in Cyprus has shown that laws and regulations are not always enforced and that intermediate as well as local authorities have shown at times too much caution in prosecuting offenders. Even Court decisions do not always function as a deterrent.
The scope of this Service is mainly to protect the fauna of Cyprus (especially rare and endangered species) and to regulate and organize hunting activities in the Island. As such, it issues the hunting licences, prescribes the hunting seasons, zones, or other restrictions, declares certain areas Permanent Game Reserves, etc.. Obtaining a hunting licence by the fish farmer might be relevant with respect to problems relating to predators control.
The Ministry of Finance is responsible for financial control and budgeting. It is the main controlling authority on all matters of budget and expenditures through the Accountant General and through budgeting officers. It addition to these financial duties, the Minister of Finance is also the Chairman of the Planning Bureau which is the main planning authority at the central level and which coordinates the activities of the various ministries and departments.
As stated earlier, the Planning Bureau is the government agency responsible at the national level for all long and short term planning to meet the needs of the economic sector as well as government departments. As such the Planning Bureau in general is responsible for the preparation of overall, regional and sectoral plans for the balanced development of the economy of the country and for the timely implementation of these plans. By virtue of its mandate, it seems to be one of the key bodies making proposals for cross-sectoral national environmental policies.
This Ministry is dealing with tourism, the establishment of industrial estates, in promotion, control and development of trade including (import and export licences).
With regard to aquaculture, this Ministry is particularly relevant for the purposes of obtaining the discharge consent. Anybody seeking to obtain such consent needs to apply for it to this Ministry. In addition, this Minister of Labour and Social Insurance has been declared as the Enforcement Authority together with the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources for the protection from pollution of the waters of Cyprus.1
Regarding more particularly the procedure concerning the consent to discharge, the Minister of Labour and Social Insurance must transmit a copy of the application to the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources upon receipt of it. The latter, before setting the conditions, issuing the consent, varying, preparing or deciding whether to grant the consent is obliged to consult the Technical Committee on Environment Protection2 save where standard conditions relating to certain effluents have been set up. The legal consultant believes that even though the procedure is clearly stated in the law, the real implementation thereof is not yet operational. Further, according to the procedure provided for in the Control of Water Pollution Law, No 69/91 (English version), the final decision whether to issue the licence and on what conditions lies with the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The legal consultant believes that the Control of Water Pollution Law in its final and enacted version may state differently in this respect as she was told differently during the interviews hold with Cypriot officials. Provision is also made for contentious applications to be referred to a Committee of Ministers, established by the Council of Ministers. This Committee will consider the matter and make a final decision which shall be communicated to the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources and to the Minister of Labour and Social Insurance.1
1 The Control of Water Pollution Law, Section 3.
Any District and any Municipality may send an observer to a meeting, who shall have a right to speak but not to vote.
The Chairman convenes the meetings. However, upon the request of one of its members, the Chairman shall convene a meeting to be held within 14 days.
Moreover, within the future institutional and legal framework for the protection of the environment this Ministry is expected to play a key role in defining the criteria and standards control of water, air, soil and noise pollution.
Through its various services, this Ministry is responsible for the prevention of diseases, the issuing of sanitary certificates regarding fish (import/export) and finally, within the framework of MEDPOL for the measuring of microbial pollution of beaches and recreational waters in Cyprus.
The Cyprus Ports Authority (CPA) is a “semi-governmental” organization, belonging to the Ministry of Communications and Works with jurisdiction over all ports of Cyprus. It is fully responsible for the management, development, improvement and conservation of, more specifically, the Larnaca and Limassol ports with surrounding land and water areas. In those areas the Cyprus Port Authority is involved in the organization of the harbours, in leasing of land and water areas for certain purposes, such as aquaculture, cargo operations or storage facilities, in authorizing the construction of certain developments, etc.. The Cyprus Ports Authority works on a commercial basis and has actually a so-called “semi-government status” allowing for more flexibility and business-like decisions. It also gives attention to environmental matters. For instance, it has set up a waste collection system for vessels in the Ports of Cyprus, and plans are under way for the installation of oil residue collection facilities at major ports.
Both institutions are part of the institutional framework for environmental protection which is designed along the following principles:
1 The Control of Water Pollution Law, No 69/1991, Schedule 1. Part II.
Operative since 1988, the CPE is an advisory body to the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources in order to assist him in the formulation and promotion of government environmental policies and operates simultaneously as a link between the Government and the private sector. Special emphasis is put on aspects of environmentally sound economic development, improvement of 8the existing legal framework and public environmental awareness.
The Council is chaired by the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources and its members are representatives from governmental as well as non-governmental agencies.
This Committee has been established to advise the government on the formulation of policy objectives for purposes of environmental protection and to act as a coordinator among Ministries. Moreover, the IEC processes and refines at Government level major environmental issues under discussion by the CPE or in the process of being submitted to the Council of Ministers. It is chaired by the Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources and its members are the Director Generals of six Ministries2, of the Planning Bureau, of the Cyprus Tourism Organization and the Director of the Town and Country Planning Department.
The overall impression of the legal consultant is that Cyprus has been and still is very cautious in dealing with and clearing up the environmental problems. It seems difficult to find a compromise between economic interests and the protection of the environment. Moreover, the present institutional framework for the purposes of environmental protection and conservation being still in its infancy appears to be hampered in dealing effectively with the abundance of environmental problems because of:
too much fragmentation and “ad hoc” delegation of powers regarding the management of environment-related problems;
the powers are not always delegated to the appropriate authority; for instance it is questionable whether the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance is the most appropriate authority to deal with the control of water pollution;
the CPE and IEC, apparently key government agencies in the field of environment, cannot enforce their decisions nor give binding advice.
At the intermediate level, the District Officer, as the local representative or extended arm of the central Government, is a key person for the administration and development of its District. He reports to the Minister of Interior and is accountable to him. As such, he is the authority issuing various permits: the building permit, the foreshore permit, authorizations relating to the use of water, etc. As seen in the study on the legal aspects, the District Officer has also some regulatory powers regarding certain matters such as restricting the activities on the foreshore, or in other protected areas, or for the use and fair distribution of water resources. In addition, being the chief coordinator and liaison of the activities of all ministries in the District, various committees are established, most often under the Chairmanship of the District Officer with members comprised of representatives of the central government department concerned and responsible for the implementation, administration and management of government policies within the District. For instance, the Project Water Works Committee is amongst others responsible for proposing recommendations on the development, conservation, management and efficient use of water resources within the District and for the management, operation and administration of all water projects within the District constructed at Government expense. Another example are the District Environment Committees which are in the process of being created in order to discuss environment related matters of local interest and to handle specific environmental problems.
The authorities which might be relevant at local level are the Irrigation Divisions and Irrigation Associations, both dealing with fresh water related issues within their own areas of jurisdiction. (village level)
Further in the municipal towns, for instance, the mayor is responsible for issuing the building permit, the Municipal Water Boards deal with fresh water use related matters, etc..
It is possible, indeed, probable, that some local committees or boards are not referred to in this report for the simple reason that, given the limited time available, it was impossible to collect the necessary information in order to explore more fully the complex matrix of administrative structures and of the links from central to local level and vice versa in Cyprus.
