SLOVAK ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, 2004

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000042

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SUBJECT: SLOVAK ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, 2004

REF: (A) 04 BRATISLAVA 727, (B) 04 BRATISLAVA 483, (C) 04
BRATISLAVA 1064

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1. (U) Summary. Slovakia's economic fortunes have had a sharp
impact on both the country's environment and the policies that
manage it. Following independence in 1993, public interest in
the environment waned as economic necessities took on a more
dominant role. Today, even though the economy is currently
making rapid gains, most Slovaks still appear more concerned
about their financial future than preserving the country's
natural resources. Nevertheless, Slovakia is proud of its
natural assets and many environmental topics receive widespread
attention. There is reason for optimism that the GOS will
support USG policies regarding genetically modified organisms
(GMOs) and the GLOBE Program. In addition, the GOS appears to be
making progress on recycling plastics and water issues.
Slovakia's future plans regarding nuclear energy and resource
management remain uncertain and they will likely have a large
impact on the environment. End Summary.

PAINTING A BLEAK PICTURE
--------------

2. (SBU) In recent contacts with the Ministry of Environment
(MOE),NGOs, and others, Econoffs have received ominous reports
about environmental protection in Slovakia. For instance,
respondents in a recent public opinion poll only ranked
environmental issues as the 12th most important category out of

14. This was a significant decline from similar polls conducted
through previous decades when environmental protection ranked as
high as number three. In the past, the Green Party was active in
the GOS, however today, due to internal strife and a lack of
popular support, the party is all but disbanded. Although there
is an environmental committee in parliament, it meets
infrequently and members of NGOs and the MOE commonly refer to
membership in it as a "punishment" for MPs. In addition, the
Minister of Environment Laszlo Miklos, despite his scientific
expertise, lacks sufficient political influence to attain large-
scale financing from EU structural funds, the UN, or other
sources.


3. (U) The GOS's emphasis on economic reform has also fostered
public disengagement from the environment. The Minister of
Economy, Pavol Rusko, is well known for dismissing environmental
concerns that negatively impact business ventures. Rusko and the
Ministry of Economy (MOEC) are frequently accused of omitting or
performing insufficient environmental impact assessments on
development projects. In one case, construction of a highway
vital to Slovakia's largest foreign investment ever, Kia's USD
1.5 billion auto plant, had to be stopped because an
environmental impact assessment had not been performed at all.
Also, in a recent report on tourism the MOEC wrote 15 pages
disparaging environmental protection policies as the only
obstacles to large ski resorts and the income and jobs they would
generate. In another recent case, the Regional Environmental
Center (REC) independently performed an assessment where it
determined that over 1,000 trees would be needlessly destroyed in
2004 MOEC urban renewal projects in Bratislava. As a result of
these and other examples, many NGOs and activists in Slovakia are
concerned that environmental problems often do not receive the
necessary political attention, or lose out to economic
considerations.

BUT IN REALITY
--------------

4. (U) Despite this negative appearance, people do care and much
is being done to preserve the natural environment in Slovakia.
Environmental issues are commonly addressed in public and in the
media. NGOs are using EU structural funds on projects such as
sustainable development, agricultural modernization, cleaner
energy sources, flood prevention, and forest management. In
November 2004 Slovaks anguished as a major windstorm hit the High
Tatras mountain region and flattened trees in a 240 square
kilometer area, which led to a surprisingly large number of
donations to help restore Slovakia's "national treasure" (see
reftel C). Furthermore, the aforementioned highway project was
in fact delayed because of the MOEC's negligence and eventually a
thorough environmental impact report was completed. Some of the
major issues confronting Slovakia today are detailed below.

GMO PLANTS, SEEDS, AND PRODUCTS
--------------

5. (SBU) The use of GMOs has been portrayed by NGOs and the
local media as an imperative environmental safety issue. In
response, the MOE has worked with NGOs to clarify information and
create a clear and fact-based GOS position on GMOs. Before
accession to the EU in May 2004, there was only one GMO approved
for usage in Slovakia, but upon accession, all food, feed, and

seed items already accepted by the EU also became legal in
Slovakia. However, according to Dr. Igor Ferencik from the
Biosafety Department of the MOE, there still exists confusion
over the use of genetically modified seeds. The debate consists
of whether seeds may or must be approved by each individual
country in addition to EU processes. In Slovakia, it is the
responsibility of the Ministries of Health and Agriculture, which
have not yet formulated a position, to provide this
authorization. The MOE is expected to ensure that Slovak law is
aligned with EU and other international regulations, as well as
provide expert counsel to the GOS. In September 2004, the MOE
drafted a GMO favorable recommendation to parliament, though
acceptance and implementation remain in question. According to
Ferencik, conservatives in parliament are consistently anti-GMO,
while many others have yet to express an opinion. As a result,
although the Slovak MOE is far more amenable to GMOs than its
counterparts in other countries of the region, it is still not
certain whether the GOS will actively lobby for such a position
in the EU or other international organizations.


6. (SBU) The Slovak public remains largely ignorant or
uninterested in the GMO debate. According to a 2003 poll by the
MOE, only 25 percent of Slovaks could define the term GMO. Of
those polled, 58 percent were accepting of the general use of
GMOs, though only 34 percent favored them for human consumption.
Anecdotally, individuals from both the MOE and NGOs have
indicated that Slovaks do not care so much about the safety of
GMO products as much as the prices in grocery stores. They
further opined that it is easy for Austrians to decry GMOs and be
overly environmentally friendly when their wages and pensions are
so high. According to Ferencik, there are a few food products
currently sold in Slovak grocery stores as well as several
clandestine GOS approved field trials where GMO products are
grown. Many Slovak farmers have expressed a desire to use GMOs
in order to increase yields and save money.


7. (SBU) However, the media and some NGOs, like Greenpeace, are
running alarmist campaigns aimed at frightening Slovaks of the
perceived dangers of GMOs. Greenpeace recently trumpeted finding
a GMO product in a local grocery store, which local journalists
vilified even though the product in question is legal under EU
regulations and was clearly labeled. In addition, Greenpeace has
made high-profile protests at local grocery stores for simply not
guaranteeing that they would not offer GMO products for sale.
(According to Greenpeace, large grocery chains have made such
assurances in Western European nations but not in Central
European nations like Slovakia, the Czech Republic, or Hungary.)
The MOE is critical of Greenpeace's methods, indicating that
trial GMO fields must remain hidden in order to protect them from
vandalism or outright destruction. Other environmental NGOs are
also drastically anti-GMO, and claim that decades of testing
would be required before such products could be considered safe
for human consumption. As a result, it is not yet known in what
direction public opinion or the GOS will ultimately swing, but
for now, the USG has a GMO ally in the MOE and should capitalize
on it while the outlook remains favorable.

PLASTIC BOTTLE RECYCLING
--------------

8. (U) Currently in Slovakia, almost all plastic (PET) bottles
end up in landfills instead of being recycled. For years the MOE
has planned to introduce a new PET recycling initiative based on
a German model where individuals are tasked with returning PET
products to retailers who are then responsible for recycling. To
ensure participation, a deposit on PET bottles is added to the
purchase price. The Slovak public favors the program and the
fully refundable deposit price has been set at four Slovak Crowns
(USD 0.12).


9. (SBU) The project has not moved forward, however, due largely
to opposition from the MOEC, which many believe is under the
influence of industrial lobbyists. According to the Head of the
Waste Management Department of the MOE, Peter Gallovic, however,
it remains unclear who the lobbyists are. Bottlers such as Coke
or Pepsi stand to save money by purchasing cheaper recycled
bottles. Large grocery chains, even though they must bear the
additional logistical costs, have publicly encouraged the new
system in public relations promotions. According to Gallovic,
plastics and chemical supply sources are the most plausible
source for the strong lobby against the new system.


10. (SBU) Gallovic also noted that the MOE hopes that an
American company, Plastipak, will lobby on behalf of the plan to
the MOEC. Plastipak plans to build a multi-faceted plant in
eastern Slovakia that might also include a recycling operation
that could service the Central European region and make the
process cheaper, encourage industrial development, and create
jobs. However, Plastipak is not actively lobbying the GOS on
this contentious subject and has chosen to take a "hands-off"

approach.


11. (SBU) Regardless, the MOE is building as much evidence and
support as possible before confronting the MOEC openly in
parliament. Success or failure of the system could have a region-
wide impact as, according to Gallovic, Poland, Hungary, and the
Czech Republic are all considering similar projects if it
succeeds in Slovakia. Despite the patient approach, Gallovic
indicated that the MOE had planned to present the project in
parliament by March of 2005.

WATER ISSUES AND FLOOD CONTROL
--------------

12. (U) The GOS considers river and watershed management to be a
priority environmental and safety project. After years of
neglect and abuse under previous governments, the MOE is looking
for responsible methods to keep waters clean and economically
viable. As a part of the International Commission for the
Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) a concerted effort has
been made to clean up and monitor the Danube as it flows through
Slovakia. The MOE participated in and helped to organize the
first International Danube Day in June 2004. At the event,
people of all ages had an opportunity to learn more about water
issues, get hands-on experience with environmental technology and
celebrate the famous river. Other rivers have also become
subject to studies and clean-up efforts and many water resources
are now protected in national parks and forests.


13. (U) Unfortunately, significant increases in industrial
production have led to increased pollution and damaged
watersheds. NGOs claim that monitoring of companies is
insufficient and toxins flow into Slovak rivers at alarming
rates. For example, twice in the past four years pharmaceutical
producer Biotika leaked large amounts of ammonia into the river
Hron in central Slovakia. The spill in 2003 resulted in massive
loss of animal and plant life and all but eliminated the local
fishing industry. In addition, thousands of pounds of communist
era pesticides have been found stored in the agricultural regions
of southern Slovakia and are feared to be seeping into the local
watersheds (see reftel A).


14. (U) Nearly every year, floods take lives and cause
significant property damage in Slovakia. In the west, floods
occur frequently in the region where the Morava River enters the
Danube, while eastern Slovakia often experiences summer flash
flooding. In 2002, both regions experienced their worst flooding
in hundreds of years and damages reached USD 54.5 million. In
2004, normal flooding still resulted in over USD 12 million of
damage to over 300 villages in eastern Slovakia and forced
thousands to flee their homes. The traditional approach to
containing the deluges has been to construct dams, dykes, and
levees. The GOS would like to continue with that methodology,
and recently passed a law requiring local landowners and
governments to fund these measures. Environmental groups, on the
other hand, are concerned that these methods, in fact, have
detrimental effects on the land and health of watersheds. The
NGO Daphne has twice experimented with a new, more natural way to
combat the problem. In both cases, strategic farmland that had
originally been grassland was returned to its original ecological
state. The results showed that far more water was retained in
the soil and average annual floods ceased to occur. Daphne,
though, did admit that the approach needs more data and must be
tested on larger tracts of land. Methodology aside, the GOS
appears, at least vocally, to be taking water issues seriously.

ENERGY AND THE KYOTO PROTOCOL
--------------

15. (U) Currently, Slovakia generates a large portion of its
electrical power from two nuclear plants. Upon accession to the
EU the GOS agreed to close two aging Soviet-era reactors at the
Bohunice power plant that produce 22 percent of the country's
electricity, one by the end of 2006 and the other by 2008.
Recently, however, Minister Rusko claimed that a closure in two
parts would not be cost-effective and could threaten public
safety. He proposed that both plants close simultaneously at the
end of 2008. This plan, however, would require the approval of
each EU-15 member and is unlikely to be received positively by
neighboring Austria. Rusko and others in the GOS have proposed
completing two unfinished nuclear reactors at the Mochovce power
plant to make up for the lost production at Bohunice. While not
requiring EU consent, this move has also been heavily criticized
by the Austrians and other anti-nuclear lobbies. However, once
the Bohunice reactors have been decommissioned, Slovakia would
change from an electricity exporter to an importer unless new
sources were developed. Potential options include hydroelectric
plants or, most likely, increased coal-burning facilities.


16. (U) If the GOS decides to produce electricity via coal-
burning plants, it raises further environmental questions,

including Slovakia's ability to meet its requirements under the
Kyoto Protocol. Slovakia is currently well under its Kyoto
target based upon 1990 production levels, but large increases in
manufacturing, steel production, and other industries are rapidly
producing more climate changing gases. If coal burning is added
to the equation, it may eventually impede Slovakia's ability to
trade its emission allotments and alter effective measures to
control global warming (see Reftel B). (Slovakia's travails with
the Commission over its National Action Plan will be reported
Septel.)


17. (U) Slovakia has numerous potential sources for renewable
energy, including hydroelectric, geothermal, wind, and solar
power, but currently lacks an actionable plan to implement them
on a large scale. Instead, the MOEC maintains vague, long-term,
and difficult to measure goals to increase the usage of
renewables. In 1997, 3.33 percent of energy produced in Slovakia
came from renewable resources. The GOS seeks to equal the EU
average for renewable energy usage by 2010, which equates to a 63
percent increase in Slovakia.

PUBLIC AWARENESS
--------------

18. (U) Many representatives from both the MOE and NGOs are
concerned that the largest environmental problem in Slovakia is
simply the lack of awareness and education. Actions are being
taken, however, to make sure that future generations are more
environmentally savvy. The REC is implementing a program to
distribute "greenpacks" to every school in Slovakia. The
greenpack is an educational supplement that assists teachers in
instructing about the environment and includes books, lesson
plans, videos, and a CD-ROM. According to Vladimir Hudek,
Director of the REC, the program will help to raise Slovaks'
consciousness of the environmental impact of their actions.


19. (U) Many NGOs have long sought to participate in the GLOBE
program in order to raise public awareness and knowledge of
environmental topics. Currently, Slovakia remains one of the few
countries in Europe that have not signed onto the project with
the U.S., citing costs and inadequate infrastructure as reasons.
In the summer of 2004, however, emboffs and Ambassador made
special attempts with both the MOE and Ministry of Education
(MOED) to initiate the program, and emphasized that the NGO
Daphne is completely prepared to administer the program. The MOE
is convinced that GLOBE can be a valuable resource, but insists
that the agreement must be signed by the MOED. For now, the MOED
has tentatively agreed to enter the program in March 2005, once
wording in the contract is agreed upon and the MOE has agreed to
co-finance the program at some level. Gary Randolph,
International Program Specialist with GLOBE, has also tentatively
agreed to schedule a regional "train the trainers" activity next
summer in Slovakia that will also provide the local organization
with some USD 6,000 worth of scientific equipment.

RUMOURS & HEARSAY
--------------

20. (SBU) Many other environmental problems in Slovakia are
frequently mentioned but generally only anecdotally. For
example, in eastern Slovakia, many claim that forests are being
illegally "clear-cut" either by needy individuals or corrupt
organizations. In addition, others state that Slovnaft (oil
refinery) and other companies in the region around Bratislava are
illicitly polluting the air at night under the cover of darkness.
Officially, the region does not have air pollution levels that
are considered dangerous, but many, including embassy staff and
families, experience an unusual number of skin and breathing
problems while in the region. Nevertheless, scientific evidence
about these topics remains elusive.

IN CONCLUSION
--------------

21. (U) The recent wind disaster in the High Tatras is a
microcosm of Slovakia's tug-of-war between environmental
problems, economic necessities, and public opinion. The incident
emotionally projected natural resource issues into the headlines
and Slovaks showed their deep concern by their generous
donations. Then, within days, the GOS announced plans to restore
the area via new resorts and tourist attractions in order to
boost the economy. How Slovakia strikes a balance between ski
slopes and national forests will be an important sign regarding
its environmental future. There are reasons to be optimistic as
educational programs like GLOBE begin, the PET recycling project
becomes reality, and the GOS formulates a scientific based policy
toward GMOs. In addition, post will continue to make more
contacts and reach out on more environmental issues while
continuing to monitor and engage in the areas outlined above.

Thayer


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