The major task of the Environmental Department is preservation and protection of the natural environment The first efforts towards attaining this target were taken in the early eighties of the past century. Ever since the Department specialists have been participating in preparation and implementation of remedial and protection environmental policies, programmes and projects.

Organization of the Department work allows for an overall support for the entire Slovenian electricity supply industry in their endeavours towards solving environmental issues. Two specialised groups of experts perform operational monitoring of air emissions and monitoring of ambient air quality for which they have developed, in compliance with the applicable legislation, accredited procedures. By adhering to well prepared quality-assurance and quality-control procedures and by using services of their Environmental Information Centre, they guarantee adequacy of the on-line measurements performed according to specifications of the adopted environmental rules and regulations. With their analytical models they forecast air pollution. The Department Study-development Group deals with the best available technologies, environmental feasibility studies and environmental impact reports, technical consulting, equipment construction surveillance and development of new environmental protection technologies.

The Department has participated in developing the National Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control System efficiently stimulating several of the Slovenian large pollutants to minimize their negative environmental impacts.

Fields of activity of the Environmental Protection Department are:

• first legally required measurements and operational monitoring of substance emissions into air,
• ambient air quality monitoring,
• precipitation and sediment quality monitoring,
• on-line processing of data of continuous automatic measurements of the operational monitoring, reporting and presentation of results on the internet,
• quality and control assurance of the operational monitoring of environmental effects,
• complex and partial reporting on environmental effects,
• development-research studies in the area of environmental effects,
• expertises and professional opinions,
• consulting, indoctrinating, qualifying and training in the area of environmental protection,
• participation in preparation of professional basis for governmental and local environmental policies and programs with regard to particular equipment and consideration of the applicable home and EU legislation and obligations imposed by accepted international conventions and protocols (Convention on Climatic Changes, Kyto Protocol, Convention of Trans-boundary Pollution, IPPC Directive, etc.).