There is still too much waste in landfills in Slovakia, with the recycling rate very low, stated the European Commission in its latest evaluation report. According to the report, about 66 percent of garbage in Slovakia is sent to landfills, which places the country at the bottom among EU member countries. The county's recycling rate is 23.2 percent while the European average is 46.3 percent. Slovakia does not yet use financial instruments to reduce landfilling such as taxes or fees. The Commission also notes that Slovakia also has problems with illegal landfills and old environmental burdens, notably mentioning the former chemical landfill in the Bratislava borough of Vrakuňa, which also threatens the quality of the underground waters of Rye Island. The Ministry of the Environment (MŽP) has prepared an amendment to increase landfill fees, which should apply from January next year. The purpose is to create an incentive factor for the sorted collection and increased recycling of municipal waste. The amount of the landfill fee will depend on the level of municipal waste in the municipality.
The Slovak Environment Ministry has already planned the rehabilitation of this landfill to be carried out this year. Air quality in Slovakia also worries the European Commission. Pollutants in the air still exceed the limits of the European Union, in particular with so-called particulate matter (PM) dust particles. The government should therefore take action, particularly in the area of domestic heating and transport. "Poor air quality still poses a serious health risk," the EC said, according to which, Slovakia should also improve air quality monitoring and population awareness.
The EC notes in its report that Slovak forests are endangered by excessive exploitation and erroneous forest management. "Wood extraction raises and negatively affects the stability of Slovakia's ecosystems," the EC said. The report also noticed the recent massive citizens' initiative "We are the forest" for greater protection of Slovak forests, which managed to collect more than 60,000 signatures.
