Parliament passed the national parks reform late Tuesday evening (December 14).
The reform was backed by 75 out of a total of 76 lawmakers present for the vote, with one voting against and nobody abstaining. Neither opposition MPs nor the MPs of governing party We Are Family supported the reform.
In line with the reform, the administration of state-owned land in national parks should be transferred to the Environment Ministry. The transfer should lead to the unified administration of state-owned land in the territory of national parks. The authors of the reform claim that it's ineffective for the state when two state-run organisations are taking care of land in national parks.
According to the authors, the transfer of state land management will create the conditions needed to duly and effectively meet the primary objective of national parks – nature protection and biodiversity – and to fulfil commitments stemming from EU directives in the field of nature conservation.
