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Environmental indicators in Slovenia


Environmental indicators are based on graphs, maps and assessments and as such present environmental trends in Slovenia. The indicators represent one of the four pillars of our environmental reporting, and are prepared in accordance with the Environmental Protection Act. The Environmental Indicators in Slovenia website enables users to browse among 180 indicators. They are based on numerical data and they indicate the state, characteristics and trends of environmental development in Slovenia. They are prepared using a systematic approach based on data and monitoring, as shown in the information pyramid.

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Neutral

Slovenia is a net importer of food, as imports exceed exports in terms of value. After accession to the European Union, both trade flows began to increase significantly. At that time, imports increased more intensely, mainly at the expense of processed products, and exports at the expense of unprocessed agricultural products. Over the last decade, the growth of food and beverages exports has been more intense than the growth imports, therefore the coverage of imports by exports has been increasing and has amounted to above 60% in the period 2017–2021.

Bad

GHG emissions in industry decreased slightly in 2021 compared to the previous year. Since 2009, there has been no noticeable trend of decreasing GHG emissions in this sector.

GHG emissions in the ETS subsector of industry sector decreased for the third year in a row and were 4.2% lower than the previous year. GHG emissions in the non-ETS subsector of the industry sector increased by 5.5% in 2021 compared to the previous year. In 2021, the share of emissions from the ETS subsector was 57.4% of all emissions in industry sector, and the share of non-ETS emissions was 42.6%.

Good

Energy efficiency in industry has improved significantly over the period 2005–2022, with a 39% increase. The sectors that have contributed the most to this were production of paper, machinery and equipment, chemical industry and production of non-ferrous metals, while the production of steel and non-metallic mineral products have contributed the least.

Bad

The share of renewable energy sources (RES) in the use of fuels in industry amounted to 11% in 2021, which was 0.7 percentage point behind the annual indicative target value. The 2021 indicative target was thus not achieved. In order to achieve the target of 30% of RES in the use of fuels in industry in 2030, the share of RES will have to increase by 19 percentage points or by about approximately 2 percentage points per year.

Neutral

Regarding the forest area, deforestation accounts for an insignificant share. The average of the last ten years is approximately 405 ha (350–550 ha per year) and thus does not represent a significant factor in forest cover changes. Until 2008, most deforestation is a result of infrastructure facilities construction. In 2008, the unprecedented increase in deforestation for agricultural purposes occurred. The increase was due to the amendment to the Forest Act, which subject to the conditions allows the issuance of an authorisation for deforestation for agricultural purposes up to 0.5 ha.

Good

In Slovenia, forests have been growing in terms of growing stock and increment for decades. They have increased by more than 140% over the last 70 years. In addition to natural conditions, harvesting depends on socioeconomic factors, and recently on the occurrence of natural disasters (windbreaks, icebreakers) and bark beetles outbreaks. By 2014, the felling accounted for about 50% of the increment. After the ice storm in 2014, it increased substantially and accounted for 60 to 75% of the total increment of conifers and deciduous trees.