KAZALCI OKOLJA

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

The above-average runoff years of 2013 and 2014 were followed by a below-average year in 2015 and a period of average annual runoff from 2016 to 2021. In 2022, runoff levels were again below average, while 2023 saw a return to above-average conditions. Based on the annual river balance, 2023 ranks among the wettest years in the history of hydrological measurements. Between 1961 and 2023, the most water-abundant years were 2013, 2014, and 2023. In contrast, the driest years were 1983, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2022.

Bad

Slovenian forests are over-mature, the current ratio of forest development phases is unfavourable, forest regeneration is too slow, or the areas of forests under restoration are too small to significantly change the share of forest development phases and thus ensure sustainable forest development. The role of forests as a carbon sink is at risk.

Neutral

Net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the land use, land-use change, and forestry (LULUCF) sector amounted to -3.106 kt CO2 eq in 2021. In this year, the net emissions were higher or sinks smaller by 1.2% compared to the previous year and by 57% compared to 2005. According to data from the Slovenian Forest Service, felling in 2021 decreased by only 3.6% compared to 2020. In 2021, and for the first time since 2014, the share of sanitary felling was less than a third of the total annual felling.

Neutral

Areas of fields and gardens in measures that require fertilization based on rapid soil or plant tests have significantly exceeded the target value set by the 2014–2020 Rural Development Programme.

Good

In the period after 2000, nitrogen consumption from mineral fertilisers initially declined. After 2009, consumption more or less stabilised at around 27,500 tonnes, with annual values ranging from 26,300 to 29,143 tonnes. With the exception of 2021, the target value (< 28,000 t) has been achieved in recent years. The increase in 2021 was probably the result of purchases of mineral fertilizers for stock, which were made due to expected price increases and supply disruptions.

Good

In the period 2005–2022, the land area in the organic farming measure more than doubled (from 20,477 to 50,540 ha). The target set by the Operational Programme for Reducing GHG Emissions until 2020 (OP GHG) for 2020 (44,000 ha) was already exceeded in 2018. The new targets of the Strategic Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy 2023–2027 are significantly more ambitious, and the past trends show that achieving them will be very challenging.