COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT The EU Environmental Implementation Review 2019 Country Report - CYPRUS Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Environmental Implementation Review 2019: A Europe that protects its citizens and enhances their quality of life
Date: 2019-04-04
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: Cyprus, EU environmental policy, application of EU law, climate change policy, environmental law, environmental protection, governance, green economy, public health, quality of the environment

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 4.4.2019  SWD(2019) 115 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT The EU Environmental Implementation Review 2019    Country Report - CYPRUS         Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Environmental Implementation Review 2019:  A Europe that protects its citizens and enhances their quality of life   {COM(2019) 149 final} - {SWD(2019) 111 final} - {SWD(2019) 112 final} - {SWD(2019) 113 final} - {SWD(2019) 114 final} - {SWD(2019) 116 final} - {SWD(2019) 117 final} - {SWD(2019) 118 final} - {SWD(2019) 119 final} - {SWD(2019) 120 final} - {SWD(2019) 121 final} - {SWD(2019) 122 final} - {SWD(2019) 123 final} - {SWD(2019) 124 final} - {SWD(2019) 125 final} - {SWD(2019) 126 final} - {SWD(2019) 127 final} - {SWD(2019) 128 final} - {SWD(2019) 129 final} - {SWD(2019) 130 final} - {SWD(2019) 131 final} - {SWD(2019) 132 final} - {SWD(2019) 133 final} - {SWD(2019) 134 final} - {SWD(2019) 135 final} - {SWD(2019) 136 final} - {SWD(2019) 137 final} - {SWD(2019) 138 final} - {SWD(2019) 139 final}  
 
 
This  report  has  been  written  by  the  staff  of  the  Directorate-General  for  Environment,  European  Commission. 
Comments are welcome, please send them to ENV-EIR@ec.europa.eu 

More information on the European Union is available at http://europa.eu. 

Photographs:  p. 4  —  ©iStock/  National  Drone  Photography;  p. 8  —  ©iStock/  aiv1112;  p. 11  —  ©iStock/ 
DmitryVPetrenko; p. 15 — ©gettyimages/ Can Ersoy; p. 22 — ©iStock/ peeterv 

For reproduction or use of these photos, permission must be sought directly from the copyright holder. 

©European Union, 2019 

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged 

1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table of Contents 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................................... 3 

PART I: THEMATIC AREAS .............................................................................................................................. 4 

1. 

TURNING  THE  EU  INTO  A  CIRCULAR,  RESOURCE-EFFICIENT,  GREEN  AND  COMPETITIVE  LOW 
CARBON ECONOMY .............................................................................................................................. 4 

Measures towards a circular economy ................................................................................................. 4 
Waste management .............................................................................................................................. 6 
Climate change ...................................................................................................................................... 8 

2. 

PROTECTING, CONSERVING AND ENHANCING NATURAL CAPITAL .................................................. 11 

Nature and biodiversity ....................................................................................................................... 11 
Maintaining and restoring ecosystems and their services .................................................................. 12 
Estimating natural capital ................................................................................................................... 12 
Invasive alien species .......................................................................................................................... 13 
Soil protection ..................................................................................................................................... 14 
Marine protection ............................................................................................................................... 15 

3. 

ENSURING CITIZENS' HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE ........................................................................ 16 

Air quality ............................................................................................................................................ 16 
Industrial emissions ............................................................................................................................. 17 
 ................................................................................................................................................. 18 
Noise 
Water quality and management ......................................................................................................... 18 
Chemicals ............................................................................................................................................ 20 
Making cities more sustainable ........................................................................................................... 21 

PART II: ENABLING FRAMEWORK: IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS ................................................................... 23 

4. 

GREEN  TAXATION,  GREEN  PUBLIC  PROCUREMENT,  ENVIRONMENTAL  FUNDING  AND 
INVESTMENTS ..................................................................................................................................... 23 

Green taxation and environmentally harmful subsidies ..................................................................... 23 
Green public procurement .................................................................................................................. 24 
Environmental funding and investments ............................................................................................ 24 

5. 

STRENGTHENING ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE ......................................................................... 28 

Information, public participation and access to justice .................................................................... 28 
Compliance assurance ......................................................................................................................... 29 
Effectiveness of environmental administrations ................................................................................ 30 
International agreements ................................................................................................................... 31 
Sustainable development and the implementation of the UN SDGs .................................................. 32 

2 

 
 
 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Executive summary 

facilities that would effectively manage all of its waste in 
line  with  the  waste  hierarchy  if  it  is  to  reach  the  2020 
targets  and  even  higher  recycling  targets.  According  to 
the  Commission’s  2018  ‘early  warning  report’,  Cyprus  is 
at risk of not meeting the 2020 municipal waste recycling 
target of 50 %. 

On  water  management,  Cyprus  has  made  some 
progress,  notably  by  adopting  its  second  river  basin 
management  plan  (RBMP)  and  putting  in  place  a  new 
water  pricing  policy  that  covers  some  water  services. 
However, 
in  monitoring 
programmes. It also remains to be seen if the new legal 
framework  on  water  pricing  provides  adequate 
incentives for users to use water efficiently, as adequate 
metering  and  volumetric  charging  of  abstractions  are 
limited. 

significant  gaps 

remain 

Examples of good practice  

 

 

  According  to  the  European  Environment  Agency 
report  on  European  bathing  water  quality,  in  2017, 
97.3 %  of  Cyprus’  113  bathing  waters  were  of 
excellent quality and none were of poor quality. 
Cyprus has used LIFE funds effectively to establish its 
Natura  2000  network  which  now  covers  28.8 %  of 
the land area (EU average 18.1 %) and to implement 
conservation measures at specific sites. 
Cyprus’  revenue  from  environment-related  taxes  is 
above 
and 
environmental tax revenues are high, making Cyprus’ 
tax  structure  relatively  growth  and  environment-
friendly.  There  are  several  examples  of  sound  fiscal 
measures on environment, such as the domestic and 
irrigation  water  pricing  policy,  supported  by 
environmental  NGOs  and  academia.  Considerable 
progress  has  been  made  on  reducing  the  ‘diesel 
differential’  (difference  in  the  price  of  diesel  versus 
petrol) since 2005. 

average.  Consumption 

the 

EU 

  On  environmental  information,  the  first-rate  air 
for  other 

quality  portal  can  be  an  example 
environmental areas. 

  On the Timber Regulation, between March 2015 and 
February  2017,  Cyprus  performed  more  checks  on 
operators  for  both  domestic  and  imported  timber 
than was originally planned and carried out the most 
checks of any Member State during this period. 

Cyprus  and  the  Environmental  Implementation  Review 
(EIR)  

In the 2017 EIR, the main challenges identified for Cyprus 
for  the  implementation  of  EU  environmental  policy  and 
law in Cyprus were: 

 

 

 

to  improve  nature  protection  by  ensuring  that 
necessary assessments are carried out correctly, that 
mitigation  measures  are  put  in  place  and  properly 
applied and that illegal bird trapping is eliminated; 
to  address  waste  management  issues,  in  particular 
to close illegal landfills and put in place the necessary 
infrastructure; and 
to  improve  water  management  in  order  to  tackle 
water scarcity and over-abstraction effectively. 

Following the publication of the 2017 EIR, Cyprus has not 
yet organised an EIR national dialogue that would help to 
address  the  above  challenges.  However,  a  bilateral 
meeting took place in Cyprus on 25-26 April 2018 in the 
context of the EU action plan for nature, people and the 
economy. 

Progress since the 2017 report in meeting challenges  

remain  on 

the  designation  of 

that  on nature  protection, 
The  2019  EIR  shows 
the 
insufficiencies 
terrestrial  part  of  the  Natura  2000  network.  Moreover, 
there  are  significant  insufficiencies  at  sea,  especially  in 
the  offshore  marine  areas.  The  effective  protection  of 
Natura  2000  areas  —  especially  coastal  zone  —  from 
incompatible activities or developments that fragment or 
degrade them, remains a concern. Management plans for 
completed  and  properly 
these  areas  must  be 
environmental 
necessary 
all 
implemented 
assessments  carried  out  correctly  before  potentially 
damaging  plans  or  projects  can  be  approved.  The 
necessary  mitigation  measures  should  be  properly 
applied.  Some  progress  has  been  made  on  the  illegal 
trapping  of  birds  thanks  to  increased  enforcement  and 
stricter fines for mist-netting in legislation. However, the 
trapping numbers are still unacceptably high. 

and 

There  has  been  some  progress  on waste  management, 
as the strategic framework for waste is now in place and 
the  national  waste  management  plans  for  all  waste 
streams have been adopted. Moreover, the illegal landfill 
in Limassol has closed and the one in Nicosia is expected 
to  close  before  the  end  of  2018.  Proper  rehabilitation 
needs  to  be  ensured  after  each  closure.  New  economic 
instruments  have  been  set  out  in  the  national  waste 
management plan, but there is a significant delay in their 
adoption  and  implementation.  Cyprus  needs  to  make 
significant  efforts  to  establish  an  adequate  network  of 

3 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Part I: Thematic areas 

1. Turning the EU into a circular, resource-efficient, green and 

competitive low carbon economy 

87 %) and about the impact of chemicals (98 % vs EU-28 
average  of  90 %)3.  Cyprus  is  the  leading  EU  country  in 
terms  of  popular  support  for  greater  EU  involvement 
(EU-28 average 85 %). Cypriot society appears to strongly 
support  circular  economy  initiatives  and  environmental 
protection measures. 

Cyprus  performed  below  the  EU  average  on  resource 
productivity4 (how efficiently the economy uses material 
resources to produce  wealth), with 1.14 EUR/kg in 2017 
(EU  average  2.04  EUR/kg) 
.  Resource  productivity 
increased  between  2011  and  2015,  and  decreased 
significantly between 2015 and 2017 (see Figure 1). 

Figure 1: Resource productivity 2010-20175 

Measures towards a circular economy 

The  Circular  Economy  Action  Plan  emphasises  the  need 
to  move  towards  a  life-cycle-driven  ‘circular’  economy, 
reusing  resources  as  much  as  possible  and  bringing 
residual  waste  close  to  zero.  This  can  be  facilitated  by 
developing  and  providing  access  to  innovative  financial 
instruments and funding for eco-innovation. 

Following  the  adoption  of  the  Circular  Economy  Action 
Plan in 2015 and the setting up of a related stakeholder 
platform  in  2017,  the  European  Commission  adopted  a 
new  package  of  deliverables  in  January  20181.  This 
included  additional  initiatives  such  as:  (i)  an  EU  strategy 
for plastics; (ii) a Communication on how to address the 
interplay  between  chemical,  product  and  waste 
legislation; (iii) a report on critical raw materials; and (iv) 
a  framework  to  monitor  progress  towards  a  circular 
economy2. 

The  circular  (secondary)  use  of  material  in  Cyprus  was 
2.3 %  in  2016,  well  below  the  EU-28  average  of  11.7 %. 
On  the  other  hand,  Cyprus  performs  above  the  EU-28 
average  on  the  number  of  people  employed  in  the 
circular economy (1.99 % of total employment in 2016 vs 
the EU-28 average of 1.73 %). 

As  in  the  2017  EIR,  there  is  currently  no  overarching 
policy  framework  for  the  circular  economy  in  Cyprus. 
Policy  and  funding  measures  and  other  means  of 
promoting  the  circular  economy  still  largely  depend  on 
co-financing  through  the  European  Structural  and 
Investment Funds (ESIF). 

The number of EU Ecolabel products and EMAS-licensed 
organisations  (EMAS  is  the  European  Commission’s  Eco-
Management  and  Audit  Scheme  –  a  programme  to 
encourage  organisations 
in  a  more 
environmentally sustainable way) in a country can give a 
rough  measurement  of  this  transition.  These  two 
indicators  show  to  what  extent  the  circular  economy 

to  behave 

3 European Commission, 2017, Special 486 Eurobarometer, ‘Attitudes of 
European citizens towards the environment’. 
4 Resource productivity is defined as the ratio between gross domestic 
product (GDP) and domestic material consumption (DMC). 
5 Eurostat, Resource productivity. 

In  the  2017  Special  Eurobarometer  468  on  attitudes  of 
EU  citizens  towards  the  environment,  92 %  of  Cypriot 
people  said  they  were  concerned  about  the  effects  of 
plastic  products  on  the  environment  (EU-28  average 

1 European Commission, 2018 Circular Economy Package. 
2 COM(2018) 029. 

4 

 
 
 
                                                                 
                                                                 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

transition  is  engaging  the  private  sector  and  other 
national  stakeholders.  These  two  indicators  also  show 
the  commitment  of  public  authorities  to  policies  that 
support  the  circular  economy.  As  of  September  2018, 
Cyprus had only 87 products and 7 licences registered in 
the  EU  Ecolabel  scheme  (EU  total  71707  products  and 
2167  licences).  In  addition,  as  of  May  2018,  84  Cypriot 
organisations were registered in EMAS6. 

SMEs and resource efficiency 

Cypriot SMEs continue to score above the EU-28 average 
for  the  environmental  aspects  of  the  small  business  act 
(see  Figure  2).  Although  fewer  companies  invest  in 
resource  efficiency  measures,  more  of  them  offer  green 
products and services and even generate more than 50 % 
In  addition,  a  high 
of  their  revenue  from  them. 
percentage  of  SMEs  received  public  support  for  their 
measures. 
Figure 2: Environmental performance of SMEs7 

additional  resource-efficiency  actions  they  planned  to 
take  in  the  next  2  years.  The  Eurobarometer  then 
compared  these  responses  with  the  responses  given  to 
the  same  questions  in  2015.  Recent  investments  have 
been  significantly  below  the  EU  average  and  Cyprus  is 
frequently among the lowest of all EU countries. The only 
exception  is  the  internal  recycling  and  reuse  of  waste. 
Regarding  companies’  future  ambitions  61 %  do  not 
intend to take any action (EU-28 19 %) and fewer than 1 
in  10  intend  to  take  action  even  in  traditional  areas  like 
saving water or materials, or minimising waste. 

At 12 %, the proportion of Cypriot companies that rely on 
external  support  in  their  efforts  to  be  more  resource 
efficient is below the EU average of 22 % (EU range 3 %-
38 %).  For  external  cooperation,  the  most  common 
partner  sought  by  companies  are  business  associations 
(54 %;  +40 %  compared  to  2015),  followed  by  private 
sector consultancy (24 %). 

Among Cypriot companies, 35 % find grants and subsidies 
to  be  helpful  and  34 %  do  not  consider  any  type  of 
assistance  to  be  useful  for  their  resource  efficiency 
projects. 

Cyprus’  positive  assessment  of  the  environmental 
performance  of  its  SMEs  is  due  to  the  high  number  of 
entrepreneurs that want to build a specific green profile 
and have received support to do so. 

For  the  average  Cypriot  company,  resource  efficiency 
seems to be a ‘non-issue’. Investment ambitions are very 
low,  external  cooperation  infrequent  and  —  apart  from 
grants  and  subsidies  assistance  —  not  well  appreciated. 
Public funding and advice have simultaneously decreased 
in importance for the business sector. 

In  this  challenging  environment,  a  fresh  start  is  needed 
for resource efficiency, possibly by creating a joint action 
between local and national authorities to tackle the most 
pressing problems. 

Eco-Innovation 

The  latest  Eurobarometer  on  ‘SMEs,  resource  efficiency 
and green markets’8 asked companies about both recent 
resource  efficiency  measures  they  had  taken  and 

6 European Commission, Eco-Management and Audit Scheme. 
7 European Commission, 2018 SBA fact sheet - Cyprus, p. 14. 
8 Flash Eurobarometer 456 ‘SME, resource efficiency and green 
markets’ January 2018. The 8 dimensions were Save energy; Minimise 
waste; Save materials; Save Water; Recycle by reusing material 
internally; Design products easier to maintain, repair or reuse; Use 
renewable energy; Sell scrap materials to another company. 

However, 

Cyprus  ranked  18th  on  the  2018  European  Innovation 
Scoreboard9. 
significant 
improvement,  with  a  total  score  of  only  45  (EU  average 
100) in the Eco-Innovation Scoreboard 2017, the country 
was second to last in the EU (see Figure 3). 

despite 

a 

in  Cyprus 

is  mainly  generated  by 
Eco-innovation 
individuals,  research 
institutes  or  companies.  The 
promotion  of  eco-innovation  is  carried  out  by  various 
public  entities,  but  none  of  them  has  sole  responsibility 
for this issue. However, in 2018 the Council of Ministers 
approved the creation of a  National Governance System 
for Climate and Energy, which will also be responsible for 

9 European Commission, European innovation Scoreboard 2018. 

5 

 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

the preparation of a National Strategy and Action Plan for 
Climate and Energy for the period 2021-2030. 

Figure 3: 2017 Eco-innovation index (EU=100)10 

As  such,  there  are  no  mature,  distinct  eco-innovation 
sectors in Cyprus. Given the country’s rich natural capital 
and  lack  of  access  to  their  countries’  energy  grids, 
developments in renewable energies could also promote 
eco-innovation  activities.  Eco-innovation  in  the  field  of 
energy  is  also  driven  by  efforts  to  increase  energy 
industries  also 
efficiency.  The  agricultural  and  food 
contribute to eco-innovation. In addition, a number of EC 
funded  eco-innovation  research  and  innovation  projects 
are currently under way. 

Figure 4: Cyprus’ eco-innovation performance 

and 

(R&I), 

Innovation 

Cyprus  (S3Cy),  which  was  adopted  by  the  Council  of 
Ministers  in  March  2015.  Furthermore,  the  S3Cy  Action 
Plan  aims  to  overcome  major  barriers  in  the  sector  of 
Research 
the 
the 
enhancement  of  entrepreneurial 
facilitation  of  knowledge  transfer  and  the  enhancement 
of private sector’s investments in R&I. Supportive to this 
is  the  recent  decision  (October  2018)  of  the  Council  of 
Ministers  to  create  a  new  governance  system  for  R&I, 
aiming, among others, to improve coordination between 
the  various  stakeholders  and  enhance  cooperation 
between reaserch institutes and businesses. 

including 
innovation, 

A  wide  range  of  national,  regional  and  EU  funds  help 
drive  eco-innovation.  For  example,  the  Action  Plan  for 
the implementation of S3Cy allocates EUR 142 million for 
Research  and  Innovation  in  several  sectors,  including 
energy  and  environment.  The  implementation  of  the 
Action  Plan  is  mainly  carried  out  by  the  programme 
“RESTART  2016-2020”  with  a  total  budget  of  around 
EUR 100 million. Cyprus also provides a  number of tools 
to  increase  access  to  information,  which  is  vital  for 
increasing innovation and growth. 

2019 priority actions 

 

Strengthen  the  policy  framework  to  speed  up  the 
transition  towards  the  circular  economy  by  all 
economic sectors. 

  Adopt  circular  economy  principles  that  act  as 
incentives  for  resource  efficiency  measures  and 
increased eco-innovation performance. 

Waste management 

Turning waste into a resource is supported by: 
(i)  fully 
legislation,  which 
implementing  EU  waste 
includes  the  waste  hierarchy,  the  need  to  ensure 
landfill  diversion 
separate  collection  of  waste,  the 
targets, etc.; 
 (ii) reducing waste generation and waste generation per 
capita in absolute terms; and  
(iii)  limiting  energy  recovery  to  non-recyclable  materials 
and  phasing  out  landfilling  of  recyclable  or  recoverable 
waste. 

This  section  focuses  on  management  of  municipal 
waste11  for  which  EU  law  sets  mandatory  recycling 
targets12. 

The  sectors  of  environment,  with  focus  on  climate 
change,  blue  growth,  ecosystems  and  water  resources, 
and  the  sector  of  Energy,  with  focus  on  renewable 
resources  and  energy  efficiency,  are  among  the  main 
priority  sectors  of  the  Smart  Specialization  Strategy  of 

10 Eco-innovation Observatory: Eco-Innovation scoreboard 2018. 

11 Municipal waste consists of mixed waste and separately collected 
waste from households and from other sources, where such waste is 
similar in nature and composition to waste from households. This is 
without prejudice to the allocation of responsibilities for waste 
management between public and private sectors. 
12 See Article 11.2 of Directive 2008/98/EC. This Directive was amended 
in 2018 by Directive (EU) 2018/851, and more ambitious recycling 
targets were introduced for the period up to 2035. 

6 

                                                                 
                                                                 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Municipal waste generation in Cyprus is still significantly 
higher  than  the  2017  EU  average  (637  vs  around  487 
kg/y/inhabitant). Following a decrease over a number of 
years,  the  rate  has  increased  since  2014  (see  Figure  5). 
There  has  been  a  decrease  in  landfilling  and  a  slight 
increase in recycling and composting in Cyprus. 

Figure 5: Municipal waste by treatment in Cyprus 2010-
201713 

throw  schemes.  However,  the  implementation  has  been 
quite slow. 

Figure  6:  Recycling  rate  of  municipal  waste  in  2010-
201717 

Cyprus landfills  most of its municipal waste  (76 %, vs an 
EU  average  of  24 %).  It  recycles  16 %  of  waste  which 
includes a 2 % composting rate. This is significantly below 
the  EU  average  (46 %).  Despite  a  steady  decrease  in 
2009-2014, the landfilling rate increased again in 2016. 

the  2020 

investment 

in 
Cyprus  should  make  a  considerable 
recycling  and  separate  collection  in  the  coming  years  to 
target  of  50 %14.  The 
reach 
Commission  published  an  ‘early  warning  report’15  for 
Cyprus, setting out  priority actions for Cyprus to comply 
with the 2020 and the post-2020 recycling targets16. 

recycling 

The  2015  municipal  solid  waste  management  plan 
prioritises  separate  collection  and  introduces  economic 
deterrents  such  as  a  landfill  tax,  the  extension  of  the 
extended  producer  responsibility  (EPR)  and  pay-as-you-

13 Eurostat, Municipal waste by waste operations. 
14 Member States may choose a different method than the one used by 
ESTAT (and referred to in this report) to calculate their recycling rates 
and track compliance with the 2020 target of 50% recycling of municipal 
waste. 
15 European Commission, Report on the implementation of waste 
legislation, including the early warning report for Member States at risk 
of missing the 2020 preparation for re-use/recycling target on municipal 
waste, SWD(2018)415 accompanying COM(2018)656. 
16 Directive (EU) 2018/851, Directive (EU) 2018/852, Directive (EU) 
2018/850 and Directive (EU) 2018/849 amend the previous waste 
legislation and set more ambitious recycling targets for the period up to 
2035. These targets will be taken into consideration to assess progress 
in future Environmental Implementation Reports. 

Cyprus still faces difficulties in implementing the relevant 
EU  waste  policy  and  in  meeting  its  2020  targets.  This  is 
mainly  due  to:  (i)  the  lack  of  infrastructure  and  systems 
for collecting recyclables and for diverting biodegradable 
waste  from  landfills;  and  (ii)  a  lack  of  coordination 
lack  of 
between  different  administrative 
capacity  at  local  level.  Some  measures  to  address  these 
weaknesses have been introduced, including the ongoing 
capacity building and technical assistance programme for 
public administration, local authorities, stakeholders and 
the  public.  In  addition,  the  planned  introduction  of 
legislative  measures  assigning  responsibility  to 
local 
authorities for the establishement  of separate collection 
schemes is also expected to improve the situation,  

levels  and 

One  illegal  landfill  is  still  operating  in  the  territory 
(according  to  the  latest  official  information  received  by 
the Commission). A new MBT (Mechanical and Biological 
Treatment)  unit  in  Limassol  (Pentakomo)  started  its 
operation  in  2017.  The  2010  and  2013  targets  to  divert 
biodegradable  municipal  waste  from 
landfills  were 
missed by a significant margin. Due to the ongoing review 
of  the  landfill  restrictions  for  municipal  waste,  major 
additional  efforts  should  be  made  to  limit  landfilling  to 
only  residual  waste  by  2035  (max.  10 %)18.  Cyprus  does 
not  tax  landfills  or  MBT,  so  there  is  no  economic 
firm 
incentive 
commitment  to  introduce  obligatory  separate  collection 
of  municipal  waste,  including  for  biowaste,  and  the  roll-
out  of  a  country-wide  pay-as-you-throw  (PAYT)  scheme. 

recycle.  However, 

there 

is  a 

to 

17 Eurostat, Recycling rate of municipal waste. 
18 European Commission, COM(2015) 595, 594). 

7 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

The minimum collection service standards (e.g. frequency 
of  collections,  types  of  containers  etc.)  for  all  waste 
streams, including biowaste, should be established at the 
national 
in  the 
level  to  guide  the  municipalities 
implementation effort. 

Cyprus does not recover energy from its municipal waste 
and  the  output  of  the  MBT  facilities 
landfilled. 
Therefore, importing refuse-derived fuel (RDF) for energy 
recovery (e.g. in the local cement kilns) would not be an 
efficient solution, as national waste would still have to be 
disposed of. 

is 

for 

Separate collection of packaging is relatively effective as 
the recycling rate is increasing. However, there is a lot of 
improvement.  The  Extended  Producer 
scope 
Responsibility 
including 
extension to waste streams beyond the few ones covered 
currently. A good start was an obligation to set up an EPR 
on non-packaging paper that entered into force in 2017. 

requires 

scheme 

reform, 

EU  funds  should  be  directed  towards  activities  that  are 
high  up  on  the  waste  hierarchy.  At  the  same  time, 
creating  installations  with  more  capacity  than  necessary 
to  treat  residual  waste  should  be  avoided.  A  review  of 
infrastructure requirements will be carried out as part of 
the  revision  of  the  Waste  Management  Strategy  with  a 
view  to  avoiding  overcapacity,  while  a  number  of  EU 
funded  programmes  currently  focus  on  the  separate 
collection of waste in the coastal tourist regions. 

2019 priority actions 

 

 

 

Introduce  and  gradually  increase  landfill  taxes  to 
phase-out  landfilling  of  recyclable  and  recoverable 
waste.  
Finalise  the  work  on  removing  the 
compliant landfill. 
Improve  and  extend  separate  collection  of  waste, 
including  for  bio-waste.  Establish  minimum  service 
standards  for  separate  collection  (e.g.  frequency  of 
in 
collections, 

containers, 

last  non-

types 

etc.) 

of 

municipalities  to  ensure  high  capture  rates  of 
recyclable waste.  

  Use  economic 

instruments  such  as  ‘pay-as-you-
throw’ schemes, and set mandatory recycling targets 
for municipalities with penalties for non-compliance 
(e.g. fines). 
  Develop  and 

support  programmes 

run 

for 
municipalities  to  help  them  implement  separate 
collection policies and improve recycling rates. 
Improve  the  functioning  of  extended  producer 
responsibility  systems, 
line  with  the  general 
in 
minimum requirements on EPR19. 
Consider  limiting  incoming  shipments  of  waste,  in 
the  Waste 
accordance  with  Article 16(1)  of 
Framework  Directive, 
the  energy 
facilitate 
to 
recovery  of  locally  generated  residual  waste  that 
would otherwise have to be disposed of in landfills. 

 

 

Climate change 

The EU has committed to undertaking ambitious climate 
action internationally as well as in the EU, having ratified 
the Paris Climate Agreement on 5 October 2016. The EU 
targets are to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 
20 % by 2020 and by at least 40 % by 2030, compared to 
1990.  As  a  long-term  target,  the  EU  aims  to  reduce  its 
emissions  by  80-95 %  by  2050,  as  part  of  the  efforts 
required by developed countries as a group. Adapting to 
the adverse effects of climate change is vital to alleviate 
its  already  visible  effects  and  improve  preparedness  for 
and resilience to future impacts. 

The EU emissions trading system (EU ETS) covers all large 
greenhouse  gas  emitters  in  the  industry,  power  and 
aviation  sectors  in  the  EU.  The  EU  ETS  applies  in  all 
Member States and has a very high compliance rate. Each 
year,  installations  cover  around  99 %  of  their  emissions 
with the required number of allowances.  

For emissions not covered by the EU ETS, Member States 
have  binding  national  targets  under  the  Effort  Sharing 
legislation.  Cyprus  had  lower  emissions  than  its  annual 
emissions  allocations  (AEAs)  in  each  of  the  years  2013-
2016.  According  to  preliminary  data,  emissions  were  3 
percentage  points  higher  than  the  AEA  for  2017.  For 
2020, Cyprus' national target under the EU Effort Sharing 
Decision is to reduce emissions by 5 % compared to 2005. 
For 2030, Cyprus' national target under the Effort Sharing 
Regulation  is  to  reduce  emissions  by  24 %  compared  to 
2005. Cyprus has projected that it may miss its targets for 
2020 and 2030, by large margins. With existing measures 
Cyprus  projects  to  miss  its  2030  target  by  47  pp. 

19 Set out in Directive 2008/98/EC  as amended by Directive (EU) 
2018/851. 

8 

 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

The  F-gas  Regulation  requires  Member  States  to  run 
training and certification programmes, introduce rules for 
penalties  and  notify  these  measures  to  the  Commission 
by 2017. Cyprus has notified both measures. 

The  accounting  of  GHG  emissions  and  removals  from 
forests and agriculture is governed by the Kyoto Protocol. 
A  preliminary  accounting  exercise  for  the  period  2013-
2016  depicts  net  debits  of,  on  average,  0.03  Mt  CO2-eq, 
which  corresponds to a  negative  contribution of  -0.02 % 
of the EU-28 accounted sink of -115.7 Mt CO2-eq. Cyprus 
is one of six EU Member States which show net debits in 
this preliminary accounting exercise. 

The  EU  Strategy  on  adaptation  to  climate  change, 
adopted  in  2013,  aims  to  make  Europe  more  climate-
resilient, by promoting action by Member States, better-
informed  decision  making,  and  promoting  adaptation  in 
key vulnerable sectors. By adopting a coherent approach 
and  providing  for  improved  coordination,  it  seeks  to 
enhance the preparedness and capacity of all governance 
levels to respond to the impacts of climate change. 

Figure 9: Greenhouse gas emissions by sector (Mt. CO2-
eq.). Historical data 1990-2016. Projections 2017-203022. 

However,  Cyprus  has  projected  that  with  additional 
measures, the gap may be reduced to 17 pp.  

Figure  7:  Change  in  total  greenhouse  gas  emissions 
1990-2017 (1990=100 %)20. 

Transport  emissions  are  of  special  concern,  as  they  are 
increasing. Significant additional efforts will therefore be 
needed  in  all  sectors.  Transport  represents  almost  a 
quarter of the EU’s GHG emissions and is the main cause 
of  air  pollution  in  cities.  Transport  emissions  in  Cyprus 
increased by 8 % from 2013 to 2016. 

Figure  8:  Targets  and  emissions  for  Cyprus  under  the 
Effort Sharing Decision and Effort Sharing Regulation21. 

Cyprus  adopted  a  new  National  Adaptation  Strategy  in 
2017.  A  National  Adaptation  Action  Plan  had  already 
been  published  in  2014  and  was  incorporated  into  the 
NAS,  so  the  NAS  and  NAP  are  now  presented  as  one 
document.  Vulnerable  sectors  that  have  been  identified 
comprise water, agriculture,  soil resources, fisheries and 
aquaculture, forestry, biodiversity, public health, tourism, 
coastal  zones,  energy  and  infrastructure.  A  Monitoring 
Strategy has been developed to complement the NAS, in 
which  a  Monitoring  Team  was  suggested.  Monitoring 
reports are scheduled every year from 2017 to 2019 but 

22 Annual European Union greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2016 (EEA 
greenhouse gas data viewer). Proxy GHG emission estimates for 
2017Approximated EU greenhouse gas inventory 2017 (European 
Environment Agency). Member States national projections, reviewed by 
the European Environment Agency. 

20 Annual European Union greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2016 (EEA 
greenhouse gas data viewer). Proxy GHG emission estimates for 
2017Approximated EU greenhouse gas inventory 2017 (European 
Environment Agency). Member States national projections, reviewed by 
the European Environment Agency. 
21 Proxy GHG emission estimates for 2017Approximated EU greenhouse 
gas inventory 2017 (European Environment Agency). Member States 
national projections, reviewed by the European Environment Agency. 

9 

 
 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

nothing  has  been  published  so  far.  The  total  revenues 
from the auctioning of emission allowances under the EU 
ETS over the years 2013-2017 were EUR 6.4 million. 76 % 
of  the  auctioning  revenues  has  been  spent  on  climate 
and energy purposes 

2019 priority action 

In this report, no priority actions have been included on 
climate action, as the Commission will first need to assess 
the  draft  national  energy  and  climate  plans  which  the 
Member  States  needed  to  send  by  end  of  2018.  These 
plans  should  increase  the  consistency  between  energy 
and climate policies and could therefore become a good 
example  of  how  to  link  sector-specific  policies  on  other 
interlinked themes  such as agriculture-nature-water and 
transport-air-health.  

10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

2. Protecting, conserving and enhancing natural capital 

is 

information submitted by Cyprus, the management plans 
it developed are meant to serve as guidance documents. 
They do not have any legal status and do not need to be 
approved  by  any  specific  authority.  The  environment 
department 
the 
responsible 
for 
implementation  of  the  Habitats  Directive  and 
coordinating the Natura 2000 network. The environment 
department  is  also  directly  responsible  for  managing  28 
SCIs  (excluding  those  in  state  forests  and  marine  areas, 
which  are  respectively  under  the  responsibility  of  the 
forests department and the fisheries and marine research 
department). 

for  overseeing 

them 

is  protecting 

A  major  challenge  in  managing  the  Natura  2000  areas 
effectively 
from  activities  or 
developments that fragment or degrade them, especially 
the  areas  located  within  private  land,  particularly  as 
regards  the  recurrent  issue  of  lack  of  compliance  of 
projects  and  plans  affecting  Natura  2000  sites  with  the 
Appropriate  Assessment  and  permitting  requirements 
under Art. 6 of the Habitats Directive. 

these  areas 

is  also 
The  sound  management  of 
undermined by the lack of understanding and acceptance 
of Natura 2000 rules by some local communities and land 
owners. This is a major challenge in Cyprus, where a large 
part of designated Natura 2000 areas (mainly agricultural 
land) is private land. 

Another major and persistent challenge in implementing 
nature  legislation  is  the  illegal  trapping  of  wild  birds, 
especially  migratory  birds,  with  nets,  lime-sticks  and 
sound-producing  devices.  Although  progress  has  been 
achieved  (especially  for  the  reduction  of  mist-netting) 
due to intensified enforcement (e.g. through controls and 
stricter  fines  for  mist-nets  through  the  new  national 
legislation approved in July 2017), the trapping numbers 
still remain at unacceptably high levels, mainly driven by 
illegal consumption in restaurants.  

Nature and biodiversity 

in  the  EU  by  2020. 

The  EU  biodiversity  strategy  aims  to  halt  the  loss  of 
biodiversity 
full 
implementation  of  the  Birds  and  Habitats  Directives  to 
achieve  favourable  conservation  status  of  protected 
species and habitats. It also requires that the agricultural 
and  forest  sectors  help  to  maintain  and 
improve 
biodiversity. 

It  requires 

Biodiversity strategy 

A National biodiversity strategy under the Convention on 
Biological Diversity is expected to be adopted in 2018. 

Setting up a coherent network of Natura 2000 sites 

On  the  basis  of  the  latest  update  on  the  assessment  of 
the  Birds  and  Habitats  directives,  Cyprus’  terrestrial 
Natura  2000  network  under  the  Birds  and  Habitats 
Directive is now considered to be largely complete. 

Cyprus  has  designated  63 Natura  2000  sites  to  date, 
including 40 sites of Community importance (SCIs) under 
the  Habitats  Directive  and  30  special  protection  areas 
(SPAs)  under  the  Birds  Directive.  These  cover  28.8 %  of 
the national land of Cyprus  (the area  under government 
control). 

Designating  Natura  2000  sites  and  setting  conservation 
objectives and measures 

Despite its size, there are still a number of shortcomings 
on the terrestrial part of the Natura 2000 network. There 
are  also  significant  insufficiencies  at  sea,  both  for  SCIs 
and SPAs, especially in the offshore marine areas23. 

The  six-year  period  set  out  in  the  Habitats  Directive  to 
designate  the  SCIs  as  Special  Areas  of  Conservation 
(SACs) and establish appropriate conservation objectives 
and  measures  has  expired  for  all  40  SCIs.  According  to 
information provided by Cyprus, to date (July 2018) only 
29  SCIs  have  been  designated  as  SACs,  by  Ministerial 
Decrees and there are 11 pending SAC designations. 

Management plans have been drawn up for all but seven 
SCIs/SAC areas and for the 30 SPAs24. The key legislative 
tool  for  establishing  conservation  objectives  for  the 
Natura  2000  sites  are  Ministerial  Decrees.  According  to 

23 For each Member State, the Commission assesses whether the 
species and habitat types of Annexes I and II of the Habitats Directive 
are sufficiently represented in the sites designated to date. 
24 According to online information on the web sites of the Ministry of 
Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, and Ministry of 
Interior respectively. 

11 

 
                                                                 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Progress 
restoring 
in  maintaining  or 
conservation status of species and habitats 

favourable 

Considering that Member States report every 6 years on 
the  progress  made  under  both  directives,  no  new 
information  is  available  on  the  state  of  natural  habitats 
and  species,  or  on  progress  made  in  improving  the 
conservation status of species and habitats in Cyprus, as 
compared to the 2017 EIR for Cyprus. 

Improvements in the status of species and habitats have 
recently been reported in Cyprus. 

2019 priority actions 

 

 

 

of 

to 

for 

the 

the 

target 

improve 

campaign  among 

Complete  SCI  and  SPA  designations,  especially  in 
offshore  marine  waters.  Complete 
the  SAC 
designation  process  and  ensure  that  the  respective 
Ministerial  Decrees 
include  clear  conservation 
objectives  and  measures  for  the  sites  and  clearly 
identified  competences 
their  management. 
Provide  adequate  resources,  human  and  financial, 
necessary 
for 
implementation 
conservation  measures  as  well  as 
the 
for 
enforcement  of  applicable  rules  within  the  sites, 
including by carrying out systematic inspections and 
setting  adequate  fines.  Set  up  a  broad  awareness-
raising 
stakeholders 
(farmers,  hunters,  tourism  sector,  private  owners, 
etc) and the public on Natura 2000 and its benefits. 
the  Appropriate 
Continue  efforts 
Assessment  process  (by  ensuring  that  all  plans  and 
projects with likely significant impacts are subject to 
an  assessment,  best  available  data  are  used, 
consultations  and  decisions  are  transparent  and 
accessible)  and  to  prevent  deterioration  of  Natura 
2000  sites  from  damaging  developments.  Take 
capacity building measures to strengthen awareness 
and  expertise  of  competent  authorities  (including 
local  planning  authorities)  on  Art.  6(3)  and  6(4) 
procedures, and take measures to address potential 
conflcts of land use rights enshrined in the Town and 
Country Planning Law, with the nature directives. 
Enhance law enforcement efforts to eliminate illegal 
bird  trapping  and  killing,  in  cooperation  with  all 
parties  involved  and  addressing  all  aspects  of  the 
issue, especially through more effective controls and 
inspections  in  restaurants  and  in  trapping  fields, 
enhancing  the  capacity  and  means  of  authorities 
involved, establishing deterrent fines for all trapping 
methods,  and  increasing  the  awareness  of  judges 
and prosecutors.  

Maintaining and restoring ecosystems and 
their services 

The EU biodiversity strategy aims to maintain and restore 
ecosystems  and  their  services  by 
including  green 
infrastructure  in  spatial  planning  and  restoring  at  least 
15 %  of  degraded  ecosystems  by  2020.  The  EU  green 
infrastructure  strategy  promotes  the  incorporation  of 
green infrastructure into related plans and programmes. 

Cyprus’  national  action  plans  on  climate  change, 
include  measures  to 
desertification  and  biodiversity 
conserve  and  restore  the  function  and  structure  of 
habitats.  Green  infrastructure  objectives  are  not  yet 
established 
in  all  policy  areas.  However,  several 
initiatives, such as LIFE projects, are under way in Cyprus. 
The  natural  environment  of  the  ‘buffer  zone’,  which  is 
supervised  by  the  The  United  Nations  Peacekeeping 
Force  in  Cyprus  (UNFICYP),  remained  largely  untouched 
for 40 years. Stakeholders involved in the administration 
of 
the  development  of  co-
management practices and institutions. Cyprus is part of 
the  PROTOMEDEA  project  (2015-2018)25,  which  focuses 
on proposing marine protected area networks. 

this  area  supported 

The EU has provided guidance on the further deployment 
of green and blue infrastructure in Cyprus26 and a country 
page  on  the  Biodiversity  Information  System  for  Europe 
(BISE)27. This information will also contribute to the final 
evaluation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020. 

Cyprus’  reporting  to  the  Convention  on  Biological 
Diversity  (CBD)  on  resource  mobilisation  is  still  pending. 
Reporting on financial flows is important for the position 
of  the  EU  and  individual  Member  States  in  the  CBD  and 
helps encourage good practices among other countries. 

Estimating natural capital 

The  EU  biodiversity  strategy  calls  on  Member  States  to 
map  and  assess  the  state  of  ecosystems  and  their 
services28 in their national territories by 2014, assess the 
economic  value  of  such  services  and  integrate  these 
values  into  accounting  and  reporting  systems  at  EU  and 
national level by 2020. 

25 EU project, Protomedea. 
26 European Commission,The recommendations of the green 
infrastructure strategy review report and the EU Guidance on a 
strategic framework for further supporting the deployment of EU-level 
green and blue infrastructure. 
27 Biodiversity Information System for Europe. 
28 Ecosystem services are benefits provided by nature such as food, 
clean water and pollination on which human society depends. 

12 

                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Cyprus has not provided any new information on its work 
on mapping and assessing ecosystems and their services 
on its MAES webpage on the BISE platform29 since 2015. 

Cyprus  has  set  up  a  coordination  committee  to 
implement  MAES  actions.  It  has  also  organised  several 
workshops  and  training  courses  in  2018  to  encourage 
MAES 
implementation.  Two  studies  on  MAES  were 
completed  in  2015  and  2017  and  a  new  case  study  on 
wetland ecosystems will be conducted in 2019. 

At  the  MAES  working  group  meeting  held  in  Brussels  in 
September 2018, it was shown that Cyprus has provided 
updated  information  on  the  implementation  of  MAES. 
However, little progress has been recorded since January 
2016  (Figure  10).  This  assessment  was  made  by  the 
ESMERALDA  project30  and 
is  based  on  27 
implementation  questions.  The  assessment  is  updated 
every 6 months. 

it 

Figure 10: Implementation of MAES (September 2018) 

Business  and  biodiversity  platforms,  networks  and 
communities of practice are key tools for promoting and 
facilitating  natural  capital  assessments  among  business 
and  financial  service  providers,  for  instance  via  the 
Natural  Capital  Coalition’s  protocol31.  The  assessments 
contribute  to  the  EU  biodiversity  strategy  by  helping 
private  businesses  better  understand  and  value  both 
their  impact  and  dependence  on  nature.  Biodiversity 
platforms  have  been  established  at  EU  level32  and  in  a 
number  of  Member  States.  Cyprus  has  not  yet 
established such a platform. 

Invasive alien species 

Under  the  EU  biodiversity  strategy,  the  following  are  to 
be achieved by 2020:  
(i) invasive alien species identified;  
(ii) priority species controlled or eradicated; and  
(iii)  pathways  managed  to  prevent  new  invasive  species 
from disrupting European biodiversity.  
This  is  supported  by  the  Invasive  Alien  Species  (IAS) 
Regulation, which entered into force on 1 January 2015. 

Cyprus has informed the Commission that it is working on 
a risk assessment for lion fish (Pterois miles). 

Cyprus is implementing a Baseline survey and monitoring 
of  non-indigenous  species  in  Cavo  Greco  and  Nissia 
Marine Protected Areas since February 2017. The survey 
is  funded  by  the  European  Maritime  and  Fisheries  Fund 
(75 %) and national resources (25 %). In the framework of 
this survey and monitoring, Cyprus is also working on risk 
assessments for pufferfishes Lagocephalus sceleratus and 
Torquigener flavimaculosus. 

Moreover,  Cyprus  has  implemented  in  2017  a  National 
Action  Plan  on  marine  species  introductions  and  marine 
invasive  species  in  Cyprus  with  the  support  of  the 
Regional  Activity  Centre  for  Specially  Protected  Areas 
(RAC/SPA UNEP/MAP). 

The report on the baseline distribution, for which Cyprus 
could only review its country-level data (and not the grid-
level  data),  shows  that  of  the  37  species  on  the  first  EU 
list, only two have been observed in the environment  in 
Cyprus.  Both  of  these  have  established  populations:  the 
red  swamp  crayfish  (Proclambarus  clarkii)  and  the  red-
eared terrapin (Trachemys scripta). 

Between  the  entry  into  force  of  the  EU  list  and  18 May 
2018,  Cyprus  has  not  notified  any  new  appearances  of 
invasive  alien  species  (IAS)  of  EU  concern,  according  to 
Article 16(2) of the IAS Regulation. 

responsible 

Cyprus  has  notified  the  Commission  of  its  competent 
IAS 
for 
authorities 
Regulation  as  required  by  its  Article 24(2).  The  draft 
national 
legislation  with  the  national  provisions  on 
penalties  for  infringements  (as  required  by  Article 30(4) 
of the IAS Regulation) is expected to be adopted in 2019. 

implementing 

the 

2019 priority action 

 

Cyprus  is  urged  to  swiftly  adopt  national  legislation 
to  comply  with  obligations  required  by  Article 30(4) 
of  the  IAS  Regulation  and  notify  the  Commission  in 
this regard. 

29 Biodiversity Information System for Europe, MAES country fiches: 
Cyprus  
30 EU project, Esmeralda  
31 Natural Capital Coalition, Natural Capital Protocol 
32 Business and Biodiversity, The European Business and Biodiversity 
Campaign aims to promote the business case for biodiversity in the EU 
Member States through workshops, seminars and a cross media 
communication strategy. 

13 

 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Soil protection 

The  EU  soil  thematic  strategy  underlines  the  need  to 
ensure  a  sustainable  use  of  soils.  This  entails  preventing 
further  soil  degradation  and  preserving  its  functions,  as 
well as restoring degraded soils. The 2011 Roadmap to a 
Resource Efficient Europe states that by 2020, EU policies 
must take into account their direct and indirect impact on 
land use. 

Soil  is  a  finite  and  extremely  fragile  resource  and  it  is 
increasingly degrading in the EU. 

The annual land take rate (growth of artificial areas) was 
0.58 %  in  Cyprus  over  the  period  2006-2012,  above  the 
EU average of 0.41 %. Land take growth was 471 hectares 
per year and was mainly driven by housing, services and 
recreation33. 
Figure 11: Proportion of artificial land cover, 201534 

biodiversity  and  the  environmental  pressure  on  people 
living in urban areas. Another such measure is population 
density. 

Cyprus is slightly above the EU average for artificial land 
coverage  (5.3 %  vs  4.1 %).  The  population  density  is 
92.4/km2, which is below the EU average of 11836. 

Contamination  can  severely  reduce  soil  quality  and 
threaten  human  health  or  the  environment.  A  recent 
report  of  the  European  Commission37  estimated  that 
potentially  polluting  activities  have  taken  or  are  still 
taking place on approximately 2.8 million sites in the EU. 
At  EU  level,  650 000  of  these  sites  have  been  registered 
in  national  or  regional  inventories.  65 500  contaminated 
sites  have  already  been  remediated.  Cyprus  has 
registered  84  sites  where  potentially  polluting  activities 
have  taken  or  are  taking  place  and  has  already 
remediated or applied aftercare measures on 4 sites. 

Soil erosion by water is a natural process, but this natural 
process can be aggravated by climate change and human 
activities  such  as  inappropriate  agricultural  practices, 
deforestation,  forest  fires  or  construction  work.  High 
levels  of  soil  erosion  can  reduce  productivity 
in 
agriculture  and  can  have  negative  and  transboundary 
impacts  on  biodiversity  and  ecosystem  services.  High 
levels  of  soil  erosion  can  also  have  negative  and 
lakes  (due  to 
transboundary  effects  on  rivers  and 
increased  volume  of  sediments  and 
transport  of 
contaminants).  
According  to  the  RUSLE2015  model38,  Cyprus  has  an 
average soil loss rate by water of 2.89 tonnes per hectare 
per  year  (t ha−a yr−y),  compared  to  the  EU  mean  of  2.46 
t ha−a yr−y.  This  indicates  that  soil  erosion  in  Cyprus  is  in 
line  with  the  EU  average.  It  should  be  noted  that  these 
figures  are  the  output  of  an  EU-level  model  based  on 
rainfall,  support  practices,  land  cover,  soil  and  slope 
characteristics,  and  therefore  should  not  be  considered 
as locally measured values. The actual rate of soil loss can 
vary strongly  within a  Member State depending on  local 
conditions.  Soil  erosion  is  one  of  the  priority  sectors 
under the National Climate Change Adaptation Plan. 

The percentage of artificial land35 in Cyprus (Figure 11) is 
a  measure  of  the  relative  pressure  on  nature  and 

33 European Environment Agency Draft results of CORINE Land Cover 
(CLC) inventory 2012; mean annual land take 2006-12 as a % of 2006 
artificial land. 
34 Eurostat, Land covered by artificial surfaces by NUTS 2 regions. 
35 Artificial land cover is defined as the total of roofed built-up areas 
(including buildings and greenhouses), artificial non built-up areas 

(including sealed area features, such as yards, farmyards, cemeteries, 
car parking areas etc. and linear features, such as streets, roads, 
railways, runways, bridges) and other artificial areas (including bridges 
and viaducts, mobile homes, solar panels, power plants, electrical 
substations, pipelines, water sewage plants, and open dump sites). 
36 Eurostat, Population density by NUTS 3 region. 
37 Ana Paya Perez, Natalia Rodriguez Eugenio (2018), Status of local soil 
contamination in Europe: Revision of the indicator “Progress in the 
management Contaminated Sites in Europe”. 
38 Panagos, P., Borrelli, P., Poesen, J., Ballabio, C., Lugato, 
E., Meusburger, K., Montanarella, L., Alewell, C., The new assessment of 
soil loss by water erosion in Europe, (2015) Environmental Science and 
Policy, 54, pp. 438-447. 

14 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                                                         
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Soil organic matter plays an important role in the carbon 
cycle and in climate change. Soils are the second largest 
carbon  sink  in  the  world  after  the  oceans.  SOC  is  an 
important measurement of soil health and biodiversity. It 
also  provides  nutrients  to  plants  and  increases  water 
availability.  The  main  reasons  for  a  decline  of  organic 
carbon  content  in  soils  driven  by  human  behaviour  are 
land-use change (especially conversion from grassland to 
loss  of 
cropland  and  deforestation),  drainage  and 
wetlands, and poor agricultural practices. 

achieve  MSFD  objectives  are  often  indirect  ones  which 
focus  on  awareness  raising  and  dissemination.  For 
example, for marine litter, most of the new measures are 
awareness-raising  activities 
targeting  municipalities, 
fishermen  and  the  general  public.  For  non-indigenous 
species,  Cyprus  reports  more  direct  measures  that 
restrict the use of non-indigenous species in aquaculture 
or  that  reduce  the  population  of  Lagocephalus  ssp. 
(puffer fish), a recent Lessepsian migrant into the eastern 
Mediterranean Sea, for example. 

Marine protection 

EU coastal and marine policy and legislation require that 
by  2020  the  impact  of  pressures  on  marine  waters  be 
reduced  to  achieve  or  maintain  good  environmental 
status (GES) and ensure that  coastal zones are managed 
sustainably. 

The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD)39 aims 
to  achieve  good  environmental  status  (GES)  of  the  EU’s 
marine waters by 2020. To that end, Member States must 
develop  a  marine  strategy  for  their  marine  waters,  and 
cooperate  with  the  EU  countries  that  share  the  same 
marine (sub)region. 

The  programme  of  measures  addresses  most  of  the  key 
sources of pressure on the marine waters and the targets 
defined  by  Cyprus.  However,  it  does  not  fully  cover 
certain  sources  of  pressure,  activities  and  associated 
impacts  deemed  to  be  important  at  the  sub  regional 
level.  One  example  is  marine  litter  caused  by  shipping. 
Overall,  Cyprus’  measures  partially  address 
the 
requirements of the MSFD. 

2019 priority actions 

 

 

 

Cyprus  should  provide  more  information  about  its 
measures  and  establish  more  measures  that  have  a 
direct  impact  on  the  sources  of  pressure.  It  should 
quantify  the  expected  level  of  reduction  of  the 
sources of pressure as a result of these measures. 
Ensure reporting of the different elements under the 
Marine  Strategy  Framework  Directive  by  the  set 
deadline. 
Ensure  regional  cooperation  with  Member  States 
sharing  the  same  marine  (sub)region  to  address  the 
leading sources of pressure. 

(Barcelona  Convention)  plays 

For  Cyprus,  the  Convention  for  the  Protection  of  the 
Marine  Environment  and  the  Coastal  Region  of  the 
Mediterranean 
an 
important  role  in  achieving  the  goals  required  by  the 
MSFD.  These  marine  strategies  comprise  different  steps 
to  be  developed  and  implemented  over  six-year  cycles. 
The  latest  step  required  Member  States  to  set  up  their 
programme  of  measures  and  report  to  the  Commission 
on  it  by  31 March  2016.  On  receiving  this  report,  the 
Commission  assessed  whether  Cyprus  measures  were 
appropriate to reach GES. 

Cyprus  reported  both  ongoing  and  new  (specifically 
required  by  the  MSFD)  measures.  New  measures  to 

39 Directive 2008/56/EC. 

15 

                                                                 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

3. Ensuring citizens' health and quality of life 

Air quality 

EU clean air policy and legislation require the significant 
improvement  of  air  quality  in  the  EU,  moving  the  EU 
closer to the quality recommended by the World Health 
Organisation.  Air  pollution  and  its  impacts  on  human 
health,  ecosystems  and  biodiversity  should  be  further 
reduced with the long-term aim of not exceeding critical 
loads  and  levels.  This  requires  strengthening  efforts  to 
reach full compliance with EU air quality legislation and 
defining strategic targets and actions beyond 2020. 

The  EU  has  developed  a  comprehensive  body  of  air 
legislation40,  which  establishes  health-based 
quality 
standards and objectives for a number of air pollutants. 

The  emission  reductions  between  1990  and  2014 
mentioned in the previous EIR, continued between 2014 
and  2016.  Emissions  of  sulphur  oxides  (SOx)  fell  by 
3.66 %  and  emissions  of  nitrogen  oxides  (NOx)  fell  by 
15.68 %.  Meanwhile,  emissions  of  volatile  organic 
compounds  (NMVOCs)  increased  by  5.83 %  between 
2014  and  2016,  emissions  of  ammonia  (NH3)  increased 
by 4.72 % and emissions of fine particulate matter PM2.5 
increased by 14.78 % during this period (see also Figure 
12 on the total PM2.5 and NOx emissions per sector). 

Figure  12:  PM2.5  and  NOx  emissions  by  sector  in 
Cyprus41 

Despite  the  reduction  in  emissions  since  1990,  the 
country  needs  to  make  additional  efforts  to  meet  its 
emission reduction commitments (compared with 2005 

40 European Commission, 2016. Air Quality Standards. 
41 2016 NECD data submitted by Member State to the EEA. 

16 

levels)  set  by  the  new  National  Emissions  Ceilings 
Directive 42 for 2020-2029 and for any year from 2030. 

Air  quality  in  Cyprus  is  reported  to  be  generally  good, 
with  exceptions.  Nevertheless,  for  2015,  the  European 
Environment  Agency  estimated  that  more  than  750 
premature  deaths  were  attributable  to  air  pollution43. 
For  2017,  EU  air  quality  standards  were  reported  as 
being exceeded for ozone44.. 
According to the European Court of Auditors (ECA)45, EU 
action  to  protect  human  health  from  air  pollution  has 
not delivered its expected impact. There is a risk that air 
pollution  is  being  underestimated  in  some  instances 
because  it  may  not  always  be  monitored  in  the  right 
places. Member States are now required to report both 
real-time  and  validated  air  quality  data  to  the 
Commission46. 

Figure  13:  Air  quality  zones  exceeding  EU  air  quality 
standards in 201747 

2019 priority action 

 

Take  action,  in  the  context  of  the  forthcoming 
National  Air  Pollution  Control  Programme,  to 
reduce the main emission sources. 

42 Directive 2016/2284/EU. 
43 European Environment Agency. Air Quality in Europe – 2018 Report, 
p.64. Please see details in this report as regards the underpinning 
methodology. 
44  EEA, Eionet Air Quality Portal and the related Central Data 
Repository. 
45 European Court of Auditors, Special report no 23/2018, Air 
pollution: Our health still insufficiently protected, p.41. 
46 Article 5 of Commission Implementing Decision 2011/850/EU of 12 
December 2011 laying down rules for Directives 2004/107/EC and 
2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards 
the reciprocal exchange of information and reporting on ambient air 
quality (OJ L 335, 17.12.2011, p. 86) requires Member States to 
provide Up-To-Date data. 
47 EEA, EIONET Central Data Repository. Data reflects the reporting 
situation as of 26 November 2018. 

 
 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Industrial emissions 

The main objectives of EU policy on industrial emissions 
are to: 
(i) protect air, water and soil; 
(ii) prevent and manage waste; 
(iii) improve energy and resource efficiency; and  
(iv) clean up contaminated sites.  
To achieve this, the EU takes an integrated approach to 
the  prevention  and  control  of  routine  and  accidental 
industrial emissions. The cornerstone of the policy is the 
Industrial Emissions Directive48 (IED). 

The below overview of industrial activities regulated by 
the  IED  is  based  on  the  ‘industrial  emissions  policy 
country profiles’ project49. 

In Cyprus, around 74 industrial installations must have a 
permit according to the IED. 

Figure  14:  Number  of  IED  industrial  installations  by 
sector, Cyprus (2015)50 

and  minerals  sectors  are  the  biggest  contributors  to 
non-hazardous waste generation. 

Best  available  techniques  (BAT)  reference  documents 
and  BAT  conclusions  are  developed  through  the 
exchange  of 
information  between  Member  States, 
industrial associations, NGOs and the Commission. This 
ensures  a  good  collaboration  with  stakeholders  and  a 
better application of the IED rules. 

Thanks to the national competent authorities’ efforts to 
apply the legally binding BAT conclusions and associated 
BAT emission levels in environmental permits, pollution 
has decreased considerably and continuously. 

For  example,  by  applying  the  recently  adopted  BAT 
emission  levels  for  large  combustion  plants,  emissions 
of  sulphur  dioxide  will  be  cut  on  average  by  between 
25 %  and  81 %,  nitrogen  oxide  by  between  8 %  and 
56 %,  dust  by  between  31 %  and  78 %  and  mercury  by 
between  19 %  and  71 %.  The  extent  of  the  reduction 
depends on the situation in individual plants. 

Figure  15:  Emissions  to  air  from  IED  sectors  and  all 
other national total air emissions, Cyprus (2015) 

In  2015,  the  industrial  sectors  in  Cyprus  with  most  IED 
installations  were  the  intensive  rearing  of  poultry  and 
pigs  (65 %  of  IED  installations)  and,  to  a  lesser  degree, 
the  minerals,  waste  management  and  energy-power 
sectors. 

The  energy-power  sector  is  the  biggest  contributor  to 
hazardous  waste  generation  and  the  ‘other  activities’ 

48 Directive 2010/75/EU covers industrial activities carried out above 
certain thresholds. It covers energy industry, metal production, 
mineral and chemical industry and waste management, as well as a 
wide range of industrial and agricultural sectors (e.g. intensive rearing 
of pig and poultry, pulp and paper production, painting and cleaning). 
49 European Commission, Industrial emissions policy country profile – 
Cyprus. 
50 European Commission, Industrial emissions policy country profile – 
Cyprus. 

The  main  challenges  identified  for  the  IED  industrial 
sectors  are  odour  emissions  from  the  high  number  of 
poultry  and  pig  installations  which  are  often  close  to 
residential  areas  and  the  pollution  caused  by  the 
Dhekelia heavy fuel oil plant. The latter has a derogation 
for  its  air  emissions  until  the  end  of  2023.  Cyprus  has 
plans 
for  power 
generation.  However,  it  is  unclear  when  the  transition 
will take place. 

towards  natural  gas 

to  move 

2019 priority actions 

  Review permits to ensure that they comply with the 

 

newly adopted BAT conclusions. 
Strengthen  control  and  enforcement  to  ensure 
compliance with the BAT conclusions. 

  Address  the  odour  from  the  high  number  of 
installations  for  poultry  or  pigs,  which  are  often 
situated close to residential areas. 

17 

 
                                                                 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Noise 
The  Environmental  Noise  Directive51  provides  for  a 
common approach to avoiding, preventing and reducing 
the harmful effects of exposure to environmental noise. 

Excessive noise from aircraft, railways and roads is one 
of  the  main  causes  of  environmental  health-related 
issues in the EU52. 
Based  on  a  limited  set  of  data53,  environmental  noise 
causes at least 30 premature deaths per year in Cyprus 
and  is  responsible  for  100  hospital  admissions.  Noise 
also  disturbs  the  sleep  of  roughly  1 000  people  in 
Cyprus. The implementation of the Environmental Noise 
Directive is significantly delayed. Based on the latest full 
set  of  information  (i.e.  2012  for  noise  maps  and  2013 
for  action  plans),  noise  mapping  for  roads  is  still 
incomplete.  Equally,  action  plans  for  agglomerations 
(i.e.  population  centres  or  places  of  economic  activity) 
and for the major roads are still lacking. 

These  instruments,  adopted  after  a  public  consultation 
had  been  carried  out,  should  include  the  measures  to 
keep noise low or reduce it.  

2019 priority action 

 

Complete action plans for noise management. 

Water quality and management 

EU  legislation  and  policy  requires  that  the  impact  of 
pressures  on  transitional,  coastal  and  fresh  waters 
(including  surface  and  ground  waters)  be  significantly 
reduced.  Achieving,  maintaining  or  enhancing  a  good 
status  of  water  bodies  as  defined  by  the  Water 
Framework Directive will ensure that EU citizens benefit 
from good quality and safe drinking and bathing water. 
It  will  further  ensure  that  the  nutrient  cycle  (nitrogen 
and phosphorus) is managed in a more sustainable and 
resource-efficient way. 

The  existing  EU  water  legislation54  puts  in  place  a 
protective  framework  to  ensure  high  standards  for  all 
water bodies in the EU and addresses specific pollution 

51 Directive 2002/49/EC. 
52 WHO/JRC, 2011, Burden of disease from environmental noise, 
Fritschi, L., Brown, A.L., Kim, R., Schwela, D., Kephalopoulos, S. (eds), 
World Health Organisation, Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, 
Denmark. 
53 European Environment Agency, Noise Fact Sheets 2017. 
54 This includes the Bathing Waters Directive (2006/7/EC), the Urban 
Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) (on discharges of 
municipal and some industrial wastewaters), the Drinking Water 
Directive (98/83/EC) (on potable water quality), the Water Framework 
Directive (2000/60/EC) (on water resources management), the 
Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC) and the Floods Directive 
(2007/60/EC). 

sources (for example, from agriculture, urban areas and 
industrial  activities).  It  also  requires  that  the  projected 
impacts  of  climate  change  are  integrated  into  the 
corresponding  planning 
instruments  e.g. flood  risk 
management  plans  and  river  basin  management  plans, 
including  programme  of  measures  which  include  the 
actions  that  Member  States  plan  to  take  in  order  to 
achieve the environmental objectives. 

Water Framework Directive 

reported 

the  Water  Framework  Directive  and 

Cyprus  has  adopted  and 
the  second 
generation  of  River  Basin  Management  Plans  (RBMPs) 
the 
under 
European  Commission  has  assessed  the  status  and  the 
development  since  the  adoption  of  the  first  RBMP, 
including suggested actions in the EIR report 2017. 

The  most  significant  pressures  on  surface  waters  was 
diffuse  pollution  (48 %)  followed  by  diffuse  polluttion 
from  agriculture  (47 %).  The  most  significant  preasure 
affecting groundwater was abstraction or flow diversion 
pressures  (71 %  of  groundwater  bodies),  followed  by 
diffuse agriculture and diffuse pollution from discharges 
not connected to sewerage network (both 19 %). 

The  most  significant  impact  on  surface  waters  was 
altered habitats due to morphological changes (includes 
connectivity)  (26 %),  followed  by  nutrient  pollution 
(18 %).  In  76 %  of  groundwater  bodies  abstraction 
exceeds  available  groundwater  resource  and  43 %  of 
groundwater bodies are affected by saline intrusion and 
33 % by chemical pollution. 

for 

There has ben an increase in the number of monitoring 
the  surveillance  and  operational 
sites  used 
monitoring  of  ecological  status 
in  coastal  waters 
between  the  first  and  second  RBMP.  There  has  also 
been an increase in the number of coastal water bodies 
included in surveillance monitoring. 

All  the  coastal  waters  bodies  are  in  good  or  better 
status/potential,  while  all  the  natural  lakes  are  in 
moderate status. For natural rivers, more than 60 % are 
in good or better status, while only 40 % of the heavily 
modified rivers are in good or better potential. 

The  proportion  of  surface  water  bodies  in  good  or 
better status/potential was 58 % as illustrated in Figure 
16  and  the  proportion  with  unknown  status/potential 
has significantly decreased (from 21 % in the first RBMP 
to 1 % in the second RBMP). 

The  chemical  status  of  ground  water  bodies  mainly 
remains unchanged between the first and second RBMP 
but  the  quantitative  status  of  groundwater  bodies  has 
improved  significantly.  The  number  of  groundwater 
increased 
bodies 
slightly  but  in  terms  of  groundwater  body  area  failing 
good  quantitative  status,  the  situation  improved  from 

failing  good  quantitative  status 

18 

                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

92 %  of  the  total  groundwater  body  area  in  the  first 
RBMP  to  57 % 
in 
monitoring  has  taken  place,  but  the  information  on 
impacts  and  significant  pressures  could  still  be 
improved. 

in  the  second  RBMP.  Progress 

Figure  16:  Ecological  status  or  potential  of  surface 
water bodies in Cyprus55. 

identified  but  not  all 
Significant  pressures  are 
significant  pressures  are  addressed  with  planned 
measures (Key type of measures) in order to reduce the 
pressures in both surface waters and groundwater. For 
groundwater,  measures  have  been  planed  in  order  to 
tackle agricultural abstraction/ flow diversion but not to 
tackle  diffuse  pollution  from  agriculture  or  discharges 
from  sources  which  are  not  connected  to  sewerage 
network, despite them being reported as causing water 
bodies to fail to be of good status. Similarly, for surface 
water  bodies,  no  measures  are  in  place  to  address 
diffuse  pollution  from  aquaculture,  urban  run-off, 
discharges  not  connected 
to  sewerage  network, 
physical  alteration  of  channel/bed/riparian  area/shore, 
despite these pressures being reported as causing water 
bodies to fail to be in good status. 

A critical factor in the success of the implementation of 
the  Programme  of  Measures 
is  the  availability  of 
funding  to  support  the  investments  required.  Cyprus 
has reported that some measures have been completed 
from  the  first  Programme  of  Measures,  with  the  only 
obstacle being a  lack of finance. It is therefore positive 
that 
financial 
reported 
commitments  have  been  secured  for  the  second 
Programme of Measures in Cyprus. 

it  has  been 

that  clear 

55 EEA, WISE dashboard. 

19 

Nitrates Directive 

Cyprus  has  some  problems  with  nitrate  levels  from 
agricultural  sources.  Around  17 %  of  the  groundwater 
monitoring sites  were affected (nitrates  concentrations 
above 25 mg/l) by pollution in 2012-2015. 

Only  around  8 %  of  the  territory  under  government 
control  is  identified  as  a  nitrate  vulnerable  zone  and 
subject to mandatory pollution control measures. 

Bathing Water Directive 

Figure 17 shows that in 2017, out of Cyprus’ 113 bathing 
waters, 97.3 % were of excellent  quality, 0.9 % of good 
quality  and  0 %  of  sufficient  quality  (compared  to 
99.1 %, 0 % and 0 % respectively in 2016). There was no 
bathing  water  of  poor  quality  in  Cyprus  in  201756. 
is 
Detailed 
available on a national portal and on an interactive map 
viewer  designed  and  hosted  by 
the  European 
Environment Agency57. 
Figure 17: Bathing water quality 2014–201758 

information  on  Cypriot  bathing  waters 

Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive  

Regarding  Cyprus’  compliance  with  the  Urban  Waste 
Water  Treatment  Directive,  the  latest  report  revealed 
that  around  35  agglomerations  were  non-compliant. 
The  Commission  therefore  launched  an  infringement 
procedure,  which  is  still  open.  These  non-compliances 
are  illustrated  by  the  collection  and  treatment  rates  in 
Cyprus included in the  national report prepared by the 
EC  regarding  the  9th  reporting  exercise  (reference  year 
2014) of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive: 

 

the  compliance  rate  with  Article  3  of  the  Directive 
(agglomerations  in  which  100 %  of  the  generated 

56 European Environment Agency, 2017. European bathing water 
quality in 2016 , p. 17. 
57 EEA, State of bathing waters  
58 European Environment Agency, 2018. European bathing water 
quality in 2017, p. 21. 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

 

 

waste water load is collected) is 65 % related to the 
total  generated  load  of  the  agglomerations.  The 
rate  63,5 %  does  not 
include  the  compliant 
agglomerations  served  by  IAS  (1,5 %  of  the  total 
load). 
the  compliance  rate  with  Article  4  of  the  Directive 
(agglomerations in  which  100 % of their generated 
load  receives  a  compliant  secondary  treatment)  is 
85.6 %  related  to  the  load  entering  to  collecting 
systems and treatment plants. 
the  compliance  with  Article  5  of  the  Directive 
(agglomerations  discharging  into  sensitive  areas 
load  above  10000  population 
with  generated 
in  which  100 %  of  this  receives  a 
equivalent 
compliant 
than 
treatment,  more 
secondary) is 85.3 % related to the load entering to 
collecting systems and treatment plants. 

stringent 

the 

that  waste  water 

If  no  collection  system  is  in  place,  Cyprus  can  use 
individual  or  other  appropriate  systems  (e.g.  storage 
tanks) to improve the collection rate. 
An investment of around EUR 747 million59 is needed to 
ensure 
remaining 
in 
agglomerations 
is  properly  collected  and  treated. 
According to the latest report, the projects listed have a 
total  design  capacity  that  covers  the  requirements  of 
the  Directive.  However,  the  last  projects  will  not  be 
completed  until  2026,  which  is  far  beyond  the  final 
deadline  of  2012.  Ideally  Cyprus’  management  plan 
should  ensure  that  the  projects  that  tackle  the 
agglomerations  in  breach  of  the  Directive  are  finalised 
as soon as possible. 

Updated data of Cyprus situation as of 31.12.2016 have 
been  reported  through  the  10th  Art.  15  and  Art.  17 
reporting exercises that were submitted on 20th of July 
2018 to the EC. 

Floods Directive 

The  Floods  Directive  established  a  framework  for  the 
assessment  and  management  of  flood  risks,  aiming  at 
the  reduction  of  the  adverse  consequences  associated 
with significant floods. 

Cyprus  has  adopted  and  reported  its  first  Flood  Risk 
Management  Plans  under  the  Directive  and  the 
European Commission conducted an assessment.  

The  Commission’s  assessment  found  that  good  efforts 
in  setting 
have  been  made  with  positive  results 
focusing  on 
objectives  and  devising  measures 
The 
protection 
prevention, 

preparedness. 

and 

59 European Commission, Ninth Report on the Implementation Status 
and the Programmes for Implementation of the Urban Waste Water 
Treatment Directive (COM(2017)749) and Commission Staff Working 
Document accompanying the report (SWD(2017)445). 

20 

assessment also showed that, as was the case for other 
Member States, Cyprus’s Flood Risk Management Plans 
do  not  yet  include  a  baseline  to  assess  the  progress 
achieved  in  implementing  measures.  In  addition,  there 
is  scope  for  systematically  considering  opportunities  to 
implement  nature  based  solutions  to  support  the 
reduction of flood risk. 

2019 priority actions60 

 

Take  steps 
in  order  to  better  determine  the 
quantitative  status  of  water  bodies  in  accordance 
with  the  Water  Framework  Directive  and  reduce 
including 
the  over-abstraction  of  groundwater, 
self-abstractions 
addressing  unregulated 
and 
permits,  which 
insufficiently  aligned  with 
environmental requirements. 

is 

 

  Monitor  changes  in  water  quality,  and  review  (or 
revise,  if  necessary)  the  nitrate  vulnerable  zones 
and the related measures in the action programme. 
Ensure that all the  wastewater collected is treated 
treatment 
according 
requirements. 
Take steps to systematically consider opportunities 
to implement nature based solutions to support the 
reduction of flood risk. 

secondary 

the 

to 

 

Chemicals 

The  EU  seeks  to  ensure  that  by  2020  chemicals  are 
produced and used in ways that minimise any significant 
adverse effects on human health and the environment. 
An  EU  strategy  for  a  non-toxic  environment  that  is 
conducive  to  innovation  and  to  developing  sustainable 
substitutes,  including  non-chemical  options,  is  being 
prepared. 

legislation61  provides  baseline 
The  EU’s  chemicals 
protection  for  human  health  and  the  environment.  It 
also  ensures  stability  and  predictability  for  businesses 
operating within the internal market. 

In  2016,  the  European  Chemicals  Agency  (ECHA) 
published  a  report  on  REACH  and  the  CLP  Regulation 62 
that  showed  that  enforcement  activities  are  still 
evolving.  Member  States  cooperate  closely  within  the 
Forum  for  Exchange  of  Information  on  Enforcement  63. 
This  cooperation  has  shown  that  there  is  scope  to 

60 For the full set of recommendations relating to the Water 
Framework Directive please see here. 
61 Principally for chemicals: REACH (OJ L 396, 30.12.2006, p.1.); for 
Classification, Labelling and Packaging, the CLP Regulation (: OJ L 252, 
31.12.2006, p.1.), together with legislation on biocidal products and 
plant protection products. 
62 European Chemicals Agency, Report on the Operation of REACH and 
CLP 2016. 
63 ECHA, on the basis of the projects REF-1, REF-2 and REF-3. 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

increase  the  effectiveness  of  enforcement  activities, 
particularly  for  registration  obligations  and  safety  data 
sheets,  where  the 
is  still 
relatively high. 

level  of  non-compliance 

including  controls  on 

While progress has been made, there is room to further 
improve  and  harmonise  enforcement  activities  across 
the  EU, 
imported  goods. 
Enforcement  remains  weak  in  some  Member  States, 
particularly  for  controls  on  imports  and  supply  chain 
obligations. The enforcement architecture is complex in 
most  EU  countries  and  enforcement  projects  reveal 
differences in compliance between Member States. 

A  2015  Commission  study  already  emphasised  the 
importance  of  harmonised  market  surveillance  and 
enforcement  when  implementing  REACH  at  Member 
in  terms  of  market  surveillance  and 
State 
enforcement,  deeming  it  to  be  a  critical  success  factor 
in the operation of a harmonised single market64. 

level, 

In March 2018, the Commission published an evaluation 
of  REACH65.  The  evaluation  concludes  that  REACH 
delivers  on  its  objectives,  but  that  progress  made  is 
slower  than  anticipated.  In  addition,  the  registration 
dossiers  often  are 
incomplete.  The  evaluation 
underlines  the  need  to  enhance  enforcement  by  all 
actors,  including  registrants,  downstream  users  and  in 
particular  for importers, to  ensure a  level playing field, 
meet  the  objectives  of  REACH  and  ensure  consistency 
with  the  actions  envisaged  to  improve  environmental 
compliance  and  governance.  Consistent  reporting  of 
Member  State  enforcement  activities  was  considered 
important in that respect. 

Making cities more sustainable 

EU  policy  on  the  urban  environment  encourages  cities 
to  put  policies  in  place  for  sustainable  urban  planning 
and design. These should include innovative approaches 
to  urban  public  transport  and  mobility,  sustainable 
buildings,  energy  efficiency  and  urban  biodiversity 
conservation. 

The  population  living  in  urban  areas  in  Europe  is 
projected to rise to just over 80 % by 205066. 

the 
Urban  areas  pose  particular  challenges 
environment  and  human  health,  but  they  also  provide 
opportunities  for  using  resources  more  efficiently.  The 
EU  encourages  municipalities  to  become  greener 
through  initiatives  such  as  the  Green  Capital  Award67, 

for 

64 European Commission. (2015). Monitoring the Impacts of REACH on 
Innovation, Competitiveness and SMEs. Brussels: European 
Commission. 
65 COM(2018) 116. 
66 European Commission, Eurostat, Urban Europe, 2016, p.9. 
67 European Commission, European Green Capital  

the Green Leaf Award68 and the Green City Tool69. 

Financing greener cities 

Cyprus  has  assigned  EUR 68.25  million  or  22.8 %  of  its 
allocation  under  the  European  Regional  Development 
Fund (ERDF)70 to sustainable urban development. 

in 

the 

participates 

Cyprus 
European  Urban 
Development  Network71.  This  network  includes  more 
than  500  EU  cities  responsible  for  carrying  out 
integrated  measures  based  on  sustainable  urban 
development strategies financed by ERDF in 2014-2020. 

Participation in EU urban initiatives and networks 

Cypriot  municipalities  are  generally  involved  in  EU 
initiatives  on  environment  protection  and  climate 
change. 

Cyprus  is  involved  in  the  URBACT  initiative  to  support 
sustainable urban development, through three different 
thematic networks72. 

Several  Horizon  2020  network  projects  have  also 
contributed  to  the  sustainability  of  Cypriot  cities. 
CIVITAS  includes  three  municipalities  from  Cyprus  that 
work  together  for  cleaner  and  better  transport  in 
cities73. 

24  Cypriot  cities  are  involved  in  the  EU  Covenant  of 
Mayors  initiative.  As  of  May  2018,  eight  of  them  have 
implemented  their  action  plans  and  are 
already 
monitoring  the  results.  Another  16  municipalities  and 
communities  have  at  least  presented  their  climate 
action plan and the commitments they aim to deliver by 
2020 or 203074. 

Recent  studies have been monitoring the geochemistry 
of  soils  as  a  tool  for  urban  pollution  identification  and 
remediation75. 

initiatives  and  networks 
These  welcome  urban 
contribute  to  a  better  urban  environment.  In  2017, 
8.8 % of the Cypriot population living in cities said that 
their neighbourhood was affected by pollution, grime or 
other  environmental  problems,  down  from  9.3 %  in 
2016  but  up  from  8.3 %  in  2015.  These  figures  are 
significantly  lower  than  the  EU-28  average  (20 %  in 
2017, 18.9 % in 2016 and  % in 2015)76. 

68 European Commission, European Green Leaf Award.  
69 European Commission, Green City Tool.  
70 European Commission, Partnership agreement with Cyprus - 2014-
2020. 
71 European Commission, The Urban Development Network. 
72 URBACT, Associated Networks by country. 
73 European Commission, Horizon 2020 Civitas Project. 
74 Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, Country signatories. 
75 URGE Project, Geochemistry in Europe.  
76 Eurostat, Pollution, grime or other environmental problems by 
degree of urbanisation, 2018. 

21 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

abrupt differences in their sprawl values81. Urban sprawl 
increased in all countries between 2006 and 2009.  The 
overall increase was 5 %. The largest absolute increases 
were  observed  for  Malta  (+ 0.59 UPU/m2)  and  Cyprus 
(+ 0.25 UPU/m2)82. 

Traffic congestion and urban mobility 

The  total  number  of  road  vehicles  in  Cyprus  has 
increased  up  to  696  150  in  2016,  a  slight  but  constant 
increase since 201383.  
The  modal  split  for  inland  passenger  transport84  was 
81 %  for  cars  (EU-28  83.4 %)  and  19 %  for  buses  and 
trolley  buses  (EU-28  9.1 %)85.  So  cars  are  still  the 
favoured mode of transport, with Cyprus having one of 
the  highest  proportion  of  passenger  transport  by 
bus/trolley  in  the  EU,  partly  due  to  the  geographical 
nature of the country. 

Traffic  congestion  is  a  growing  problem  in  Nicosia. 
Public transportation consists of bus service that travels 
throughout  the  island.  Buses  are  safe  and  inexpensive, 
but service is limited. 

In  terms  of  urban  mobility,  Cyprus  is  participating  in 
is  a  series  of 
different  projects.  A  good  example 
intelligent 
conferences  on  sustainable  mobility  & 
transport systems86. 

Nature and cities 

More  than  52 %  of  Cyprus’  Natura  2000  network  is  in 
functional urban areas77, one of the highest percentages 
in  the  EU  and  far  above  the  EU  average  of  15 %  (see 
Figure 18). 

Figure 18: Proportion of the Natura 2000 in Functional 
Urban Areas (FUA)78 

Urban sprawl 

Cyprus  had  a  weighted  urban  proliferation  of  2.74 
UPU/m2  in  2009  compared  to  a  European  average 
(EU-28+EEA-4) of 1.64 UPU/m2 with an increase of 10 % 
from 2006 to 20097980. 

Urban sprawl  

Large parts of Europe are affected by urban sprawl. The 
value  of  WUP  (weighted  urban  proliferation)  for  all  of 
Europe (32 countries considered, i.e. EU-28 + 4) in 2009 
was 1.64 UPU/m2. (Where the urban sprawl values for 
Europe ranged from 0.1 to 6.6 UPU/m2, with the higher 
number  meaning  more  urban  sprawl),  with  the  lowest 
values  for  Sweden,  Finland,  Romania  and  Estonia. 
Cyprus (2.74 UPU/m2 in 2009) is among countries that 
are separated from the other European countries by sea 
(i.e.  Sweden,  Norway,  Cyprus  and  Malta)  which  show 

77 European Commission, Definition of Functional Urban Areas. 
78 European Commission, the 7th Report on Economic, Social and 
Territorial Cohesion, 2017, p. 121. 
79 Urban Permeation Units measure the size of the built-up area as 
well as its degree of dispersion throughout the region. 
80 EEA, Urban Sprawl in Europe, Annex I, 2014, pp.4-5. 

81 EEA, Urban Sprawl in Europe, Annex I, 2016, pp.4-5. 
82 EEA, Urban Sprawl in Europe, 2016, p. 71. 
83 Eurostat, Passenger cars per 1 000 inhabitants, 2018. 
84 The relation between mode of transport and kilometres travelled 
(excluding bicycles and other alternative methods). 
85 Eurostat, Passenger transport Statistics by modal split. 
86 Cyprus Sustainable Mobility Conference.  

22 

 
 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Part II: Enabling framework: implementation tools 

4. Green taxation, green public procurement, environmental funding 

and investments 

Green taxation and environmentally harmful 
subsidies 

incentives, 

Financial 
taxation  and  other  economic 
instruments  are  effective  and  efficient  ways  to  meet 
environmental  policy  objectives.  The  circular  economy 
action  plan  encourages  their  use.  Environmentally 
harmful  subsidies  are  monitored  in  the  context  of  the 
European  Semester  and  the  energy  union  governance 
process. 

Cyprus’ revenue from environment-related taxes remains 
above  the  EU  average.  Environmental  taxes  accounted 
for  2.93 %  of  GDP  in  2017  (EU-28  average  2.4 %)  (see 
Figure  19)  and  energy  taxes  for  2.25 %  of  GDP  (EU 
average  1.84 %)87.  In  the  same  year,  environmental  tax 
revenues  were  8.62 %  of  total  revenues  from  taxes  and 
social-security contributions (EU-28 average 5.97 %). 

Cyprus’ tax structure results in a lower share of revenues 
from  labour  tax  in  total  tax  revenues  than  the  EU 
average.  Cyprus’  labour  tax  revenues  were  34.7 %  in 
2016,  while  the  implicit  tax  burden  on  labour  was 
25.6 % 88.  Consumption  taxes  remained  relatively  high 
(39.9 %,  seventh  in  the  EU-28),  showing  that  there  is 
labour  to 
some  potential  for  shifting  taxes  from 
consumption, particularly to environmental taxes. 

The  Commission  has  stated  repeatedly  in  the  European 
Semester  report  that  consumption  and  environmental 
tax  revenues  are  high  in  Cyprus,  which  makes  its  tax 
structure relatively growth and environment-friendly89.  

Meanwhile,  fossil  fuel  post-tax  subsidies  (which  include 
both price-gap subsidies and subsidies to compensate for 
the  negative  external  factors  associated  with  the  use  of 
fossil  fuels,  such  as  local  air  pollution,  faster  climate 
change and congestion) were almost zero in 201590. 

Cyprus  has  made  considerable  progress  on  reducing  the 
‘diesel  differential’  (difference  in  the  price  of  diesel 
versus  petrol)  since  2005.  In  2016  there  was  still  a  6 % 
gap between petrol and diesel tax rates, while in 2005 it 

was  23 %91.  Tax  rates  on  petrol  and  diesel  in  2016 
remained similar to those in 2015 (EUR 0.48 per litre for 
petrol and EUR 0.45 for diesel)92. 

Figure  19:  Environmental  tax  revenues  as  %  of  GDP 
(2017)93 

CO2-based  motor  vehicle  taxes  are  in  place  in  Cyprus. 
Vehicle  registration  tax  and  the  annual  road  tax  are 
based  on  CO2  emissions94.  Incentives  to  encourage 
people  to  buy  cars  with  lower  CO2  emissions  were  in 
place  in  2016.  These  are  linked  to  annual  circulation 
taxes,  road  tolls,  congestion  or 
low  emission  zone 
charges  and  also  to  buying  cleaner  vehicles.  There  were 
no incentives connected to the preferential use of public 

87 Eurostat, Environmental tax revenues, 2019. 
88 European Commission, Taxation Trends Report, 2018. 
89 European Commission, European Semester Country Report 2018, p. 
30. 
90 European Parliament and IMF, Fossil Fuel Subsidies, 2017, pp. 10-11. 

91 European Environment Agency 2017, Environmental taxation and EU 
environmental policies, p.27. 
92 European Commission, Taxes in Europe Database, 2018. 
93 Eurostat, Environmental tax revenues, 2019. 
94 ACEA, CO2 based motor vehicle taxes in Europe. 

23 

 
 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

infrastructures95.  New  vehicles  bought  in  Cyprus  are 
among the least environmentally friendly in the EU, with 
average CO2 emissions of 123.5 grams per kilometre (EU 
average 118 grams in 2016)96. 

The use of alternative fuels in new passenger cars sold in 
Cyprus has slightly increased  over the past few years. In 
2016,  the  share  of  new  passenger  cars  using  alternative 
fuels was nine times more than in 2014. However, levels 
were still very low (0.31 %)97. Most of these vehicles are 
electric  vehicles.  Very  few  or  no  CNG  (compressed 
natural  gas)  vehicles  are  used 
in  the  country.  Tax 
treatment for company cars is not a cause for concern in 
Cyprus98. 

Green public procurement 

The  EU  green  public  procurement  policies  encourage 
Member  States  to  take  further  steps  to  apply  green 
procurement  criteria  to  at  least  50 %  of  public  tenders. 
The European Commission is helping to increase the use 
of  public  procurement  as  a  strategic  tool  to  support 
environmental protection. 

The purchasing power of public procurement amounts to 
around EUR 1.8 trillion in the EU (approximately 14 % of 
GDP).  A  substantial  proportion  of  this  money  goes  to 
sectors  with  a  high  environmental 
impact  such  as 
construction  or  transport.  Therefore,  green  public 
procurement  (GPP)  can  help  to  significantly  lower  the 
negative  impact  of  public  spending  on  the  environment 
and  can  help  support  sustainable  innovative  businesses. 
The Commission has proposed EU GPP criteria99. 

Cyprus prepared its first national action plan to promote 
GPP  within  the  EU  framework  back  in  March  2007.  A 
revised  national  action  plan  was  then  published  in 
January 2012 and is currently still valid. 

EU  GPP  criteria  are  recommended  for  the  following 
product  groups:  office  equipment,  paper,  electricity, 
cleaning  products  and  services,  sanitary  products, 
construction  (building  and  road),  food  products  and 

95 European Environmental Agency, Appropriate taxes and incentives do 
affect purchases of new cars, 18 May 2018. 
96 European Environment Agency, Average CO2 emissions from new 
passenger cars sold in EU-28 Member States plus Norway, Iceland and 
Switzerland in 2016 . 
97 European Commission, Transport in the European Union Current 
Trends and Issues, 2018, pp.72-75. 
98 European Commission, Taxation of commercial cars in Belgium 
(including data for all Member States), 2017, p.3. 
99 In the Communication ‘Public procurement for a better environment’ 
(COM (2008) 400) the Commission recommended the creation of a 
process for setting common GPP criteria. The basic concept of GPP 
relies on having clear, verifiable, justifiable and ambitious 
environmental criteria for products and services, based on a life-cycle 
approach and scientific evidence base. 

services, furniture, textiles, transport, gardening products 
and services, street lighting and traffic signals. 

All  public  procurers  have  to  adopt  at  least  the  core 
criteria  from  the  national  action  plan  on  GPP  (including 
the criteria in the EU GPP toolkit and national criteria in 
categories  for  which  there  are  no  EU  criteria),  with  a 
target of at least 50 %. 

According  to  the  latest  survey,  Cypriot  authorities  used 
green  criteria 
in  more  than  50 %  of  procurement 
procedures in selected categories. GPP was used in 90 % 
of  product  and  services  purchases,  such  as  office  IT  and 
imaging  equipment.  It  was  used  in  100 %  of  road  sign, 
public  fountain  and  toilet  cistern  purchases  and  in  95 % 
of indoor lighting purchases. 

Since  2014,  the  government’s  environment  department 
has  organised  awards  for  good  practices  in  GPP  to 
acknowledge  the  efforts  of  public  contracting  bodies  in 
this  area.  The  GPP  awards  have  been  included  in  the 
annual  programme  of  the  Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Rural 
Development and Environment. In the future, the award 
will  be  extended  to  more  categories  included  in  Cyprus’ 
national  action  plan  on  GPP.  In  2017,  prizes  were 
extended  to  more  categories  that  are  in  Cyprus’  GPP 
NAP. Also the CY GPP AWARDS 2017 have been extended 
to the public sector 

Environmental funding and investments 

European  Structural  and  Investment  Fund  (ESIF)  rules 
oblige  Member  States  to  promote  environment  and 
climate  in  their  funding  strategies  and  programmes  for 
rural 
economic, 
development and maritime policy. 

social  and 

territorial 

cohesion, 

Achieving  sustainability  involves  mobilising  public  and 
private  financing  sources100.  Use  of  the  European 
Structural  and  Investment  Funds  (ESIFs)101  is  essential  if 
countries  are  to  achieve  their  environmental  goals  and 
integrate 
into  other  policy  areas.  Other 
instruments such as Horizon 2020, the LIFE programme102 
and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI)103 
may also support the implementation and spread of good 
practices. 

these 

100 See, for example, Action plan on financing sustainable growth 
(COM(2018) 97).  
101 i.e. the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Cohesion 
Fund (CF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the European Agricultural 
Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Maritime and 
Fisheries Fund (EMFF). The ERDF, the CF and the ESF are referred to as 
the ‘cohesion policy funds’. 
102 European Commission, LIFE programme. 
103 European Investment Bank, European Fund for Strategic 
Investments, 2016. 

24 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

According  to  the  2017  Special  Eurobarometer  on 
attitudes of EU citizens towards the environment, 97 % of 
Cypriots support greater EU investment in environmental 
protection (EU-28 average 85 %).  

for  Cyprus  during  programming  period  2014-2020  is  to 
protect the environment and use resources efficiently106. 
These  investments  will  help  the  transition  towards  a 
circular economy. 

European Structural and Investment Funds 2014-2020 

Cyprus  has  been  allocated  EUR 998.5  million  from  ESIF 
funds  for  2014-2020.  This  means  that  with  its  national 
contribution  of  EUR 267  million,  Cyprus  has  a  total 
budget  of  EUR 1.17  billion  to  invest  in  various  areas. 
Investments are made through four national operational 
programmes and should lead to job creation and growth, 
land 
better  environmental  protection, 
management in agriculture and forestry, the efficient use 
of  resources  and  increased  competitiveness  for  SMEs. 
There  should  also  be  a  significant  investment  in  the 
transport and energy network infrastructure. 

sustainable 

Figure  20:  ESIF  2014-2020  –  EU  allocation  by  theme, 
Cyprus (EUR billion)104 

Investments  in  innovation  and  low  carbon  economy  are 
key  areas  to  consider  when  estimating  environmental 
spending. The ERDF and cohesion fund allocate EUR 133 
million  to  the  low  carbon  economy  as  well  as  EUR 11.8 
million  to  climate  adaptation  and  EUR 184.3  million  to 
environmental measures107. In addition, around 22.8 % of 
the  ERDF  budget  is  being  used  for  sustainable  urban 
development. 

Current  data  suggest  that  100 %  of  the  EU  funds  for 
2007-2013 were spent108.  

Rural development 

to 

funding 

its  EARDF 

For  rural  development,  Cyprus  allocates  around  EUR 32 
million  of 
support  agri-
environmental commitments. It allocates a further EUR 7 
million  to  support  organic  farming  and  EUR 2  million  to 
support  the  Natura  2000  obligations.  Cyprus  has  also 
recently added a new agri-environmental commitment to 
ban the grazing of all animals in pastures of ‘high nature 
value’ and located in Natura 2000 areas. 

(RDP) 
The  Cypriot  Rural  Development  Programme 
outlines  the  country’s  priorities 
investing  the 
EUR 243.3 million in funding available for 2014-2020. This 
funding  includes  EUR 132.2  million  from  the  EARDF  and 
EUR 119.1 million of national co-funding109. 

for 

Cyprus’ RDP focuses on actions to restore, preserve, and 
improve  ecosystems.  For  example,  36 742  hectares  of 
agricultural 
land  will  be  protected  under  agri-
environment-climate  contracts  which  aim  to  preserve 
biodiversity,  improve  water  management  and  prevent 
soil  erosion.  In  addition,  11 700  hectares  (41.4 %)  of 
irrigated  land  are  expected  to  switch  to  more  efficient 
irrigation systems. 

On integrating environmental concerns into the common 
agricultural policy (CAP), the two key areas are: (i) to use 
the  EAFRD  to  pay  for  environmental  land  management 
and  other  environmental  measures;  and  (ii)  to  ensure 
that the first pillar of the CAP is implemented effectively 
for cross-compliance and first pillar ‘greening’. The direct 
payment  budget  for  2015-2020  is  EUR 353  million,  30 % 
of  which  will  go  towards  greening  practices  that  benefit 

of the aim of preserving, protecting and improving the quality of the 
environment, as set out in Article 11 and Article 191(1) TFEU, taking 
into account the polluter pays principle’ Article 8, Reg. (EU) No 
1303/2013. 
106 European Commission, Partnership agreement with Cyprus - 2014-20  
107European Commission, Partnership agreement with Cyprus - 2014-20 
108 European Commission, SF 2007-2013 Funds Absoption Rate  
109 European Commission, Rural development 2014-2020: Country files  

Cohesion Policy 

For  2014-2020,  Cyprus  has  been  allocated  around 
EUR 826.5  million  in  total  cohesion  policy  funding.  EU 
funds  are  a  key  asset  for  comprehensive  environmental 
protection in the EU105. One of  the investment  priorities 

104 European Commission, European Structural and Investment Funds 
Data by Country. 
105 ‘The objectives of the ESI Funds shall be pursued in line with the 
principle of sustainable development and with the Union’s promotion 

25 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                                                        
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

the environment110. 

The  latest  financial  data  available  (for  2007-2013)  show 
that  the  use  of  available  rural  development  funds  in 
Cyprus was 99.9 % (EU average 97.3 %)111. 

European Maritime and Fisheries Fund 

Through  the  Operational  Programme  “Thalassa”,  Cyprus 
will  invest  around  EUR 53  million  for  fisheries  and  the 
maritime  sector,  with  an  EMFF  contribution  of  EUR 39.7 
million.  Several  projects  that  benefit  the  environment 
have been financed under the Operational Programmes’ 
fisheries)  and  Priority  2 
Priority  1 
(sustainable aquaculture). 23.8 % of the total Operational 
Programme  allocation 
is  to  create  environmentally 
sustainable,  resource  efficient,  innovative,  competitive 
and knowledge based aquaculture112. 

(sustainable 

The Connecting Europe Facility 

The Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) is a key EU funding 
instrument  developed  specifically  to  direct  investment 
digital 
into 
infrastructures. It aims to address identified missing links 
and bottlenecks and promote sustainability. 

transport, 

European 

energy 

and 

By  the  end  of  2017,  Cyprus  had  signed  agreements  for 
projects amounting to EUR 51 million under the CEF113. 

Horizon 2020 

Cyprus  has  benefited  from  Horizon  2020  funding  since 
the programme started in 2014. As of January 2019, 124 
participants  have  been  granted  a  maximum  amount  of 
EUR 30.8 million for projects from the Societal Challenges 
environmental 
work 
issues114 115.  

dealing  with 

programmes 

in 

the  Horizon  2020  project 
Nicosia  participates 
‘COproductioN  with  NaturE 
for  City  Transitioning, 
INnovation  and  Governance’  (CONNECTING)  which  aims 
to  develop  policies  and  practices  that  increase  urban 
resilience,  innovation  and  governance  through  nature-
based  solutions.  The  project  will  bring  together  city 
governments,  SMEs,  academia  and  civic  society  to 

110 European Commission, CAP in Cyprus, 2017. 
111 COM(2017) 554. 
112 European Commission, EMFF, Operational Progamee 2014-2020  
113 Euroepan Commission, 2018 European Semester Country Reports 
114 European Commission own calculations based on CORDA (COmmon 
Research DAta Warehouse). A maximum grant amount is the maximum 
grant amount decided by the Commission. It normally corresponds to 
the requested grant, but it may be lower. 
115 i.e. (ii) Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine 
and maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy; (iii) 
Secure, clean and efficient energy; (iv) Smart, green and integrated 
transport; and (v) Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and 
raw materials. 

exchange  experiences  and  reproduce  good  practices  in 
other cities 116. 

Furthermore,  KIOS  research  centre  has  succeded  in 
securing  funding  from  HORIZON  2020  (under  TEAMING 
action  of  the  “Spreading  Excellence  and  Widening 
Participation Programme”) to be upgraded into a Centre 
of  Excellence.  The  mission  of  the  KIOS  Centre  is  to 
conduct multidisciplinary research and innovation in the 
area  of  Information  and  Communication  Technologies 
with  emphasis  on  the  Monitoring,  Control,  Security  and 
Management  of  Critical  Infrastructures,  which  include 
large-scale,  complex  systems  such  as  power  and  energy 
systems,  water 
systems, 
telecommunication 
emergency 
management and response systems. 

transportation 
and 

networks 

systems, 

In  addition  to  the  abovementioned  work  programmes, 
climate and biodiversity expenditure is present across the 
entire  Horizon  2020.  In  Cyprus,  projects  accepted  for 
funding  in  all  Horizon  2020  working  programmes  until 
December  2018  included  EUR  34  million  destined  to 
climate  action  (23.1 %  of  the  total  Horizon  2020 
contribution  to  the  country)  and  EUR  4  million  for 
biodiversity-related  actions  (3 %  of  the  Horizon  2020 
contribution to the country)117. 

LIFE programme 

Since  its  launch  in  1992,  the  LIFE  programme  has  co-
financed  a  total  of  45  projects  in  Cyprus118  at  a  total 
investment of EUR 44.5 million. The EU provided EUR 26 
million  of  this  amount.  Of  these  projects,  11  have 
focused  on  environmental  innovation  (under  the  LIFE 
environment  and  resource  efficiency  priority)  and  nine 
on  nature  conservation 
the  nature  and 
biodiversity priority). 

(under 

For  2014-2017  the  EU  has  allocated  EUR 6  million  to 
Cypriot  projects119.  The  ‘LIFE+  ORGANIKO’  project,  with 
its 
than 
EUR 500 000120,  aims  to  revamp  organic  farming  and  its 
products to help mitigate climate change.  

contribution  of  more 

requested 

EU 

Another  example  is  the  restoration  and  management  of 
Oroklini  Lake  SPA  in  Cyprus,  which  helped  increase  the 
habitats  available  for  the  Oroklini  Lake’s  bird  species. 
Water management and restoration actions were carried 
out to improve the birds’ habitat. These included creating 
new islets, restoring land that had been destroyed by an 

117 European Commission own calculations based on CORDA (COmmon 
Research DAta Warehouse). 
117 European Commission own calculations based on CORDA (COmmon 
Research DAta Warehouse). 
118European Commission, LIFE by country : Cyprus  
119 Commission services based on data provided by EASME. 
120 European Commission, LIFE Organiko. 

26 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

illegal market  and putting up fencing around the lake to 
reduce disturbance121. 

European Investment Bank 

In 2013-2017, EIB financing in Cyprus totalled EUR 1.251 
billion.  Of  this,  EUR 83  million  went  towards  waste 
management  and  EUR 41  million  towards  water  and 
sewerage  projects122.  In  2018  alone,  the  EIB  group  (the 
European Investment Bank and the European Investment 
Fund)  loaned  Cypriot  businesses  and  public  institutions 
EUR 210  million,  as  shown  in  Figure  21123.  Of  this, 
EUR 39.4 million (19 %) went to environmental projects. 
Figure 21: EIB loans to Cyprus in 2018124 

European Fund for Strategic Investments 

The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is an 
initiative to help overcome the current investment gap in 
the  EU.  One  project  under  the  ‘Infrastructure  and 
Innovation’  strand  has  been  approved  to  date.  The 
project, which is in the energy sector, will receive EUR 35 
million  in  European  Investment  Bank  (EIB)  financing 
under the EFSI. This is expected to trigger nearly EUR 53 
million in secondary investments. Under the SME strand, 
two agreements with financial intermediaries have been 
approved so far. EU  financing through the EFSI amounts 
to  EUR 10  million,  which  is  expected  to  mobilise  more 
than  EUR 28  million  in  total  investment.  Around  125 
smaller  companies  or  start-ups  will  benefit  from  this 
support125.  As  of  January  2019,  the  EFSI  had  mobilised 
around  EUR 45  million 
in  Cyprus.  The  secondary 
investment  triggered  by  those  funds  is  expected  to  be 
EUR 81 billion126.  

National environmental financing 

Cyprus  spent  EUR 43.6  million  on  environmental 

121 Biodiversity Information System for Europe, Green Infrastructure in 
Cyprus 
122 European Investment Bank, Financed projects Cyprus  
123 EIB, Cyprus and the EIB, 2018. 
124 EIB, Cyprus and the EIB, 2018. 
125 European Commission, 2018 European Semester Country Report – 
Cyprus  
126 EIB, EFSI project map. 

(the 

annual 

average 

percentage 

protection in 2016, a decrease of 26 % from 2015127. 81 % 
of these payments were allocated to waste management 
activities 
of 
environmental spending allocated to waste management 
in  the  EU  is  49.7 %)128.  EUR 582.600  were  allocated  to 
SMes  to  implement  EMAS,  between  2007  to  2017. 
EUR 7.6  million  was  allocated  to  pollution  abatement 
(19 %  of  total).  2.3 %  of  environmental  expenditure  was 
allocated  to  protecting  biodiversity  and  the  landscape 
(EUR 1.1  million).  Between  2012  and  2016,  the  general 
government  funding  for  environmental  protection  was 
EUR 290 million129. 

127 Eurostat, General Government Expenditure by function, 2018. 
128 No data is available regarding the expenditure on wastewater 
management. 
129 Eurostat, General Government Expenditure by function, 2018. 

27 

 
                                                                 
 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

5. Strengthening environmental governance 

Information, public participation and access to 
justice 

Citizens  can  more  effectively  protect  the  environment  if 
they  can  rely  on  the  three  ‘pillars’  of  the  Aarhus 
Convention:  

(i) access to information;  
(ii) public participation in decision making; and  
(iii) access to justice in environmental matters.  

It is of crucial importance to public authorities, the public 
and  business  that  environmental  information  is  shared 
efficiently  and  effectively130.  Public  participation  allows 
authorities  to  make  decisions  that  take  public  concerns 
into account. Access to justice is a set of guarantees that 
allows  citizens  and  NGOs  to  use  national  courts  to 
protect the environment131. It includes the right to bring 
legal challenges (‘legal standing’)132. 

Environmental information 

Cyprus  has  a  mixed  system  for  providing  environmental 
data. Most of the environmental information is available 
on  the  environment  department’s  website133.  The 
government has a high quality portal on air quality134 and 
should create  similar centralised portals  for other areas. 
Currently,  up-to-date  information  about  chemicals  are 
not  available  on  any  of  the  government’s  portals.The 
Cyprus  Pollutant  Release  and  Transfer  provides 
information  on 
industrial  emissions  with  available 
historical  and  statistical  data.  Monitoring  and  historical 
datasets are lacking for many areas and improvement  is 
needed to make the datasets on chemicals and industrial 
emissions publicly accessible.  

Cyprus’  implementation  of  the  INSPIRE  Directive  leaves 
room  for  improvement.  The  accessibility  of  spatial  data 
is  poor.  The 
through  view  and  download  services 
country’s  performance  has  been  reviewed  based  on  its 

130 The Aarhus Convention, the Access to Environmental Information 
Directive 2003/4/EC and the INSPIRE Directive 2007/2/EC together 
create a legal foundation for the sharing of environmental information 
between public authorities and with the public. This EIR focuses on 
INSPIRE. 
131 The guarantees are explained in Commission Notice on access to 
justice in environmental matters, OJL 275, 18.8.2017 and a related 
Citizen’s Guide. 
132 This EIR looks at how well Member States explain access to justice 
rights to the public, and at legal standing and other major barriers to 
bringing cases on nature and air pollution. 
133 Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, 
environmental data web site  
134 Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance, portal on air 
quality  

for 

data 

policies, 

coordination, 

implementation  report135  and 

2016 
its  most  recent 
monitoring data from 2017136. Implementation has been 
good 
dataset 
identification  and  documentation  of  data.  However, 
Cyprus needs to make additional efforts to make the data 
accessible  through  services  and  improve  the  conditions 
for data reuse. Cyprus also needs to make further efforts 
the 
to 
prioritise 
implementation  of 
In 
particular,  it  needs  to  prioritise  datasets  identified  as 
high-value spatial datasets137. 

environmental 

environmental 

legislation. 

datasets 

in 

Figure  22:  Access  to  spatial  data  through  view  and 
download services in Cyprus (2017)  

Public participation 

In Cyprus, the implementation of the Aarhus Convention 
and  related  European  legislation  is  mainly  addressed 
through  separate  sector-specific 
legislation.  Public 
engagement  in  environmental  policy  making  is  mainly 
encouraged  through  a  public  consultation  system. 
Relevant  public  consultations  are  published  by  the 
Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Rural  Development  and 
No 
Environment’s 
overarching  legislation  or  single  information  portal  that 
addresses all policy areas, including environment, seems 
to exist. The Eurobarometer figures from 2017 show that 
people  in  Cyprus  strongly  agree  (87 %  of  respondents) 
that  an  individual  can  play  a  role  in  protecting  the 
environment. This is roughly the same as in 2014. 

Department138. 

Environment 

135 INSPIRE CY country sheet 2017. 
136 INSPIRE monitoring dashboard 
137 European Commission, List of high value spatial data sets 
138 Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, public 
consultations. 

28 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Access to justice 

Access  to  justice  in  environmental  matters  is  a  set  of 
guarantees  that  allows  citizens  and  their  associations  to 
challenge  acts  or  omissions  of  the  public  administration 
before a court139. Among other things, it covers the right 
to  bring  a  challenge  (legal  standing),  the  right  to 
protection  against  prohibitive  costs  and  the  right  to 
access  practical  information.  The  2019  EIR  focuses  on 
practical information, legal standing and other barriers to 
bringing cases on air pollution and nature before a court. 

Cyprus  does  not  provide  adequate  online  practical 
information  on  access  to 
in  environmental 
matters. 

justice 

it  difficult 

Cyprus has an interest-based and restrictive approach to 
for 
legal  standing,  which  would  make 
environmental  NGOs  to  bring  cases  to  court.  For 
secondary  EU  legislation  with  specific  access-to-justice 
provisions,  there  is  corresponding  Cypriot  legislation. 
However,  there  is  no  Cypriot  case-law  to  date  to  show 
how  Cypriot  courts  might  deal  with  air  pollution  and 
nature cases that fall outside the scope of this secondary 
legislation. 

2019 priority actions 

 

Improve  access  to  spatial  data  and  services  by 
making  stronger  links  between  the  central  INSPIRE 
website and regional portals. Identify and document 
all  spatial  datasets  required  for  the  implementation 
of environmental law140. 

  Better inform the public about their rights to access 
justice,  notably  in  relation  to  air  pollution  and 
nature. 
Ensure that there is legal standing for environmental 
NGOs  to  bring  legal  challenges  on  air  pollution  and 
nature before the courts. 

 

139 Details are set out in Commission ‘Notice on access to justice in 
environmental matters’, OJL 275, 18.8.2017, p1. 
140 European Commission, Priority list of data sets for eReporting  

29 

Compliance assurance 

to  ensure 

Environmental compliance assurance covers all the work 
that 
undertaken  by  public  authorities 
industries,  farmers  and  others  fulfil  their  obligations  to 
protect  water,  air  and  nature,  and  manage  waste141.  It 
includes  support  measures  provided  by  the  authorities, 
such as:  
(i) compliance promotion142;  
(ii) inspections and other checks that they carry out, i.e. 
compliance monitoring143; and  
(iii)  the  steps  that  they  take  to  stop  breaches,  impose 
sanctions  and  require  damage  to  be  remedied,  i.e. 
enforcement144.  
Citizen  science  and  complaints  enable  authorities  to 
liability145 
focus  their  efforts  better.  Environmental 
ensures that the polluter pays to remedy any damage. 

Compliance promotion and monitoring 

information 

Online information is given to farmers on how to comply 
with  obligations  on  nitrates  and  nature.  The  quality  of 
this 
indicator  of  how  actively 
authorities  promote  compliance  in  areas  with  serious 
implementation  gaps.  The  responsible  Cypriot  ministries 
do not make such information available online. 

is  an 

Major  industrial  installations  can  be  a  serious  pollution 
risk.  Public  authorities  must  have  plans  to  inspect  these 
installations and must make individual inspection reports 
available to the public146. Cypriot official websites provide 
this information 147. 

Citizen science and complaint handling 

Engaging  the  general  public  through  citizen  science,  can 
increase knowledge about the environment and help the 
authorities  in  their  work.  No  evidence  of  the  use  of 
citizen  science-type  approaches  has  been  found  for 
Cyprus.  

The availability of clear online information about how to 
make a  complaint  shows how responsive authorities are 

141 The concept is explained in detail in the Communication on ‘EU 
actions to improve environmental compliance and governance’ 
COM(2018)10 and the related Commission Staff Working Document, 
SWD(2018)10. 
142 This EIR focuses on the help given to farmers to comply with nature 
and nitrates legislation. 
143 This EIR focuses on inspections of major industrial installations. 
144This EIR focuses on the availability of enforcement data and co-
ordination between authorities to tackle environmental crime. 
145 The Environmental Liability Directive 2004/35/EC, creates the 
framework. 
146 Article 23, Industrial Emissions Directive 2010/75/EU. 
147 The Department of Environment and the Department of Labour 
Inpectorate publish an inspection plan for IED installations. IED 
individual inpection reports are also published: report 1, report 2. 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

to complaints from the public. With the exception of the 
Commissioner  for  Administration  and  Human  Rights148, 
who  deals  with  complaints  about  maladministration, 
Cypriot  authorities  do  not  provide  citizens  with  clear 
online information about how to make a complaint about 
environmental harm. 

Enforcement 

When  monitoring 
identifies  problems,  a  range  of 
responses may be appropriate. The number of warnings, 
penal cases as well as the fines imposed by the courts are 
included  in  the  annual  reports  of  the  Department  of 
Labour  Inpection  which  are  publicly  available  on  its 
website149. However, information on responses to cross-
compliance  breaches  on  nitrates  and  nature  are  is 
lacking. 

is  especially  challenging. 

Tackling  waste,  wildlife  crimes  and  other  environmental 
offences 
It  requires  close 
cooperation  and  coordination  arrangements  between 
inspectors,  customs  authorities,  police  and  prosecutors. 
In  Cyprus,  investigating  and  prosecuting  environmental 
crimes is mainly the responsibility of the Cypriot police150 
and  the  Attorney  General.  However,  there 
is  no 
published information on how authorities cooperate and 
coordinate to tackle environmental crime. 

Environmental liability 

The  Environmental  Liability  Directive  (ELD)  establishes  a 
framework  based  on  the  ‘polluter  pays’  principle  to 
prevent  and  remedy  environmental  damage.  The  2017 
EIR  focused  on  better  information  on  environmental 
damage, financial security and guidance. The Commission 
is still collecting evidence on the progress made. 

2019 priority actions 

  Better 

inform 

the  public  about 

compliance 
promotion,  monitoring  and  enforcement.  At  a 
minimum this should involve: (i) ensuring that online 
information  about  how  to  comply  with  obligations 
is  available  to  Cypriot 
on  nitrates  and  nature 
information  on 
farmers; 
industrial 
inspection  plans 
inspections;  and 
file 
environmental complaints. 
Publish  information  on  outcomes  of  administrative 
and criminal enforcement actions and of the follow-
up  to  detected  cross-compliance  breaches  on 
nitrates and nature. 

(ii)  providing  online 
and 

it  easier  to 

reports  on 

(iii)  making 

 

 

Improve  financial  security  for  liabilities  and  ELD 
guidance.  Improve  the  collection  and  publication  of 
information about environmental damage. 

Effectiveness of environmental 
administrations 

in 

involved 

implementing 

Those 
environmental 
legislation at EU, national, regional and local levels need 
to have the knowledge, tools and capacity to ensure that 
the  legislation  and  the  governance  of  the  enforcement 
process bring about the intended benefits. 

Administrative capacity and quality 

Central,  regional  and  local  administrations  must  be  able 
to  carry  out  their  own  tasks  and  work  effectively  with 
each other within a system of multi-level governance. 

in  place  the  body  of  EU 

Cyprus  concentrated  on  aligning  national  and  EU 
legislation  in  the  period  just  before  it  joined  the  EU. 
There  have  been  no  major  gaps  and  the  process  of 
putting 
legislation  has 
strengthened  the  country’s  environmental  policies  and 
legislation. So far, the Cypriot  authorities have complied 
with  the  deadlines  in  the  EU  environmental  legislation 
and  reacted  quickly  whenever  the  Commission  has 
initiated an infringement procedure. A notable exception 
is in the nature sector, where there have been delays (for 
example,  delays  in  designating  the  ‘special  protected 
areas and in proposing ‘sites of Community interest’ and 
delays in bringing projects in line with EU legislation and 
especially 
‘appropriate 
assessments’). 

adequate 

carrying 

out 

The  number  of  infringement  cases  against  Cyprus  (12 
infringement cases, of which 11 are at 258 stage and one 
is at 260 stage) is moderate in absolute terms. However, 
the  number  is  high  per  capita.  In  general,  there  are  no 
significant problems on the quality of the transposition of 
the  EU  directives,  although  there  are  currently  three 
cases open. Most cases relate either to a poor application 
late 
of 
transposition. 

the  EU  environmental 

legislation  or 

to 

Coordination and integration 

Environmental 

As  mentioned  in  the  2017  EIR,  the  transposition  of  the 
revised 
(EIA) 
Directive151  provides  an  opportunity  for  countries  to 
streamline their regulatory framework on environmental 
assessments. Despite a delay in full transposition, Cyprus 
has transposed the revised Directive.  

Impact  Assessment 

148 Cyprus Ombudsman. 
149 Department of Labour Inpection  
150 Cyprus Police. 

The  Commission  encourages 
streamlining  of 
environmental  assessments  to  reduce  duplication  and 

the 

151 Directive 2014/52/EU. 

30 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

in  environmental  assessments 

for 
avoid  overlaps 
projects.  Streamlining  helps  to  reduce  unnecessary 
administrative  burden. 
It  also  accelerates  decision 
making,  without  compromising  the  quality  of  the 
environmental  assessment  procedure152.  Cyprus  has 
started  streamlining  environmental  assessments  under 
the EIA and the Habitats Directives.  

Adaptability, 
(eGovernment) 

reform 

dynamics 

and 

innovation 

Cyprus’ two main environmental administrations are the 
Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Rural  Development  and 
Environment (especially the Department of Environment 
and  the  Water  Development  Department)  and  the 
Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance. Both of 
them  appear  to  use  new  technologies,  mainly  the 
internet, to interact with the public or bodies that wish to 
be  involved.  Both  Ministries  host  user-friendly  websites 
with  many  illustrations  and  headings  on  the  relevant 
themes 
information  easily. 
Furthermore, the both Ministries’ websites provide their 
contact details and online forms should someone need to 
communicate with them. However, according to EUPACK, 
Cyprus’  performance  on  e-governance  is  lower  than 
other EU countries. 

to  help  people 

find 

In the DESI Report 2018, Cyprus had a score of 55 out of 
100 on digital public services, slightly below than the EU 
average of 58153. 

Enabling financing and effective use of funds 

information  on 

Information  on  funding  opportunities  to  improve  the 
environment  is published on the Ministry of Agriculture, 
Rural  Development  and  Environment’s  website  and  the 
websites  of  its  departments.  The  Ministry  also  hosts  a 
portal  with 
funding 
opportunities  and  national  programmes  and  schemes. 
Searches  by  theme  are  possible,  including  ‘environment 
and climate change’. Moreover, information to the public 
for 
(including 
environment),  at  both  national  and  European  level,  is 
provided through a central government portal developed 
for this purpose called “funding programmes portal” . 

funding  opportunites 

in  all  sectors 

relevant  EU 

2019 priority action 

 

Cyprus can further improve its overall environmental 
citizen 
governance 

transparency, 

(such 

as 

engagement,  compliance  and  enforcement,  as  well 
as administrative capacity and coordination). 

International agreements 

The  EU  Treaties  require  the  EU  environmental  policy  to 
promote  measures  at  international  level  to  deal  with 
regional or worldwide environmental problems. 

The EU is committed to strengthening environmental law 
and its implementation globally. It therefore continues to 
support  the  Global  Pact  for  the  Environment  process, 
which  was  launched  by  the  United  Nations  General 
Assembly  in  May  2018154.  The  EIR  is  one  of  the  tools  to 
ensure  that  the  Member  States  set  a  good  example  by 
respecting  European  Union  environmental  policies  and 
laws and international agreements.  

Currently, Cyprus has signed but not yet ratified the Kiev 
Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers and 
the  Protocol  on  Strategic  Environmental  Assessment  to 
the  Espoo  Convention.  It  has  neither  signed  nor  ratified 
the Protocol on Integrated Coastal Zone Management or 
the Helsinki Convention on Watercourses and Lakes. 
Forests:  EU  Timber  Regulation  (EUTR)155/  Forest  Law 
Enforcement,  Governance 
(FLEGT) 
Regulation156 

Trade 

and 

Between March 2015 and February 2017, Cyprus carried 
out  checks  on  63  operators  of  domestic  timber  and  781 
operators  importing  timber.  Cyprus  carried  out  more 
checks  on  operators  of  both  domestic  (130)  and 
imported  timber  (106)  than  originally  planned157.  Very 
few  enforcement  measures  were taken following checks 
on  domestic  and  imported  timber  —  only  two  and  31 
respectively.  However,  Cyprus  confirmed  that  it  issued 
fines  and  seizures  in  107  cases  on  domestic  timber  and 
that it issues fines in four cases of illegal timber import. 

During  this  two-year  period,  Cyprus  conducted  the 
highest  number  of  checks  on  traders  (747)  in  the  EU.  It 
also reported issuing one fine to a trader. On cooperation 
(Article  12  of  the  EUTR),  Cyprus  reports  to  have 
collaborated  with  national  customs  authorities,  tax 
agencies  and  national  police,  as  well  as  with  other  EU 
enforcement  agencies.  Cyprus  has  also 
joined  the 
Mediterranean network on EUTR implementation. 

Experts from the EUTR competent authority participated 
in  a  TAIEX-EIR  Peer  2  Peer  workshop  to  strengthen 
cooperation among the competent authorities from eight 

152 The Commission issued a guidance document in 2016 regarding the 
setting up of coordinated and/or joint procedures that are 
simultaneously subject to assessments under the EIA Directive, Habitats 
Directive, Water Framework Directive, and the Industrial Emissions 
Directive, OJ C 273, 27.7.2016, p. 1. 
153 European Commission, Digital Economy and Society Index Report 
2018, Digital Public Services. 

154 UN General Assembly Resolution 72/277 and Organizational session 
of the ad hoc open-ended working group.  
155 Regulation (EU) No 995/2010. 
156 Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005. 
157 Cyprus had originally planned to conduct 106 checks on operators 
for domestic timber and 92 checks on operators for imported timber. 

31 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 – Cyprus 

Mediterranean  EU  countries.  The  aim  was  to  improve 
and  harmonise  the  implementation  of  the  EUTR  in  the 
Mediterranean region. Experts from the Netherlands and 
Denmark shared their experiences from the Nordic-Baltic 
network of EUTR competent authorities. 

Genetic  resources:  Nagoya  Protocol  on  Access  to 
Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of 
Benefits Arising (ABS)158  

In line with the EU ABS Regulation, which transposes the 
required  compliance  measures  under 
the  Nagoya 
Protocol  into  EU  law,  Cyprus  adopted  a  new  legislation 
on  June  1,  2018  which  designates  the  competent 
authority  and 
for 
lays  down  rules 
infringement of the ABS Regulation. 

for  penalties 

the  Convention  on 
trade: 
International  wildlife 
International  Trade  in  Endangered  Species  of  Wild 
Fauna and Flora (CITES)159 

In  line  with  the  obligations  laid  down  in  the  Basic 
Regulation160  which  transposes  the  major  obligations  of 
the  Convention  on  International  Trade  in  Endangered 
Species  of  Wild  Fauna  and  Flora  (CITES)  into  EU  law, 
Cyprus  has  established  relevant  national  authorities  and 
processes (requests for) import, (re-) export and intra-EU 
trade documents on a regular basis.  

Reports  on  seizures  of  illegal  wildlife  shipments  (in 
particular  those  reported  every  6  months  to  TRAFFIC 
under  its  contract  with  the  Commission,  and  those 
exchanged  through  the  EU-TWIX  platform)  show  the 
activity of customs authorities. 

2019 priority action 

 

Increase  efforts  to  be  party  to  relevant  multilateral 
environmental  agreements,  by  signing  and  ratifying 
the remaining ones.  

Sustainable development and the 
implementation of the UN SDGs  

Sustainable development links environmental, social and 
economic policies in a coherent framework and therefore 
helps  to 
legislation  and 
policies. 

implement  environmental 

Cyprus has integrated the SDGs into public policy making 
through an action plan. More precisely, in January 2012, 
Cyprus adopted a revised action plan to take part in the 
EU  effort  to  promote  green  public  procurement.  Funds 

158 Regulation (EU) No 511/2014. 
159 The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). 
160 Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 on the protection of species of 
wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein. 

used to achieve the SDGs include national funds, LIFE and 
Structural funds and RDP (LEADER) funds. 

There is specific coordination between national and sub-
national levels to implement  the national action plan on 
green  public  procurement.  Municipalities  have 
to 
develop  their  own  local  action  plans  based  on  the 
national action plan. 

Cyprus  submitted  a  voluntary  national  review  on  the 
SDGs to the UN in 2017161. 

161UN, Review On The Implementation Of The 2030 Agenda In Cyprus. 

32