History

The Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania was established in 1998, following the reorganisation of the Ministry of Environmental Protection. The newly established Ministry also took over a number of functions from the Ministry of Construction and Urban Development, as well as forestry regulatory functions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.

The establishment of the Ministry brought together several policy areas that remain central to its work today: environmental protection, natural resource management, forests, territorial planning, construction, housing, landscape protection and the sustainable development of the built environment.

The institutional development of these areas began before the establishment of the Ministry. In 1990, the Department of Environmental Protection was established under the Supreme Council of Lithuania. In 1994, it became the Ministry of Environmental Protection. In parallel, the Ministry of Construction and Urban Development operated between 1990 and 1998, continuing earlier institutional functions related to construction, urban development and territorial planning.

The Ministry’s functions are also linked to earlier institutions responsible for environmental protection, construction and urban development. These include the Nature Protection Committee, established in 1957, the State Construction Committee, established in 1987, and earlier institutions responsible for construction, reconstruction and infrastructure development.

Institutional timeline

Ministers of Environment since 1998

Since its establishment in 1998, the Ministry of Environment has been led by the following ministers.