Legal mandate

In addition to its involvement in approval procedures, the Office of the Environmental Ombudsman also works on future developments and strategies in the field of nature and environmental protection. In this context, the office develops blueprints and standards relating to topics of relevance for the Tyrol that support the harmonised evaluation of measures taken and indicate opportunities and risks for the future development of the region. The third main focus relates to the organisation, development and implementation of nature conservation measures. With the help of good-practice projects and events, the Office of the Environmental Ombudsman shows how nature conservation and the careful use of natural resources can be a positive experience and have economic benefits at the same time.

The Office of the Environmental Ombudsman for the Tyrol works on an interdisciplinary basis and benefits in all fields of activity from the wide-ranging expertise of its staff, which covers such disciplines as biology, botany, law, political science and landscape ecology.

As this is an office of the Tyrolean regional authority, the geographical scope of its activities in approval procedures is restricted to the Tyrol. All the Austrian regions have established an Environmental Ombudsman on the basis of regional legislation (see http://www.umweltanwaltschaft.gv.at). As a result of regional differences in the legislation, the various regional Environmental Ombudsmen do not all have the same powers. In addition to the size of the office, there are also differences with regard to access to the two highest courts of public law in Austria, the Administrative Court and the Constitutional Court.

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