Ministry of the Environment (Finland)

Ministry of the Environment
Finnish: ympäristöministeriö
Swedish: miljöministeriet

The current location of the ministry on Aleksanterinkatu 7
Ministry overview
Formed1983; 41 years ago (1983)
JurisdictionFinnish Government
Annual budget€0.256 billion (2013)
Minister responsible
Websitewww.ym.fi/en-US/The_Ministry
Politics of Finland
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The Ministry of the Environment (YM, Finnish: ympäristöministeriö, Swedish: miljöministeriet) is one of the 12 ministries which comprise the Finnish Government. Headed by the Minister of the Environment, the ministry is responsible for preparing legal matters concerning communities, the built environment, housing, biodiversity, sustainable use of natural resources and environmental protection in Finland.[1]

The Ministry of the Environment employs some 280 people.[2]

The Ministry of the Environment's administrative branch includes the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) and the Housing Finance and Development Centre of Finland (ARA). In matters falling within its remit, the Ministry of the Environment directs the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centres). The Ministry also guides and funds Parks & Wildlife Finland within Metsähallitus, the state-owned enterprise administering state-owned land and water areas.[1]

Finland founded the Ministry of the Environment in 1983, which was quite early compared to some other countries.[which?] In the 21st century, the ministry's role of planning housing has increased in importance.[3] In 2014, the merging of the Ministry of the Environment with Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry was discussed widely.[by whom?][4][5] When preparing the government 2015, Sipilä, Soini and Stubb[who?] preliminarily agreed that the Ministry of Environment would be merged with Ministry of Traffic. However, the minister post was given to Kimmo Tiilikainen together with the post of Minister of Agriculture and Forestry.[6]

Kai Mykkänen of the National Coalition Party became the new minister upon the appointment of the Orpo Cabinet in June 2023.

  1. ^ a b "The Ministry of the Environment – working together towards a sustainable future". Ministry of the Environment. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  2. ^ "Working at the Ministry of the Environment". Ministry of the Environment. Archived from the original on 16 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  3. ^ "Ympäristöministeriö täyttää tänään 30 vuotta" (in Finnish). 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Ympäristöministeriö halutaan lopettaa?". Iltasanomat (in Finnish). 22 May 2015. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  5. ^ Lankinen, Katariina (August 26, 2014). "Sipilä: Keskusta kannattaa luonnonvaraministeriötä". Suomenmaa (in Finnish). Archived from the original on Feb 1, 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  6. ^ "Sipilä mylläsi salkkujen sisällöt ja nosti keltanokan ministeriksi". HS.fi. 28 May 2015.