Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety

Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit (BMU)
Agency overview
Formed	6 June 1986
Jurisdiction	Government of Germany
Headquarters	Robert-Schuman-Platz 3, 53175 Bonn
Employees	814
Annual budget	€ 8.256 Million (2009)
Minister responsible	Peter Altmaier, Federal Environmental Minister
Child agencies	Federal Environmental Agency Federal Agency for Nature Conservation Federal Office for Radiation Protection
Website
http://www.bmu.de

Headquarters in Bonn

Seat in Berlin on Alexanderplatz

The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, (German: Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit), abbreviated BMU, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. It is headquartered in Bonn with a branch office in Berlin. The current minister of the environment is Peter Altmaier, who assumed office on May 22, 2012.

The ministry was established on June 6, 1986 in response to the Chernobyl disaster. The then Federal Government wanted to combine environmental authority under a new minister in order to face new environmental challenges more effectively. Prior to this responsibilities for environmental issues were distributed among the ministries of the Interior, Agriculture and Health.

Functions

The ministry's primary functions include:

• Fundamental national environmental policy
• Informing and educating the public about environmental issues
• Environmental remediation and development in Eastern Germany
• Climate protection and energy
• Air quality control
• Noise abatement
• Conservation of groundwater, rivers, lakes and seas
• Soil conservation and remediation of contaminated sites
• Waste management and recycling policy
• Chemicals safety, environment and health
• Precautions against emergencies in industrial plants
• Protection, maintenance and sustainable utilization of biodiversity
• Safety of nuclear facilities
• Nuclear supply and disposal
• Radiological protection

Organization

Peter Altmaier, CDU

The ministry is led by the Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. The current Minister is Peter Altmaier, appointed by Chancellor Angela Merkel. The minister is supported by two parliamentary state secretaries and one state secretary who manages the ministry's six departments:

• "ZG" department (Abteilung ZG) is the central office responsible for policy, Europe and international collaboration
• "KI" department (Abteilung KI): climate, renewable energy and international cooperation
• "WA" department (Abteilung WA): water management, waste management, soil conservation and contamination
• "IG" department (Abteilung IG): air pollution, health impacts, environment and traffic, hazardous locations and materials
• "N" department (Abteilung N): conservation und species richness, genetic engineering, environmental impacts of agriculture and forestry
• "RS" department (Abteilung RS): radiation protection, nuclear safety, nuclear supply and radioactive waste

See also

• Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz
• List of German ministers of the environment
• World Nuclear Industry Status Report

Federal Ministers

Political Party:       CDU       Green       SPD

Name (Born-Died)		Party	Term of Office		Chancellor (Cabinet)
	Walter Wallmann (b. 1932)	CDU	6 June 1986	22 April 1987	Kohl (II)
	Klaus Töpfer (b. 1938)	CDU	7 May 1987	17 November 1994	Kohl (III • IV)
	Angela Merkel (b. 1954)	CDU	17 November 1994	27 October 1998	Kohl (V)
	Jürgen Trittin (b. 1954)	Green	27 October 1998	22 November 2005	Schröder (I • II)
	Sigmar Gabriel (b. 1959)	SPD	22 November 2005	28 October 2009	Merkel (I)
	Norbert Röttgen (b. 1965)	CDU	28 October 2009	22 May 2012	Merkel (II)
	Peter Altmaier (b. 1958)	CDU	22 May 2012	Incumbent

External links

• Official Web site (German)
• Official Web site (English)