Public perception of environmental pressures within the Slovene coastal zone

Public participation is an essential part of sound and legitimate political decision-making, since the awareness of environmental problems on the side of potential investors and that of the public may have a significant effect on environmental protection in the area. The subject of this investigation is the perception of the environmental pressures in the Slovene coastal area by different social groups, where the opinions of the general population and employees of the Port of Koper are analysed and compared.Results show that the group of employees grade ports’ impacts on the environment significantly lower with respect to the general population, while both groups grade environmental impacts not connected to the port's activities similarly. Respondents rank sources of marine pollution and noise generation in accordance to environmental research in the area and rank the impact of road traffic on air quality too low.