The founding Unit of the Czech Environmental Inspectorate was the Forest Protection Unit. Act No. 282/1991 Coll., on the Czech Environmental Inspectorate and its powers in forest protection, as a state administration body, directly formulates the powers of the Inspectorate in forest protection. Other Units joined the Inspectorate during the years 1991 to 1992.
In forest protection, the Inspectorate detects deficiencies and damage to the functions of the forest as a component of the environment, their causes and the persons responsible for their origin or duration, requires the removal and correction of identified deficiencies, their causes and consequences and imposes measures to eliminate and correct them, inspects the imposed measures, in case of imminent damage, is entitled to order restrictions, or stopping production or other activities until the deficiencies and their causes are eliminated.
The activity of the Inspectorate is focused on the supervision of compliance with applicable legal regulations, in particular Act No. 282/1991 Coll., on the Czech Environmental Inspectorate and its scope in forest protection, Act No. 289/1995 Coll. on forests, Act No. 149/2003 Coll., on the circulation of reproductive material of forest trees of forestry-important species and artificial hybrids intended for forest restoration and afforestation and on the amendment of some related laws, Act No. 114/1992 Coll. on nature and landscape protection, regarding the functions of forests as a component of the environment. It can impose a fine on legal entities and natural persons whose activities endanger or damage the environment in forests by:
- unauthorized use of forest land for purposes other than the fulfillment of forest functions,
- creating, by their own fault, the conditions for the action of harmful biotic and abiotic factors,
- not fulfilling the measures imposed by the environmental authorities according to Act No. 282/1991 Coll., on the Czech Environmental Inspectorate and its powers in forest protection.