The municipalities in Denmark have been subject to a major reform which came into force on 1 January 2007. As a result of the reform, the municipalities have taken over a lot of the environmental tasks from the previous counties.
This has enabled the municipalities to integrate the tasks and use a more holistic approach, but it has also resulted in a number of challenges in terms of the need for cooperation across the boundaries of the municipalities.
The municipalities in Denmark have responsibilities within the environment, local planning, urban renewal, construction, roads and transport.
In addition, the municipalities are responsible for cleaning and maintenance of roads, drains, and recreational areas as well as drinking water, waste water and waste management and disposal. In terms of municipal utility services, the division of authoritative tasks and operations is increasing due to the future privatisation of these utility services.
The authoritative tasks mainly include supervision, sector planning, preparation of regulations, issue of permissions, approvals, orders and prohibitions.