APAT (Agency for the Protection of the Environment and forTechnical services) was established with Legislative Decree no. 300 dated 30.7.1999 (Art. 38) and was born from the incorporation of ANPA (National Agency for the Protection of the Environment) and the Department of Technical Services of the Prime Minister’s Office according to Presidential Decree no. 207 dated 8.8.2002 .
Since 2002, APAT has been preserving the notable cultural heritage represented by the paleonotological and lithomineralogical Collections of the former Geological Service of Italy (Legislative Decree no. 42 dated 22.1.2004 ).