COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT The EU Environmental Implementation Review 2019 Country Report - ROMANIA Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Environmental Implementation Review 2019: A Europe that protects its citizens and enhances their quality of life
Date: 2019-04-04
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, Romania, application of EU law, climate change policy, environmental law, environmental protection, governance, green economy, public health, quality of the environment

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 4.4.2019  SWD(2019) 130 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT The EU Environmental Implementation Review 2019   Country Report - ROMANIA       Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Environmental Implementation Review 2019:  A Europe that protects its citizens and enhances their quality of life   {COM(2019) 149 final} - {SWD(2019) 111 final} - {SWD(2019) 112 final} - {SWD(2019) 113 final} - {SWD(2019) 114 final} - {SWD(2019) 115 final} - {SWD(2019) 116 final} - {SWD(2019) 117 final} - {SWD(2019) 118 final} - {SWD(2019) 119 final} - {SWD(2019) 120 final} - {SWD(2019) 121 final} - {SWD(2019) 122 final} - {SWD(2019) 123 final} - {SWD(2019) 124 final} - {SWD(2019) 125 final} - {SWD(2019) 126 final} - {SWD(2019) 127 final} - {SWD(2019) 128 final} - {SWD(2019) 129 final} - {SWD(2019) 131 final} - {SWD(2019) 132 final} - {SWD(2019) 133 final} - {SWD(2019) 134 final} - {SWD(2019) 135 final} - {SWD(2019) 136 final} - {SWD(2019) 137 final} - {SWD(2019) 138 final} - {SWD(2019) 139 final}  
 
 
This  report  has  been  written  by  the  staff  of  the  Directorate-General  for  Environment,  European  Commission. 
Comments are welcome, please send them to ENV-EIR@ec.europa.eu 

More information on the European Union is available at http://europa.eu. 

Photographs: p. 11 — ©iStock/Janoka82; p. 13 — ©iStock/alpinetrail; p. 22 — ©gettyimages/Janoka82; p. 25 
— ©iStock/salajean; p. 30 — ©iStock/igabriela 

For reproduction or use of these photos, permission must be sought directly from the copyright holder. 

©European Union, 2019 

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. 

1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table of Contents 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................................... 3 

PART I: THEMATIC AREAS ............................................................................................................................... 4 

1. 

TURNING  THE  EU  INTO  A  CIRCULAR,  RESOURCE-EFFICIENT,  GREEN  AND  COMPETITIVE  LOW-
CARBON ECONOMY .............................................................................................................................. 4 

Measures towards a circular economy .................................................................................................. 4 
Waste management .............................................................................................................................. 6 
Climate change ...................................................................................................................................... 8 

2. 

PROTECTING, CONSERVING AND ENHANCING NATURAL CAPITAL ................................................... 11 

Nature and biodiversity ....................................................................................................................... 11 
Maintaining and restoring ecosystems and their services .................................................................. 12 
Estimating natural capital .................................................................................................................... 13 
Invasive alien species........................................................................................................................... 14 
Soil protection ..................................................................................................................................... 14 
Marine protection ............................................................................................................................... 15 

3. 

ENSURING CITIZENS' HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE ......................................................................... 16 

Air quality ............................................................................................................................................ 16 
Industrial emissions ............................................................................................................................. 17 
 ................................................................................................................................................. 18 
Noise 
Water quality and management ......................................................................................................... 18 
Chemicals ............................................................................................................................................. 21 
Making cities more sustainable ........................................................................................................... 22 

PART II: ENABLING FRAMEWORK: IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS ................................................................... 24 

4. 

GREEN  TAXATION,  GREEN  PUBLIC  PROCUREMENT,  ENVIRONMENTAL  FUNDING  AND 
INVESTMENTS ..................................................................................................................................... 24 

Green taxation and environmentally harmful subsidies ..................................................................... 24 
Green public procurement .................................................................................................................. 25 
Environmental funding and investments ............................................................................................ 25 

5. 

STRENGTHENING ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE .......................................................................... 29 

Information, public participation and access to justice....................................................................... 29 
Compliance assurance ......................................................................................................................... 31 
Effectiveness of environmental administrations ................................................................................. 32 
International agreements .................................................................................................................... 33 
Sustainable development and the implementation of the UN SDGs .................................................. 34 

2 

 
 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Executive summary 

Romania  and  the  Environmental 
Review 

Implementation 

In  the  2017  EIR,  the  main  challenges  identified  for 
Romania  for  the  implementation  of  EU  environmental 
policy and law were: 
 

to  improve  compliance  with  EU  waste  and  urban 
waste water legislation in order to meet EU targets, 
as the final deadlines in Romania’s Accession Treaty 
were drawing near; and 
the 
improve  coordination  and  enhance 
to 
administrative  capacity  of  the  authorities  and 
agencies involved in implementing EU legislation, in 
particular  for  water  and  waste  management  and 
the  protection  and  management  of  Natura  2000 
sites.  This  action  is  part  of  the  broader  strategy  to 
strengthen public administration. 

 

Romania  organised  an  EIR  national  dialogue  in  July 
2018 focusing on three main issues: waste, waste water 
and  air  quality,  which  are  at  present  the  most 
challenging 
in  July  2018,  the  nature 
bilateral dialogue took place. 

issues.  Also 

experts 

from  national 

In  2017  the  Commission  launched  the  TAIEX-EIR  Peer-
to-Peer (EIR P2P) tool to facilitate peer-to-peer learning 
between 
environmental 
authorities.  The  first  P2P  event  took  place  on  22-
24 January  2018  in  Bucharest  at  the  request  of  the 
Romanian  Ministry  of  Environment,  to  seek  expert 
advice on the issue of landfill closure and rehabilitation 
in order to address an ongoing infringement procedure. 

Progress on meeting challenges since the 2017 EIR  

in 

low 

the  2017  EIR.  According 

The 2019 EIR shows that waste management remains a 
key  challenge  for  Romania,  despite  formal  progress 
thanks  to  adoption  of  the  national  waste  management 
in  December  2017.  Recycling  and  resource 
plan 
if  compared  to  the  trend 
efficiency  are  still 
presented 
the 
Commission’s ‘Early Warning Report’ (2018), Romania is 
considered  at  risk  of  non-compliance  with  the  2020 
municipal  waste  recycling  target  of  50 %.  The  circular 
economy  remains  underdeveloped,  although 
it  has 
potential in this area, as confirmed by a  conference on 
this subject in the country in 2017. Additional measures 
have  to  be  adopted  and  fully  implemented,  while 
awareness of the circular economy needs to increase. 

to 

in 

its  water  policy 

With  regard  to  water  quality,  Romania  still  needs  to 
improve 
line  with  the  Water 
Framework Directive. In addition, it is still struggling to 
implement the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive 
and  to  improve  the  quantity  and  quality  of  drinking 
water.  Given  the  very  low  compliance  rates  with  the 
in  the 
2013  and  2015 

intermediate  deadlines  set 

3 

Accession Treaty, the Commission decided to launch an 
infringement procedure. The final deadline for Romania 
to  comply  with  the  Urban  Waste  Water  Treatment 
Directive 
its 
Accession Treaty and the problem will most likely grow. 

is  31  December  2018  according  to 

conservation 

far  as  nature 

concerned, 
is 
As 
implementing 
remains  a 
the  Nature  Directives 
considerable challenge. Romania’s Natura 2000 network 
appears  to  suffer  from  the  lack  of  an  appropriate 
administrative  capacity  framework  and  the  absence  of 
updated knowledge and data. 

system 

Poor  air  quality  continues  to  be  a  problem  in  the 
country.  The  main  sources  of  air  pollution  come  from 
the  transport  and  energy  sectors,  in  particular  fossil 
fuels/use of domestic solid fuel by households. Romania 
could make significant progress towards addressing the 
problem  by:  (i)  restructuring  the  energy  and  domestic 
integration  of 
heating 
renewables,  shifting  to  gas,  district  heating  and 
pollution  controls);  (ii)  traffic  measures;  and  (iii)  other 
pollution and prevention control measures. At the same 
time,  serious  and  structural  shortcomings  have  been 
identified  in  the  air  quality  data  measured  by  the 
Romanian  monitoring  network  and  reported  to  the 
European  Commission.  In  fact,  the  situation  could  be 
much worse than actually reported. 

(facilitating 

the 

funds  and 

The  2019  EIR  shows  that  Romania  continues  to  rely 
heavily  on  EU 
loan  opportunities. 
Nevertheless,  there  is  a  lack  of  administrative  capacity 
and  project  preparation/maturation  and  prioritisation 
across environmental areas. This hinders the capacity of 
use of funds which are available and highly needed. 

Examples of good practice 

infrastructure 

initiatives  have  taken 
Several  green 
shape.  One  good  example  is  the  LIFE  project  ‘Connect 
Carpathians  —  Enhancing  landscape  connectivity  for 
brown  bear  and  wolf  through  a  regional  network  of 
NATURA 2000 sites in Romania’. The project, which runs 
from  September  2013  to  February  2019,  aims  to 
enhance  landscape  connectivity  within  an  ecological 
corridor  located  in  western  Romania.  It  consists  of  a 
network  of  Natura  2000  sites  between  the  Apuseni 
Mountains and the southern Carpathians and is the only 
route through which flagship species such as bears and 
wolves  can  move  between  the  two  areas.  Project 
include:  (i)  building  up  the  capacity  of 
activities 
responsible 
site 
and  Natura 
landscape  scale  conservation;  (ii) 
administrators 
involving 
connectivity 
in 
stakeholders 
management;  (iii)  securing  land  to  develop  linkage 
corridors;  and  (iv)  managing  corridors  to  create  a 
carnivore-permeable landscape. 

in 
local 

agencies 

2000 

 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Part I: Thematic Areas 

1. Turning the EU into a circular, resource-efficient, green and 

competitive low-carbon economy 

Measures towards a circular economy 

The  Circular  Economy  Action  Plan  emphasises  the  need 
to  move  towards  a  life-cycle-driven  ‘circular’  economy, 
reusing  resources  as  much  as  possible  and  bringing 
residual  waste  close  to  zero.  This  can  be  facilitated  by 
developing  and  providing  access  to  innovative  financial 
instruments and funding for eco-innovation. 

Following  the  adoption  of  the  Circular  Economy  Action 
Plan in 2015 and the setting up of a related stakeholder 
platform  in  2017,  the  European  Commission  adopted  a 
new  package  of  deliverables  in  January  20181.  This 
included  additional  initiatives  such  as:  (i)  an  EU  strategy 
for plastics; (ii) a Communication on how to address the 
interplay  between  chemical,  product  and  waste 
legislation; (iii) a report on critical raw materials; and (iv) 
a  framework  to  monitor  progress  towards  a  circular 
economy2. 

The circular  (secondary) use  of material in Romania  was 
1.5 %  in  2015,  significantly  below  the  EU-28  average  of 
11.7 % and down on previous years. As for the number of 
people employed in the circular economy, Romania ranks 
closer  to  the  EU-28  average,  at  1.54 %  of  total 
employment in 2016 (EU-28 average 1.73 %). 

In  the  2017  Special  Eurobarometer  on  attitudes  of  EU 
citizens  towards  the  environment,  79 %  of  Romanians 
said  they  were  concerned  about  the  effects  of  plastic 
products  on  the  environment.  This  was  the  lowest 
proportion in the EU-28; the average is 87 %. In addition, 
84 % said  they  were  worried  about  the 
impact  of 
chemicals  (EU-28  average  90 %3).  There  appears  to  be 
and 
economy 
support 
environmental  protection  actions 
in  the  Romanian 
society, although the extent of this support seems one of 
the lowest in the EU-28. 

initiatives 

circular 

for 

In Romania, resource efficiency remains at the same low 
level  as  presented  in  the  first  EIR  report.  The  circular 
economy  remains  underdeveloped,  although  there  is 
potential  in  this  area,  as  confirmed  by  a  conference  on 
the  subject  in  the  country  in  autumn  2017.  Overall 

awareness of the circular economy needs to increase. 
In 2017, Romania’s ‘resource productivity’ ratio4 (i.e. how 
efficiently  the  economy  uses  material  resources  to 
produce  wealth)  was  the  lowest  in  the  EU,  alongside 
Bulgaria  and  Estonia,  at 0.33  EUR/kg  (EU  average: 
EUR 2.04  EUR/kg).  This  can  be  seen  in  Figure  1,  which 
also  shows  that  Romania’s  resource  productivity  has 
been relatively stable since 2010. 
Figure 1: Resource productivity 2010-20175 

In  December  2017,  Romania  adopted  its  national  waste 
management  plan  (for  more  detail  see  the  waste 
management section of this report). 

The  plan  is  investigating  the  possibility  of  introducing  a 
methodology  for  the  financing  rules  to  implement  the 
‘polluter pays’ principle  (Ecoteca, 2016). In addition, the 
government has proposed to introduce a subsidy for the 
recycling industry. 

Romania  increased  the  number  of  employees  in  its 
environmental  goods  and  services  sector  from  around 
130 000  people  in  2011  to  around  155 000  in  20156. 
Unfortunately,  the  country  still  does  not  use  many 
support  measures  for  resource  efficiency.  The  most 
developed  measures  are  either  implemented  through 
third-party  organisations  or 
inspired  by  EU-funded 
projects and focus on waste recovery and recycling. 

Measuring a country’s transition towards a more circular 
economy is a complex task. However, the number of EU 

1 European Commission, 2018 Circular Economy Package. 
2 COM(2018) 029. 
3 European Commission, 2017, Special 486 Eurobarometer, ‘Attitudes of 
European citizens towards the environment’. 

4 Resource productivity is defined as the ratio between gross domestic 
product (GDP) and domestic material consumption (DMC). 
5 Eurostat, Resource productivity. 
6 Eurostat, Employment in the environmental goods and services sector. 

4 

 
 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Ecolabel products and EMAS7-licensed organisations in a 
country can give a rough measurement of this transition. 
These two indicators show to what extent the transition 
to a circular economy is engaging the private sector and 
other  national  stakeholders.  The  two  indicators  also 
show  the  commitment  of  public  authorities  to  policies 
that  support  the  circular  economy.  As  of  September 
2018,  Romania  had  24  products  and  19 
licences 
registered  in  the  EU  Ecolabel  scheme  out  of  71  707 
products  and  2  167  licences  in  the  EU,  showing  a  low 
take-up  of  the  scheme8.  Some  11  organisations  from 
Romania are currently registered in EMAS9. 

SMEs and resource efficiency 

Romanian  SMEs  continue  to  score  below  the  EU-28 
average  for  the  ‘environment’  component  of  the  Small 
Business  Act,  as  shown  in  Figure  2.  The  country  scored 
particularly poorly for the share of SMEs taking resource 
efficiency measures, and for the number of SMEs with a 
turnover  share  of  more  than  50%  generated  by  green 
products  or  services.  However,  the  percentage  of  SMEs 
that  have  benefited  from  public  support  measures  for 
their 
significantly 
increased. 

resource-efficiency  actions  has 

The  latest  Eurobarometer  on  ‘SMEs,  resource  efficiency 
and green markets’15 asked companies about both recent 
resource efficiency actions they had taken and additional 
resource  efficiency  actions  they  planned  to  take  in  the 
next  2  years.  The  Eurobarometer  then  compared  these 
responses with responses given to the same questions in 
2015.  The  proportion  of  Romanian  companies  that 
undertook  resource  efficiency  actions  is  in  all  areas  far 
below the EU-28 average and even lower than in 2015. 

Eco-innovation 

Romania  ranked  28th  on  the  2018  European  Innovation 
Scoreboard,  with  its  score  falling  14  percentage  points 
since  201011.  On 
the  Eco-Innovation  Scoreboard, 
Romania  ranks  23rd  with  a  score  of  65  (see  Figure  3). 
Romania  is  well  below  the  overall  EU-28  average  score 
and  is  in  the  category  of  countries  catching-up  on  eco-
innovation. 

Only  3 %  of  Romanian  companies  relied  on  external 
support in their efforts to be more resource efficient. The 
EU average is 22 %, in a range from 3 % to 38 %. 

As shown in Figure 4, Romania has continuously recorded 
a  below-average  performance  in  eco-innovation  since 
2010. 

If  the  Romanian  business  community,  including  SMEs,  is 
to  realise  the  opportunities  from  a  circular  economy,  it 
needs  to  be  made  aware  of  the  fundamental  role  of 
resource efficiency. Future policies and programmes may 
aim  both  to  support  eco-innovators  and  to  increase 
resource efficiency in the general economy. An effective 
way  forward  would  be  to  focus  on  the  most  interested 
companies  and  take  a  ‘value  chain’  approach  that  could 
in turn create significant spillovers into the wider society. 
Figure 2: Environmental performance of SMEs10 

7 EMAS is the European Commission’s Eco-Management and Audit 
Scheme – a programme to encourage organisations to behave in a more 
environmentally sustainable way 
8 European Commission, Ecolabel Facts and Figures. 
9 As of May 2018. European Commission, Eco-Management and Audit 
Scheme. 
10 European Commission, 2018 SBA fact sheet - Romania, p.15. 

Romania’s  regulatory,  policy  and  financial  framework 
seems  to  be  one  of  the  largest  barriers  companies 
experience  when  introducing  eco-innovation  activities 
and improvements. 

Most  Romanian  companies  have 
low  environmental 
awareness. They are mainly driven by the need to comply 
with  regulation  in  their  environmental  practices  and  are 
generally  driven  by  cost  considerations  in  their  choices. 
Nevertheless,  there  are  signs  that  companies  are 
increasingly  auditing  their  waste  management  practices 
improve  waste 
internally,  trying  to 
management,  and  this  is  improving  their  environmental 
awareness. Several large companies also have started to 
invest  in  infrastructure  for  recycling  and  collecting  used 
products, trying to capture this business opportunity. 

find  ways  to 

11 European Commission, European Innovation Scoreboard 2018, p. 72. 

5 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Figure 3: 2017 Eco-innovation index (EU=100)12 

2019 priority action 

 

 

Ensure  that  Romania’s  policy  orientation  has  a 
strategic long-term view and an integrated approach 
for  mainstreaming  sustainable  development  and 
circular economy thinking and eco-innovation across 
the government’s policies; 
Increase  support  of  and  promotion  of  resource 
in  particular  by 
efficiency  measures  by  SMEs, 
investing  further  in  education  and  training.  Export 
capacity  of  SMEs  can  be  increased  by  improved 
resource efficiency. 

Waste management 

Turning waste into a resource is supported by: 
(i)  fully 
legislation,  which 
implementing  EU  waste 
includes  the  waste  hierarchy,  the  need  to  ensure 
separate  collection  of  waste,  the 
landfill  diversion 
targets, etc.; 
(ii) reducing waste generation and waste generation per 
capita in absolute terms; and  
(iii)  limiting  energy  recovery  to  non-recyclable  materials 
and  phasing  out  landfilling  of  recyclable  or  recoverable 
waste. 

This  section  focuses  on  management  of  municipal 
waste15  for  which  EU  law  sets  mandatory  recycling 
targets16. 

landfilling  rates.  This 

including  7 %  material 

Waste  management  remains  a  key  challenge 
for 
Romania.  The  country’s  performance  continues  to  be 
characterised  by  very  low  recycling  of  municipal  waste 
(14 %, 
recycling  and  7 % 
is 
composting)  and  very  high 
contrary to the waste hierarchy and comes in spite of the 
recycling  targets  set  at  EU  level.  Moreover,  recycling 
rates  have  been  stagnating  since  2013,  while  the 
incineration rate has increased slightly to 4 %. The landfill 
rate  reported  by  Romania  to  the  European  Commission 
in 2017 was 70 %. However,  the figure  does not  include 
the temporary storage prior to disposal, which, if added, 
would increase this rate further. 

In  2017,  the  municipal  waste  generation  per  capita  in 
Romania was 272 kg, a 18 kg increase from 2013 but still 
considerably below the EU average of around 487 kg17. 

15 Municipal waste consists of mixed waste and separately collected 
waste from households and from other sources, where such waste is 
similar in nature and composition to waste from households. This is 
without prejudice to the allocation of responsibilities for waste 
management between public and private sectors. 
16 See Article 11.2 of Directive 2008/98/EC. This Directive was amended 
in 2018 by Directive (EU) 2018/851, and more ambitious recycling 
targets were introduced for the period up to 2035. 
17 Eurostat, Municipal waste and treatment, by type of treatment 
method, accessed May 2018. 

Figure  4:  Romania’s  eco-Innovation  performance 
(EU=100)13 

invest 

in  Romania  are  becoming 
Furthermore,  companies 
keener  to 
in  resource  efficiency  measures. 
Approximately  30 %  of  companies  have  implemented 
energy-saving  measures  (33 %  specifically)  and  waste-
minimising  measures  (31 %  of  companies),  which  is  half 
the average EU figure. In the country, 59 % of companies 
invest  nothing  or  less  than  1 %  of  annual  turnover  in 
becoming more resource efficient, which is slightly more 
than  the  EU  as  a  whole  (51 %),  while  5 %  of  companies 
invest  more  than  5 %  of  turnover  in  such  measures,  a 
markedly higher percentage than in the EU as whole, for 
which the figure is 1 %14. 

12 Eco-innovation Observatory: Eco-Innovation scoreboard 2017. 
13 European Commission, The Eco-Innovation Scoreboard and the Eco-
Innovation Index. 
14 European Commission, Eco-Innovation Observatory, Country profile 
2016-2017: Romania. 

6 

 
 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Figure 5 depicts the municipal waste18 by treatment in kg 
per  capita.  It  is  clear  that  Romania  will  have  to  put  big 
efforts into increasing recycling and reducing landfilling. 

Figure  5:  Municipal  waste  by  treatment  in  Romania 
2010-201719 

Figure  6  shows  that  Romania  must  invest  heavily  in 
recycling  in  the  next  few  years  to  reach  the  2020 
recycling target20. 
Figure 6: Recycling rate of municipal waste 2010-201721 

2017 saw the end of Romania’s transition period granted 
through  the  Accession  Treaty  for  the  implementation  of 

18 Municipal waste consists of waste collected by or on behalf of 
municipal authorities, or directly by the private sector (business or 
private non-profit institutions) not on behalf of municipalities. 
19 Eurostat, Municipal waste by waste operations , accessed April 2018. 
20 Directive (EU) 2018/851, Directive (EU) 2018/852, Directive (EU) 
2018/850 and Directive (EU) 2018/849 amend the previous waste 
legislation and set more ambitious recycling targets for the period up to 
2035. These targets will be taken into consideration to assess progress 
in future Environmental Implementation Reports. 
21 Eurostat, Recycling rate of municipal waste, accessed May 2018. 

the Landfill Directive. Romania will have to close and also 
rehabilitate  101  non-compliant  landfills  as  required  by 
Article  13  of  Directive  1999/31/EC.  Considering  the  high 
proportion  of  waste  being  landfilled,  the  country  could 
be  faced  with  a  serious  landfill  capacity  problem  and 
could  also  be 
legislation.  For 
infringing  the  waste 
biodegradable  municipal  waste,  Romania  took  up  the 
option to postpone by 4 years the attainment of its 2016 
35 %  landfill  target.  Romania  also  missed  the  2013  and 
2014 packaging recycling targets, although it did so by a 
small margin. Data on glass packaging recycling have not 
been reported for 2015, but in 2014 Romania was below 
the required level.  

In December 2017, following a significant delay, Romania 
adopted  its  long-awaited  national  waste  management 
plan  and  waste  prevention  programme,  both  of  which 
are  valid  until  2025.  The  adoption  of  these  strategic 
documents  is  however  not  accompanied  by  relevant 
investment  efforts.  The  waste  management  plans  at 
county level are currently under preparation.  

The national plan sets out a strategy to increase recycling 
rates  and  comply  with  the  landfill  diversion  targets  for 
biodegradable  waste.  It  focuses  on  the  roll-out  of 
separate  collection,  including  for  biodegradable  waste, 
and plans for infrastructure to treat it via composting or 
anaerobic  digestion.  It  also  proposes  to  significantly 
extend  the  network  of  mechanical-biological  treatment 
plants so that there will be one per county, which sounds 
excessive.  The  plants  should  be  convertible  so  that  they 
can  also  treat  separately  collected  waste  once  the 
production of residual waste decreases.  

In  addition,  there  is  a  plan  to  build  the  first  dedicated 
municipal  waste  incinerator  with  energy  recovery  in 
Bucharest  as  a  core  part  of  an 
integrated  waste 
management project for the capital and possibly for Ilfov 
county. The development of the project has stalled at the 
planning phase. The closure of all non-compliant landfills 
is planned for 2020.  

of 

The plan also proposes a set of policy instruments to help 
deliver on its main objectives. These instruments include: 
landfill  tax;  (ii) 
implementation  of  the 
(i)  belated 
introduction 
(iii) 
pay-as-you-throw 
improvements to the efficiency of the extended producer 
responsibility  (EPR)  schemes;  and  (iv)  improvements  in 
reporting schemes. While the objectives are clear and the 
list of measures is set out, it is all down to effective and 
urgent 
implementation  and  enforcement  of  these 
instruments. 

schemes; 

The current situation in Romania is characterised by: 

 

 

a still not stabilised legal framework (e. g. a number 
of  implementing  acts  still  missing  such  as  county 
waste management plans); 
the absence of relevant instruments to divert waste 

7 

 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

landfills, 

including  a 

landfill  tax,  and  no 
from 
comprehensive  and  decisive  enforcement  action 
against illegal landfilling; 
incomplete  or  non-functional  projects  to  establish 
integrated  waste  management  systems  supporting 
activity at the top of the waste hierarchy; 
a  big  number  of  substandard  landfills  not  meeting 
the legal requirements of waste legislation; 

 

 

 

  minimal  infrastructure  for  separate  collection  of 
recycling  from  domestic  sources,  with  all  current 
infrastructure  based  around  the 
‘bring  to  site’ 
approach; 
the  absence  of  a  clearinghouse  overseeing  EPR 
schemes  for  packaging,  checking  that  recycling  and 
recovery  requirements  are  met  and  checking 
producer compliance (identifying free riders); 
no  known  bio-waste  collection  other  than  small 
tonnages  likely  to  be  from  municipal  parks  and 
gardens. 

 

In  its  ‘Early  Warning  Report’22,  the  Commission  listed 
Romania among the Member States at risk of missing the 
2020  municipal  waste  recycling  target.  Country-specific 
recommendations  were  proposed  for  Romania  to  help 
bridge the implementation gap. These are also consistent 
with a roadmap23 drawn up in 2013 in the context of the 
Commission’s  compliance  promotion  exercise.  The 
roadmap has largely not been implemented. 

landfills  and  for 

The  EU  funds  have  been  used  for  construction  of 
compliant 
introduction  of  separate 
collection  and  management  of  municipal  waste  on  a 
county level. 35 out  of 41 counties have benefited from 
these  projects  formulated  at  the  time  of  Romania’s 
accession  to  the  EU.  The  majority  of  them  comes  to 
completion 
in  2018-2019,  therefore  a  considerable 
number  of  new  plants  have  recently  been  put  into 
operation.  

Notwithstanding,  the  use  of  dedicated  EU  funds  to 
improve  waste  management  continues  to  be  extremely 
low.  This  is  mainly  due  to:  (i)  final  beneficiaries’  lack  of 
capacity  to  prepare  and  implement  large  investment 
projects;  (ii)  a  lack  of  buy-in/ownership;  and  (iii)  the 
excessive length of tender procedures. 

The  key  priority  actions  laid  down  in  2018  in  the 
Commission’s ‘Early Warning Report’ are as follows: 

  Urgently 

schemes  via  a 
the  EPR 
clearinghouse,  greater  transparency  and  auditing, 

improve 

and  ensuring  that  financial  contributions  cover  the 
cost of separate collection; 

  Develop  service  standards  required  for  local  public 
authority  collection  services,  including a  mechanism 
local  authorities  who  fail  to 
to  penalise  public 
implement  the  required  collection  services,  and  a 
further mechanism for fining local public authorities 
who fail to meet recycling targets; 

  Apply a landfill tax as soon as possible to discourage 
disposal.  Channel  the  revenues  from  such  a  tax 
towards measures to improve waste management in 
line  with  the  waste  hierarchy.  This  would  avoid 
building  excessive  infrastructure  to  treat  residual 
waste, e.g. MBT facilities; 

  Organise  technical  and  operational  support  via  a 
nationwide  capacity-building  programme  for  local 
authorities  to  support  the  roll-out  of  separate 
collection. 

On  top  of  the  priority  actions  set  out  for  the  shorter 
term,  it  is  also  very  clear  that  even  more  effort  will  be 
needed  to  ensure  compliance  with  the  recycling  targets 
in the post-2020 period. 

2019 priority actions 

be 

  Adopt  and implement  a work  programme  for  waste 
to 
steering 
committee/interministerial  body  that  would  better 
coordinate  actions  and  provide  the  political  buy-in 
that is currently missing; 

overseen 

by 

a 

  Urgently  implement  a  landfill  tax  and  gradually 

 

 

increase it to divert recyclable waste from landfills;  
Ensure the closure and rehabilitation of substandard 
landfills; 
Improve  and  extend  separate  collection  of  waste, 
including  for  bio-waste.  Establish  minimum  service 
standards  for  separate  collection  (e.g.  frequency  of 
collections, types of containers etc.) in municipalities 
to ensure high capture rates of recyclable waste. Use 
the  economic  instruments,  e.g.  pay-as-you-throw, 
and 
for 
municipalities,  accompanied  by  penalties  for  non-
compliance (e.g. fines). 

set  mandatory 

recycling 

targets 

collection 

  Develop  and  run  implementation  programmes  for 
municipalities  to  help  support  efforts  to  organise 
recycling 
and 
separate 
performance. 
Improve  the  functioning  of  Extended  Producer 
Responsibility (EPR) systems, in line with the general 
minimum requirements on EPR24. 

improve 

 

22 European Commission, Report on the implementation of waste 
legislation, including the early warning report for Member States at risk 
of missing the 2020 preparation for re-use/recycling target on municipal 
waste, SWD(2018)423 accompanying COM(2018) 656. 
23 BiPRO, 2013. Support to Member States in improving waste 
management based on assessment of Member States’ performance. 
Study for the European Commission, p. 47. 

24 Set out in Directive (EU) 2018/851 amending Directive 2008/98/EC. 

8 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Climate change 

The EU has committed to undertaking ambitious climate 
action internationally as well as in the EU, having ratified 
the Paris Climate Agreement on 5 October 2016. The EU 
targets are to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 
20 % by 2020 and by at least 40 % by 2030, compared to 
1990.  As  a  long-term  target,  the  EU  aims  to  reduce  its 
emissions  by  80-95 %  by  2050,  as  part  of  the  efforts 
required by developed countries as a group. Adapting to 
the adverse effects of climate change is vital to alleviate 
its  already  visible  effects  and  improve  preparedness  for 
and resilience to future impacts. 

The EU emissions trading system (EU ETS) covers all large 
greenhouse  gas  emitters  in  the  industry,  power  and 
aviation  sectors  in  the  EU.  The  EU  ETS  applies  in  all 
Member States and has a very high compliance rate. Each 
year,  installations  cover  around  99  %  of  their  emissions 
with the required number of allowances. 

Figure  7:  Change  in  total  greenhouse  gas  emissions 
1990-2017 (1990=100%)25. 

Decision is to avoid increasing emissions by more than 19 
% compared to 2005. For 2030, Romania's national target 
under  the  Effort  Sharing  Regulation  will  be  to  reduce 
emissions by 2 % compared to 2005. 

Romania  has  a  2016-2030  National  Climate  Change  and 
low carbon growth Strategy complemented with a 2016-
2020 National Action Plan for the implementation of the 
strategy.  Both  documents  have  been  adopted  by  the 
government  in 2016. The strategy is drawing a  roadmap 
for 2050.  

The  EU  Strategy  on  adaptation  to  climate  change, 
adopted  in  2013,  aims  to  make  Europe  more  climate-
resilient, by promoting action by Member States, better-
informed  decision  making,  and  promoting  adaptation  in 
key vulnerable sectors. By adopting a coherent approach 
and  providing  for  improved  coordination,  it  seeks  to 
enhance the preparedness and capacity of all governance 
levels to respond to the impacts of climate change.  

Figure  8:  Targets  and  emissions  for  Romania  under the 
Effort Sharing Decision and Effort Sharing Regulation26. 

For emissions not covered by the EU ETS, Member States 
have  binding  national  targets  under  the  Effort  Sharing 
legislation. Romania had lower emissions than its annual 
targets  in  each  of  the  years  2013-2017.  For  2020, 
Romania's  national  target  under  the  EU  Effort  Sharing 

25  
Annual European Union greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2016 (EEA 
greenhouse gas data viewer). Proxy GHG emission estimates for 
2017Approximated EU greenhouse gas inventory 2017 (European 
Environment Agency). Member States national projections, reviewed by 
the European Environment Agency. 

Transport  represents  almost  a  quarter  of  the  EU’s  GHG 
emissions and is the main cause of air pollution in cities. 
Transport  emissions in Romania increased by 12 % from 
2013 to 2016.  

The  F-gas  Regulation  requires  Member  States  to  run 
training and certification programmes, introduce rules for 
penalties  and  notify  these  measures  to  the  Commission 
by 2017. Romania has notified both measures.  

The  accounting  of  GHG  emissions  and  removals  from 
forests and agriculture is governed by the Kyoto Protocol. 

26 Proxy GHG emission estimates for 2017Approximated EU greenhouse 
gas inventory 2017 (European Environment Agency). Member States 
national projections, reviewed by the European Environment Agency. 

9 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Preliminary  accounting  for  2013-2016  shows  net  credits 
of,  on  average,  -0.03  Mt  CO2-eq,  which  corresponds  to 
0.03% of the EU-28 accounted sink of -115.7 Mt CO2-eq. 

 Figure 9: Greenhouse gas emissions by sector (Mt. CO2-
eq.). Historical data 1990-2016. Projections 2017-203027.  

the  draft  national  energy  and  climate  plans  which  the 
Member  States  needed  to  send  by  end  of  2018.  These 
plans  should  increase  the  consistency  between  energy 
and climate policies and could therefore become a good 
example  of  how  to  link  sector-specific  policies  on  other 
interlinked themes  such as agriculture-nature-water and 
transport – air - health.  

energy, 

tourism, 

The  National  climate  change  and  low  carbon  growth 
strategy  and  the  associated  action  plan  come  each  of 
them  with  distinct  adaptation  components.  The  sectors 
covered  are:  agriculture  and  rural  development,  water 
resources,  infrastructure  and  urban  planning,  transport, 
industry, 
forestry,  biodiversity, 
education and public awareness, insurance, public health 
and  emergency  response  services.  Reports  on  the 
implementation  of  the  NAS/NAP  have  so  far  not  been 
published.  Apart 
implementation 
from  the  regular 
progress  report  on  the  action  plan,  which  is  to  be 
provided  according  to  the  strategic  environmental 
assessment  permit,  no  specific  monitoring  framework 
has  been  provisioned.  14  Romanian  cities  signed  up  for 
the  more  ambitious  2030  Covenant  of  Mayors,  for 
objectives covering both mitigation and adaptation. 

The  total  revenues  from  the  auctioning  of  emission 
allowances  under  the  EU  ETS  over  the  years  2013-2017 
were  EUR  871  million.  55  %  of  the  auctioning  revenues 
have  been  spent  on  climate  and  energy  purposes. 
Revenues  were  used  to  reduce  transport  emissions 
(expanding the subway network, bicycle tracks, acquiring 
buses  for  school  and  sports,  modifying  LPG  diesel  cars 
and woodlands). 

2019 priority action 

In this report, no priority actions have been included on 
climate action, as the Commission will first need to assess 

27 Annual European Union greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2016 (EEA 
greenhouse gas data viewer ). Proxy GHG emission estimates for 
2017Approximated EU greenhouse gas inventory 2017 (European 
Environment Agency). Member States national projections, reviewed by 
the European Environment Agency. 

10 

 
                                                                 
 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

2. Protecting, conserving and enhancing natural capital 

Nature and biodiversity 

in  the  EU  by  2020. 

The  EU  biodiversity  strategy  aims  to  halt  the  loss  of 
full 
biodiversity 
implementation  of  the  Birds  and  Habitats  Directives  to 
achieve  favourable  conservation  status  of  protected 
species and habitats. It also requires that the agricultural 
improve 
and  forest  sectors  help  to  maintain  and 
biodiversity. 

It  requires 

Setting up a coherent network of Natura 2000 sites 

The Birds and Habitats Directives require Member States 
to establish a coherent national network of Natura 2000 
sites.  The  Commission  assesses  compliance  with  this 
requirement  individually  for  each  species  and  habitat 
type  occurring  on  the  national  territory  of  the  Member 
States.  The latest  update of this assessment  was carried 
out  by  the  Commission  with  the  assistance  of  the 
European Environment Agency. On the basis of this latest 
update,  the  EU's  terrestrial  Natura  2000  network  is  now 
considered completed. 

By  early  2018,  Natura  2000  sites  covered  22.7 %  of 
Romania’s national land area (EU average 18.1 %). Special 
protection  areas  (SPAs)  designated  under  the  Birds 
Directive covered 15.3 % (EU average 12.4 %) and sites of 
community interest (SCIs) designated under the Habitats 
Directive  covered  16.9 %  (EU  average  13.9 %).  There 
were  606 Natura  2000  sites  in  Romania,  including  9 
marine  sites.  The  terrestrial  sites  consisted  of  171  SPAs 
and  435  SCIs  while  1  SPA  and  8  SCIs  composed  the 
sites.  Romania’s  Natura  2000  network 
marine 
encompasses five of the nine biogeographical regions of 
the  EU.  The  2015  assessment  of  the  SCI  part  of  the 
there  were 
Natura  2000  network 

showed 

that 

designation28. 
insufficiencies 
sufficiency 
assessment  of  the  network  with  the  sites  designated  in 
2016 is currently ongoing. 

The 

in 

Designating Natura 2000 sites and setting conservation 
objectives and measures 

to 

coordinate 

established 

Implementing  the  Nature  Directives  is  a  considerable 
challenge  for  the  country.  The  Romanian  administration 
of  Natura  2000  appears  to  struggle  with  a  lack  of 
administrative  capacity  and  coordination  and  there  are 
also  problems  due  to  a  lack  of  knowledge  and  data.  In 
2016, a new authority, the National Agency for Protected 
Natural  Areas  (Agenţia  Naţională  pentru  Arii  Naturale 
Protejate),  was 
the 
management  of  protected  areas,  including  Natura  2000 
sites.  In  2018,  through  an  Emergency  Governmental 
Ordinance29,  the  government  decided  to  transfer  the 
responsibility for management of the majority of Natura 
2000 sites to the agency. This arrangement replaced the 
previous  system  of  Natura  2000  sites  in  the  custody  of 
NGOs,  state-owned  companies,  private  companies, 
universities  and  research  organisations.  234  sites  were 
originally assigned to one of these entities. This change of 
responsibilities  brought  uncertainty  about  the  project 
proposals submitted for financing from EU funds30 by the 
previous custodians and administrators.  

The  implementation  of  Natura  2000  goals  is  further 
affected by a lack of spatial planning. 

So  far,  Romania  has  not  designated  any  SCIs  as  special 
areas of conservation (SACs) and has therefore exceeded 
the  six-year  deadline  under  the  Habitats  Directive. 
Informal  dialogue  is  ongoing  between  Romania  and  the 
Commission on this issue. 

Romania  has  made  progress  on  preparing  Natura  2000 
site  management  plans.  By  now,  the  sites  with  adopted 
management plans are: 211 SCIs (48,5 % of sites) and 81 
for  SPAs  (47 %  of  sites).  However,  the  Ministry  of 

28 For each Member State, the Commission assesses whether the 
species and habitat types on Annexes I and II of the Habitats Directive, 
are sufficiently represented by the sites designated to date. This is 
expressed as a percentage of species and habitats for which further 
areas need to be designated in order to complete the network in that 
country. A scientific reserve is given when further research is needed to 
identify the most appropriate sites to be added for a species or habitat. 
The current data, which were assessed in 2014-2015, reflect the 
situation up until December 2013. 
29 Ordonanţa de urgenţă nr. 75/2018 pentru modificarea şi completarea 
unor acte normative în domeniul protecţiei mediului şi al regimului 
străinilor of 19 July 2018 
30 PA 4 of the Large Infrastructure OP. 

11 

 
 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Environment  does  not  have  access  to  the  forest 
management  plans  held  by  the  Ministry  of  Waters  and 
Forests,  which  is  primordial  for  the  development  of 
Natura 2000 management plans.  

The  country  has  the  largest  area  of  surviving  primeval 
forest  in  the  EU.  A  national  catalogue  currently  being 
prepared already includes 21 091.5 ha31 hectares, but the 
total area may be several times as much. 

the  Commission, 

The  media  have  been  reporting  repeatedly  about 
significant  illegal  logging  in  the  country.  In  particular,  it 
was  brought 
into  Commission’s  attention  several 
instances  of  logging  in  Natura  2000  sites  which  do  not 
appear  to  respect  the  Habitats  Directive. 
In  their 
the  authorities 
discussions  with 
reported  boosting  efforts  to  combat 
logging, 
illegal 
including  improved  inspection  capacity,  the  use  of  new 
monitoring  technologies  and  a  stricter  legal  framework. 
The  Integrated  Information  System  for  Wood  Tracking 
(SUMAL)  has  been  improved  by  enabling  the  public  to 
report  to  the  emergency  number  112  any  vehicles 
suspected  to  be  loaded  with  wood  material  of  illegal 
origin.  However,  there  are  still  big  challenges  over  the 
actual 
and 
enforcement, including by dissuasive penalties. 

implementation  of 

these  measures 

Progress 
restoring 
in  maintaining  or 
conservation status of species and habitats 

favourable 

Considering that Member States report every 6 years on 
the  progress  made  under  both  directives,  no  new 
information  is  available  on  the  state  of  natural  habitats 
and  species,  or  on  progress  made  in  improving  the 
conservation  status  of  species  and  habitats  in  Romania, 
as compared to the 2017 EIR Romanian Country Report. 

2019 priority actions 

the 

and 

objectives 

  Move  towards  the  completion  of  the  Natura  2000 
designation process and put  in place clearly defined 
conservation 
necessary 
conservation  measures  for  the  sites,  and  provide 
in 
adequate  resources  for  their 
order  to  maintain/restore  species  and  habitats  of 
community  interest  to  a  favourable  conservation 
status across their natural range;  
Strengthen  the  administrative  capacity  to  improve 
the designation and management of protected sites. 
Strengthen communication with stakeholders; 

implementation 

 

  Address  the  organisation/coordination 

speed  up 

financing  and 

Natura  2000 
implementation of projects; 
Strengthen communication with stakeholders; 
Enhance  efforts  to  collect  reliable  data  on  the 
conservation  status  of  protected  habitats  and 

 
 

issues  of 
the 

31Romanian Ministry of Waters and Forests, national catalogue   

12 

 

 

species as well as their occurrence at site level and to 
improve  the  quality  of  the  reported  data  and  the 
permitting procedures; 
Enhance  the  collaboration  between  the  Ministry  of 
Environment  and  Ministry  of  Waters  and  Forests 
with regard to the coordination between, on the one 
hand,  the  conservation  of  Natura  2000  sites  and  on 
the  other  hand,  the  forestry  activities,  including 
logging.  Therefore,  Romanian  authorities 
illegal 
should 
coherence 
coordination  and 
between Natura 2000 and forest management plans; 
The  Ministry  of  Waters  and  Forests  should  make 
available forest management plans to the Ministry of 
Environment  to support  the  development  of Natura 
2000 management plans. 

increase 

Maintaining  and  restoring  ecosystems  and 
their services 

The EU biodiversity strategy aims to maintain and restore 
including  green 
ecosystems  and  their  services  by 
infrastructure  in  spatial  planning  and  restoring  at  least 
15 %  of  degraded  ecosystems  by  2020.  The  EU  green 
infrastructure  strategy  promotes  the  incorporation  of 
green infrastructure into related plans and programmes. 

The EU has provided guidance on the further deployment 
of  green  and  blue  infrastructure  in  Romania32  and  a 
country page on the Biodiversity Information System for 
Europe  (BISE)33.  This  information  will  also  contribute  to 
the  final  evaluation  of  the  EU  Biodiversity  Strategy  to 
2020. 

Romania has a range of policies and strategies in place to 
develop  and  improve  green  infrastructure.  For  example, 
its  2014-2020  national  biodiversity  strategy  and  action 
plan  implicitly  address  green  infrastructure,  while  its 
2035  territorial  development  strategy  contains  specific 
measures  on  green  infrastructure  such  as  developing 
green space in urban areas and green belts around large 
cities. However, the extent of implementation is unclear. 
is  also  a 
Connectivity  through  green 
priority  action  under  the  European  strategy  for  the 
Danube  Region.  Finally,  the  Carpathian  Convention 
contains several objectives on green infrastructure. 

infrastructure 

On  the  incorporation  of  green  infrastructure  principles 
into  policy-making,  these  have  been  included  in  sector-
specific  policies.  The  principles  for  sustainable  forest 
management also promote green infrastructure practices 
state  of 
but 

lacking  on 

information 

the 

is 

32 European Commission, The recommendations of the green 
infrastructure strategy review report and the EU Guidance on a 
strategic framework for further supporting the deployment of EU-level 
green and blue infrastructure. 
33 Biodiversity Information System for Europe. 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

In 

agriculture,  Romania’s 

rural 
implementation. 
development  plan contributed to protecting high  nature 
value  farmland.  1.2  million  ha  out  of  2.4  million  ha  of 
high  nature  value  grassland  in  Romania  were  protected 
by  granting  financial  compensation  to  farmers  applying 
management requirements. 

Given that the green infrastructure approach in Romania 
is  closely  linked  to  protected  areas,  one  of  the  main 
obstacles to its full uptake is the delayed preparation and 
approval of management plans and rules, which is due to 
the  long  and  difficult  approval  process.  Other  obstacles 
include:  (i)  complex  decision  making  process;  (ii)  lack  of 
administrative  capacity  in  the  ministry  in  charge  of  this 
area; (iii) lack of resources for assessing the plans; (iv) the 
poor  quality  of  some  of  the  plans;  and  (v)  the  fact  that 
restrictive  measures  in  the  plans  require  compensation 
for  land  owners.  The  use  of  technical  assistance  could 
help to spur the uptake of green infrastructure. 

and 

blue 

green 

infrastructure 

Romania  is  encouraged  to:  (i)  continue  its  efforts  in 
deploying 
and 
incorporating  it  in  other  policies  consistent  with  the 
MAES  framework;  (ii)  consider  the  recommendations  of 
the  green  infrastructure  strategy  review  report;  and  (iii) 
make  full  use  of  the  EU  guidance  on  a  strategic 
framework for further supporting the deployment of EU-
level green and blue infrastructure34. It is also invited  to 
provide  regular  updates  on  green  infrastructure-related 
developments  via 
its  country  page  on  BISE.  This 
information will also contribute to the final evaluation of 
the EU biodiversity strategy to 2020 to be communicated 
to the Council and Parliament in 2020. 

Estimating natural capital 

The  EU  biodiversity  strategy  calls  on  Member  States  to 
map  and  assess  the  state  of  ecosystems  and  their 
services 35 in their national territories by 2014, assess the 
economic  value  of  such  services  and  integrate  these 
values  into  accounting  and  reporting  systems  at  EU  and 
national level by 2020. 

Romania made substantial progress in 2016 and 2017 but 
has not  provided any new information since 2015 on its 
work to map and assess ecosystems and their services on 
the MAES webpage on the BISE platform36. 

At  the  MAES  working  group  meeting  held  in  Brussels  in 
September  2018,  it  was  shown  that  Romania  has  made 
substantial progress in implementing MAES since January 
2016  (Figure  10).  This  assessment  was  made  by  the 
ESMERALDA  project37  and  based  on  27  implementation 
questions. The assessment is updated every 6 months. 

Figure 10: Implementation of MAES (September 2018) 

Business  and  biodiversity  platforms,  networks  and 
communities of practice are key tools for promoting and 
facilitating  natural  capital  assessments  among  business 
and  financial  service  providers,  for  instance  via  the 
Natural  Capital  Coalition’s  protocol38.  The  assessments 
contribute  to  the  EU  biodiversity  strategy  by  helping 
private  businesses  to  better  understand  and  value  both 
their  impact  and  dependence  on  nature.  Biodiversity 
platforms  have  been  established  at  EU  level39  and  in  a 
number of Member States. 

Romania has not yet established such a platform. 

Romania’s  reporting  to  the  Convention  on  Biological 
Diversity  on  resource  mobilisation 
is  still  pending. 
Reporting on financial flows is important for the position 
of  the  EU  and  individual  Member  States  in  the  CBD  and 
helps encourage good practices among other countries. 

34 European Commission, The recommendations of the green 
infrastructure strategy review report and the EU Guidance on a 
strategic framework for further supporting the deployment of EU-level 
green and blue infrastructure. 

35 Ecosystem services are benefits provided by nature such as food, 
clean water and pollination on which human society depends. 
36 Biodiversity Information System for Europe, MAES country fiches, 
Romania 
37 EU project, Esmeralda  
38 Natural Capital Coalition, Natural Capital Protocol 
39 Business and Biodiversity, The European Business and Biodiversity 
Campaign aims to promote the business case for biodiversity in the EU 
Member States through workshops, seminars and a cross media 
communication strategy. 

13 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Invasive alien species 

Under  the  EU  biodiversity  strategy,  the  following  are  to 
be achieved by 2020:  
(i) invasive alien species identified;  
(ii) priority species controlled or eradicated; and  
(iii)  pathways  managed  to  prevent  new  invasive  species 
from disrupting European biodiversity.  
This  is  supported  by  the  Invasive  Alien  Species  (IAS) 
Regulation, which entered into force on 1 January 2015. 

The  report  on  the  baseline  distribution  (see  Figure  11), 
for  which  Romania  did  not  review  its  country  data  or 
grid-level data, shows that of the 37 species on the first 
EU  list,  10  have  been  observed  in  the  environment  in 
Romania, but none of them are widely spread. According 
to the data, Romania appears to be less affected than its 
neighbouring  countries,  but  this  could  indicate  that  the 
data  are  poorer  due  to  listed  species  not  being  under 
surveillance before the EU list was adopted. 

Figure  11:  Number  of  IAS  of  EU  concern,  based  on 
available georeferenced information for Romania40 

Between  the  entry  into  force  of  the  EU  list  and  18 May 
2018, Romania has not notified any new appearances of 
IAS  of  Union  concern,  as  provided  for  in  Article 16(2)  of 
the IAS Regulation. 

to 

As  according 
the  baseline  distribution,  coypu 
(Myocastor coypu) still  seems in an early invasion stage, 
Romania is advised to attempt  to eradicate this species, 
as  by  doing  so  it  would  avoid  considerable  long-term 
management costs. 

40 Tsiamis K; Gervasini E; Deriu I; D’amico F; Nunes A; Addamo A; De 
Jesus Cardoso A. Baseline Distribution of Invasive Alien Species of Union 
concern. Ispra (Italy): Publications Office of the European Union; 2017, 
EUR 28596 EN, doi:10.2760/772692. 

14 

With  regard to the IAS Regulation, Romania  has notified 
the Commission of its competent authorities responsible 
for  implementation  (Article 24(2)).  It  has  communicated 
to  the  Commission  the  national  provisions  on  penalties 
(Article 30(4))  and  has 
applicable  to 
therefore  fulfilled 
in  this 
regard. 

its  notification  obligations 

infringements 

2019 priority action 

 

Investigate the apparent lack of data and seek  ways 
of improving its surveillance system. 

Soil protection 

The  EU  soil  thematic  strategy  underlines  the  need  to 
ensure a  sustainable use of soils.  This  entails preventing 
further  soil  degradation  and  preserving  its  functions,  as 
well as restoring degraded soils. The 2011 Roadmap to a 
Resource Efficient Europe states that by 2020, EU policies 
must  take  into  account  their  direct  and  indirect  impact 
on land use. 

Soil  is  an  extremely  fragile  finite  resource  and  it  is 
increasingly degrading in the EU. 

Artificial  land  cover  is  used  for  settlements,  production 
systems and infrastructure. It may itself be split between 
built-up areas (buildings) and non-built-up areas (such as 
linear transport networks and associated areas). 
The percentage of artificial land41 in Romania (see Figure 
12)  can  show  the  relative  pressure  on  nature  and 
biodiversity,  as  well  as  the  environmental  pressure  on 
people  living  in  urbanised  areas.  A  similar  measure  is 
population density. 

Romania  is  below  the  EU  average  for  artificial  land 
coverage  (2.1 %  vs  4.1 %).  The  population  density  is 
84.1/km2, which is also below the EU average of 11842. 

Contamination  can  severely  reduce  soil  quality  and 
threaten  human  health  or  the  environment.  A  recent 
report  of  the  European  Commission43  estimated  that 
potentially  polluting  activities  have  taken  or  are  still 
taking place on approximately 2.8 million sites in the EU. 
At EU level,  650 000 of these sites have been registered 
in national or regional inventories.  65 500  contaminated 
sites  already  have  been  remediated.  Romania  has 

41 Artificial land cover is defined as the total of roofed built-up areas 
(including buildings and greenhouses), artificial non built-up areas 
(including sealed area features, such as yards, farmyards, cemeteries, 
car parking areas etc. and linear features, such as streets, roads, 
railways, runways, bridges) and other artificial areas (including bridges 
and viaducts, mobile homes, solar panels, power plants, electrical 
substations, pipelines, water sewage plants, and open dump sites). 
42 Eurostat, Population density by NUTS 3 region. 
43 Ana Paya Perez, Natalia Rodriguez Eugenio (2018), Status of local soil 
contamination in Europe: Revision of the indicator “Progress in the 
management Contaminated Sites in Europe” 

 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

registered 210 sites where potentially polluting activities 
have taken or are taking place. 
Figure 12: Proportion of artificial land cover, 2015 44 

Soil organic matter plays an important role in the carbon 
cycle and in climate change. Soils are the second largest 
carbon sink in the world after the oceans. 

Marine protection 

EU coastal and marine policy and legislation require that 
by  2020  the  impact  of  pressures  on  marine  waters  be 
reduced  to  achieve  or  maintain  good  environmental 
status (GES) and ensure that coastal zones are managed 
sustainably. 

The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD)46 aims 
to achieve good environmental status of the EU’s marine 
waters  by  2020.  To  that  end,  Member  States  must 
develop  a  marine  strategy  for  their  marine  waters,  and 
cooperate  with  the  EU  countries  that  share  the  same 
marine (sub)region. 

The  Convention  on  the  Protection  of  the  Black  Sea 
against  Pollution  (Bucharest  Convention)  contributes  to 
achieving  Romania’s  marine  strategy  goals  required  by 
the  Marine  Strategy  Framework  Directive.  The  marine 
strategies  comprise  different  steps  to  be  taken  over  six-
year  cycles.  The  latest  step  required  Member  States  to 
set  up  and  report  their  programme  of  measures  to  the 
Commission. This was due by 31 March 2016. 

The  Commission  has  not  been  able  to  assess  whether 
Romanian  measures  were  appropriate  to  reach  good 
environmental  status47.  This  was  because  Romania 
reported  its  measures  too  late  for  the  Commission  to 
include them in this assessment48. 

2019 priority action 

 

Ensure  timely  reporting  of  the  different  elements 
under  the  Marine  Strategy  Framework  Directive  so 
that  Romania  can  be  part  of  future  Commission's 
assessments.  

Soil erosion by water is a natural process, but this natural 
process can be aggravated by climate change and human 
activities  such  as  inappropriate  agricultural  practices, 
deforestation,  forest  fires  or  construction  works.  High 
levels  of  soil  erosion  can  reduce  productivity 
in 
agriculture  and  can  have  negative  and  transboundary 
impacts  on  biodiversity  and  ecosystem  services.  High 
levels  of  soil  erosion  can  also  have  negative  and 
lakes  (due  to 
transboundary  effects  on  rivers  and 
increased 
transport  of 
and 
volumes 
contaminants).  According  to  the  RUSLE2015  model45, 
Romania  has  an  average  soil  loss  rate  by  water  of  2.84 
tonnes per hectare per year (t ha−a yr−y), compared to the 
EU  mean  of  2.46 t ha−a yr−y.  This 
indicates  that  soil 
erosion  is  medium  on  average.  Note  that  these  figures 
are  the  output  of  an  EU-level  model  and  therefore 
cannot  be  considered  as  locally  measured  values.  The 
actual soil loss rate can vary strongly within the Member 
State depending on local conditions. 

sediment 

44 Eurostat, Land covered by artificial surfaces by NUTS 2 regions. 
45 Panagos, P., Borrelli, P., Poesen, J., Ballabio, C., Lugato, E., 
Meusburger, K., Montanarella, L., Alewell, C., The new assessment of 
soil loss by water erosion in Europe, (2015) Environmental Science and 
Policy, 54, pp. 438-447. 

46 European Union, Marine Strategy Framework Directive 2008/56/EC 
47 Commission Report assessing Member States’ programme of 
measures under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive 
(COM(2018)562). 
48 Romania reported its programme of measures to the Commission on 
30 August 2017 whereas the due date was 31 March 2016. 

15 

 
                                                                 
 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

3. Ensuring citizens' health and quality of life 

Air quality 

EU clean air  policy and legislation require the significant 
improvement  of  air  quality  in  the  EU,  moving  the  EU 
closer to the quality recommended by the World Health 
Organisation.  Air  pollution  and  its  impacts  on  human 
health,  ecosystems  and  biodiversity  should  be  further 
reduced with the long-term aim of not exceeding critical 
loads  and  levels.  This  requires  strengthening  efforts  to 
reach  full  compliance  with  EU  air  quality  legislation  and 
defining strategic targets and actions beyond 2020. 

The  EU  has  developed  a  comprehensive  body  of  air 
legislation49,  which  establishes  health-based 
quality 
standards and objectives for a number of air pollutants. 

Figure  13:  PM2.5  and  NOx  emissions  by  sector 
Romania50 

in 

The emissions of several air pollutants have decreased in 
Romania51.  The  emission  reductions  between  1990  and 
2014, mentioned in the previous EIR, continued between 
2014 and 2016. Emissions of sulphur oxides (SOx) fell by 
41.29 %, emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) fell by 3.1 %, 
emissions of ammonia (NH3)  fell by 0.69 %, emissions of 
fine particulate matter PM2.5 fell by 4.5 % and emissions 
of  volatile  organic  compounds  (NMVOCs)  fell  by  2.83 % 
(see also Figure 13 on the total PM2.5 and NOx emissions 
per sector). 

Despite these reductions in emissions, Romania needs to 
make  additional  efforts  to  meet  its  emission  reduction 

49 European Commission, 2016. Air Quality Standards 
50 2016 NECD data submitted by Member State to the EEA.  
51 European Environment Agency, 2016. Air pollutant emissions data 
viewer (LRTAP Convention). 

16 

commitments  (compared  with  2005  emission  levels)  set 
by  the  new  National  Emissions  Ceilings  Directive52  for 
2020-2029 and for any year from 2030. 

Air quality in Romania continues to give cause for severe 
concern.  For  2015,  the  European  Environment  Agency 
estimated  that  about  25 400  premature  deaths  were 
attributable 
fine  particulate 
matter53,  580  to  ozone  concentrations  and  1 300  to 
nitrogen dioxide concentrations54. 

to  concentrations  of 

According to a special report from the European Court of 
Auditors55  EU  action  to  protect  human  health  from  air 
pollution has not had its expected impact. There is a risk 
that  air  pollution  is  being  underestimated  in  some 
instances because it may not always be monitored in the 
right  places.  Member  States  are  now  required  to  report 
both  real-time  and  validated  air  quality  data  to  the 
Commission56. 
For 201757, exceedances related to the annual limit value 
for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were registered in 5 (out of 54) 
air  quality  zones  (including  Bucarest,  Cluj-Napoca  and 
Iasi).  Exceedances  have  also  been  registered  related  to 
particulate matter (PM10) in 4 (out of 54) air quality zones 
(including  Iasi,  Bucarest  and  Brasov),  and  related  to  fine 
particulate  matter  (PM2.5)  in  2  (out  of  54)  air  quality 
zones  (Iasi  and  Brasov).  However,  due  to  reporting  and 
monitoring  deficiencies  the  compliance  situation  cannot 
be  established  with  certainty.  Based  on  the  information 
received in the ongoing infringement case on monitoring 
and reporting, Romania promises to correct the reporting 
as soon as possible and to have the monitoring system up 
to standard for the start of 2019. 

See also Figure 14 on the number of air quality zones in 
exceedance for NO2, PM2.5, and PM10. 

52 Directive 2016/2284/EU 
53 Particulate matter (PM) is a mixture of aerosol particles (solid and 
liquid) covering a wide range of sizes and chemical compositions. PM10 
(PM2.5) refers to particles with a diameter of 10 (2.5) micrometres or 
less. PM is emitted from many human sources, including combustion. 
54 EEA, Air Quality in Europe – 2018 Report, p. 64. Please see details in 
this report as regards the underpinning methodology. 
55 European Court of Auditors, Special report no 23/2018, Air pollution: 
Our health still insufficiently protected, p.41. 
56 Article 5 of Commission Implementing Decision 2011/850/EU of 12 
December 2011 laying down rules for Directives 2004/107/EC and 
2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards 
the reciprocal exchange of information and reporting on ambient air 
quality (OJ L 335, 17.12.2011, p. 86) requires Member States to provide 
Up-To-Date data. 
57 EU Environment Agency, Central Data Repository  

 
 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Figure  14:  Air  quality  zones  exceeding  EU  air  quality 
standards in 201758 

infringement  procedures 

The  persistent  breaches  of  air  quality  standards  (for 
PM10), which have severe negative effects on health and 
the environment, are being followed up by the European 
Commission  through 
in  all 
Member  States  concerned, 
including  Romania.  The 
Commission  has  decided  to  refer  Romania  to  the 
European Court of Justice for exceeding PM10 levels (see 
COM (2018) 330).  The  aim  is  to  ensure  that  appropriate 
measures  are  put  in  place  to  bring  all  zones 
into 
compliance. 

2019 priority actions 

 

Take  action,  in  the  context  of  the  forthcoming 
national air pollution control programme (NAPCP), to 
reduce the main emission sources, including through 
the priority actions below: 

  Accelerate  the  reduction  of  nitrogen  oxide  (NOx) 
emissions and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations. 
This  will  require,  for  example,  further  reducing 
transport emissions, particularly in urban areas (and 
may  require  proportionate  and  targeted  urban 
tax 
vehicle  access 
incentives; 

restrictions),  and/or  using 

  Accelerate  reductions  in  particulate  matter  (PM2.5 
and  PM10)  emissions  and  concentrations.  This  will 
require,  for  example,  further  reducing  emissions 
from  energy  production  and  heat  generation  using 
solid fuels, and promoting efficient and clean district 
heating; 

  Upgrade  and  improve  the  air  quality  monitoring 
network,  and  ensure  timely  reporting  of  air  quality 
data; 

  Reduce the use of coal for domestic heating in order 
to limit air pollutants emissions, for instance building 
on the “Coal regions in transition” initiative. 

Industrial emissions 

58 EEA, EIONET Central Data Repository. Data reflects the reporting 
situation as of 26 November 2018. 

The  main objectives of EU policy on industrial emissions 
are to: 
(i) protect air, water and soil; 
(ii) prevent and manage waste; 
(iii) improve energy and resource efficiency; and  
(iv) clean up contaminated sites.  
To  achieve  this,  the  EU  takes  an  integrated  approach  to 
the  prevention  and  control  of  routine  and  accidental 
industrial emissions. The cornerstone of the policy is the 
Industrial Emissions Directive59 (IED). 

The  below  overview  of  industrial  activities  regulated  by 
the  IED  is  based  on  the  ‘industrial  emissions  policy 
country profiles’ project60. 

In Romania, around 915 industrial installations must have 
a  permit  according  to  the  IED61.  In  2015,  the  industrial 
sectors in Romania with the most IED installations were: 
the intensive rearing of poultry or pigs, comprising 48 %, 
followed  by  the  waste  management  sector  (11 %), 
chemicals (10.5 %) and energy-power (6.3 %). 

Figure  15:  Number  of  IED  industrial  installations  per 
sector, Romania (2015) 

lead 

except 

volatile 

The industrial sectors identified as contributing the most 
emissions  to  air  are:  (i)  the  energy-power  sector  for  all 
organic 
non-methane 
pollutants 
compounds  (NMVOCs)  and  ammonia  (NH3);  (ii)  metal 
production  for  cadmium  (Cd),  arsenic  (As),  chromium 
(Cr), 
(Zn)  and 
polychlorinated  dibenzodioxins  and  polychlorinated 
dibenzofurans (PCDD/F); (iii) ‘other activities’ (mostly the 
intensive  rearing  of  poultry  or  pigs  and  surface 
treatment)  for  NMVOCs  and  ammonia;  and  (iv)  waste 
management  for  mercury.  The  breakdown  is  shown  in 
the following graph. 

(Pb),  mercury 

(Hg), 

zinc 

59 Directive 2010/75/EU covers industrial activities carried out above 
certain thresholds. It covers energy industry, metal production, mineral 
and chemical industry and waste management, as well as a wide range 
of industrial and agricultural sectors (e.g. intensive rearing of pig and 
poultry, pulp and paper production, painting and cleaning). 
60 European Commission, Industrial emissions policy country profile – 
Romania. 
61 European Commission, Industrial Emissions policy Country profiles: 
Romania. 

17 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Figure 16: Emissions to air from IED sectors and all other 
national total air emissions, Romania (2015) 

production, 

Regarding  water  emissions,  chemicals  and  metal 
production were identified as the most polluting sectors. 
Metals 
and  waste 
management  mainly  contribute  to  hazardous  waste 
generation,  while  energy-power,  followed  by  ‘other 
activities’,  mainly  contribute  to  non-hazardous  waste 
generation. 

energy-refining 

The enforcement approach under the IED creates strong 
rights for citizens to have access to relevant information 
and  to  participate  in  the  permitting  process  for  IED 
installations. This empowers NGOs and the general public 
to  ensure  that  permits  are  appropriately  granted  and 
their conditions respected. 

Best  available  techniques  (BAT)  reference  documents 
(BREFs)  and  BAT  conclusions  are  developed  through  the 
exchange  of 
information  between  Member  States, 
industrial  associations,  NGOs  and  the  Commission.  This 
ensures  good  collaboration  with  stakeholders  and  a 
better application of the IED rules. 

Thanks  to  the  national  competent  authorities’  efforts  to 
apply the legally binding BAT conclusions and associated 
BAT  emission  levels  in  environmental  permits,  pollution 
had decreased considerably and continuously in the EU. 

For  example,  by  applying  the  recently  adopted  BAT 
emission levels for large combustion plants, emissions of 
sulphur dioxide will be  cut  on average by between 25 % 
and  81 %,  nitrogen  oxide  between  8 %  and  56 %,  dust 
between 31 % and 78 % and mercury between 19 % and 
71 % at EU level. The extent of the reduction depends on 
the situation of individual plants. 

The  specific  challenge  identified  for  Romania  relates  to 
air pollution from the energy-power sector. 

2019 priority actions 

 

Ensure  that  all  the  industrial  installations  have  a 
permit  based  on  the  IED;Review  permits  to  ensure 

that  they  comply  with  the  newly  adopted  BAT 
conclusions; 
Strengthen  control  and  enforcement  to  ensure 
compliance with the BAT conclusions; 

 

  Address air pollution from the energy-power sector. 

Noise 
The  Environmental  Noise  Directive62  provides  for  a 
common  approach  to  avoiding,  preventing  and  reducing 
the harmful effects of exposure to environmental noise. 

Excessive noise from aircraft, railways and roads is one of 
the  main  causes  of  environmental  health-related  issues 
in the EU63. 
Based  on  a  limited  set  of  data64,  environmental  noise 
causes at least around 1 300 premature deaths per year 
in Romania, and is responsible for around 2 300 hospital 
admissions.  Noise  also  disturbs  the  sleep  of  some 
970 000  people.  Romania’s 
implementation  of  the 
Environmental  Noise  Directive  has  been  significantly 
delayed.  Based  on  the  latest  full  set  of  information  that 
could  be  analysed  (i.e.  from  2012  for  noise  maps  and 
from 2013 for action plans), the noise mapping is almost 
In  contrast,  the  action  plans  for  most 
completed. 
agglomerations,  most  major  roads  and  most  major 
railways  are  still  lacking.  These  instruments,  adopted 
after  a  public  consultation  had  been  carried  out,  should 
include the measures to keep noise low or reduce it.  

2019 priority actions 

  Complete the missing noise action plans; 
  Complete the missing noise maps. 

Water quality and management 

EU  legislation  and  policy  requires  that  the  impact  of 
pressures  on  transitional,  coastal  and  fresh  waters 
(including  surface  and  ground  waters)  be  significantly 
reduced.  Achieving,  maintaining  or  enhancing  a  good 
status  of  water  bodies  as  defined  by  the  Water 
Framework Directive  will  ensure that EU citizens benefit 
from good quality and safe drinking and bathing water. It 
will  further  ensure  that  the  nutrient  cycle  (nitrogen  and 
phosphorus)  is  managed  in  a  more  sustainable  and 
resource-efficient way. 

62 Directive 2002/49/EC. 
63 WHO/JRC, 2011, Burden of disease from environmental noise, 
Fritschi, L., Brown, A.L., Kim, R., Schwela, D., Kephalopoulos, S. (eds), 
World Health Organisation, Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, 
Denmark. 
64 European Environment Agency, Noise Fact Sheets 2017. 

18 

 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

The  existing  EU  water  legislation65  puts  in  place  a 
protective  framework  to  ensure  high  standards  for  all 
water  bodies  in  the  EU  and  addresses  specific  pollution 
sources  (for  example,  from  agriculture,  urban  areas  and 
industrial  activities).  It  also  requires  that  the  projected 
into  the 
impacts  of  climate  change  are 
corresponding  planning 
risk 
management  plans  and  river  basin  management  plans, 
including  programme  of  measures  which  include  the 
actions  that  Member  States  plan  to  take  in  order  to 
achieve the environmental objectives. 

instruments  e.g. flood 

integrated 

Water Framework Directive 

reported 

Framework  Directive  and 

Romania  has  adopted  and 
the  second 
generation  of  River  Basin  Management  Plans  under  the 
the  European 
Water 
the 
Commission  has  assessed 
development  since  the  adoption  of  the  first  River  Basin 
Management  Plans,  including  suggested  actions  in  the 
EIR report 2017. 

status  and 

the 

The  most  significant  pressures  on  surface  waters  are 
diffuse  pressures  from  discharges  not  connected  to 
sewerage network (25% of surface water bodies), diffuse 
pollution from agricultural (12%) and urban waste water 
(5%).  For  groundwater  bodies  the  most  significant 
pressure 
is  diffuse  pollution  from  agriculture  and 
discharges  not  connected  to  sewerage  networks,  both 
affecting 10% of groundwater bodies 

The most significant impact on surface waters is nutrient 
pollution/enrichment  (affecting  27%  of  surface  water 
bodies)  followed  by  organic  pollution  (17%)  and  most 
significant  impact  on  groundwater  is  chemical  pollution 
(affecting 10% of groundwater bodies). 

More  assessment  methods  have  been  developed 
between  the  first  and  second  River  Basin  Management 
Plans, including physicochemical quality elements, hydro-
morphological  quality  elements  and  River  Basin  Specific 
Pollutants.  The  confidence  in  assessments  of  ecological 
status has improved for rivers and more biological quality 
elements  and  supporting  quality  elements  have  been 
used for classification of status in the second River Basin 
Management Plans. 

The ecological status/potential is good or better in most 
of the lakes and rivers (66.14%) as illustrated in Figure 17 
but in none of the transitional and coastal waters. There 
are 
unknown 
very 
status/potential.  

bodies  with 

few  water 

65 This includes the Bathing Waters Directive (2006/7/EC), the Urban 
Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) (on discharges of 
municipal and some industrial wastewaters), the Drinking Water 
Directive (98/83/EC) (on potable water quality), the Water Framework 
Directive (2000/60/EC) (on water resources management), the Nitrates 
Directive (91/676/EEC) and the Floods Directive (2007/60/EC). 

Where  environmental  objectives  are  not  yet  achieved 
exemptions  can  be  applied 
in  case  the  respective 
conditions  are  met  and  the  required  justifications  are 
explained in the River Basin Management Plans. Romania 
has informed that projects will be assessed in the context 
of the regulatory process (permits) and the requirements 
of the Water Framework Directive (Article 4(7)). A further 
in-depth  analysis  is  needed  to  assess  whether  all  the 
requirements  are  fulfilled  and  whether  the  effects  of  all 
newly 
body 
status/potential are assessed at quality element level. 

planned  modifications 

on  water 

Figure 17: Ecological status or potential of surface water 
bodies in Romania66 

the 

All  groundwater  bodies  are  in  good  quantitative  status 
and  between 
first  and  second  River  Basin 
Management  Plans  there  was  a  slight  increase  in  the 
proportion of water bodies in good chemical status (from 
93  to  98%).  While  some  water  bodies  had  an  unknown 
status  in  the  first  River  Basin  Management  plans,  all 
water  bodies  were  classified  in  the  second.  However, 
56%  of  water  bodies  are  still  classified  with 
low 
confidence.  The  spatial  coverage  of  monitoring  in  river 
and 
in  the 
assessment  and  very  limited  monitoring  is  performed  in 
biota.  

lakes  may  explain  the 

low  confidence 

Significant  pressures  are  identified  in  the  second  River 
Basin  Management  Plans  and  addressed  by  measures 
(Key  type  of  measures).  Some  measures  are  completed 
since  the  first  Programme  of  Measures  but  obstacles 
such lack of finance, delays and lack of mechanism have 

66 EEA, WISE dashboard. 

19 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

occurred  in  relation  to  the  implementation  of  the  first 
Programme of Measures. 

Nitrates Directive 

Since 2013, Romania has a  revised action programme in 
place  for  the  implementation  of  the  Nitrates  Directive, 
which applies to the whole national territory. The revised 
legislation  has  brought 
improvements 
action  programme 
to 
compared 
implementing  the  Nitrates  Directive.  The  Romanian 
authorities  have  decided  to  apply  a  ‘whole  territory 
approach’ instead of designating nitrate-vulnerable zones 
and  have  changed  some  of  the  measures  in  its  action 
programme, with significant improvements. 

the  previous 

significant 

Drinking Water Directive 

As regards drinking water, no new data is available since 
the  last  2017  EIR,  which  showed  that  99.44  %  of  all 
drinking  water  analyses  (2013)  were  compliant  with  the 
Drinking  Water  Directive67.  A  significant  part  of  the 
population  (57  %)68  is  not  connected  to  public  water 
supply  systems.  Romania  considers  this 
insufficient 
connection rate, water scarcity and insufficient quality of 
water resoursces a priority for EU funding.  

Bathing Water Directive 
Figure 18: Bathing water quality 2014-201769 

bathing  waters  were  either  of  excellent  (70 %)  or  good 
(30 %)  quality.  Detailed 
information  on  Romania’s 
bathing  waters  is  available  from  a  national  web  portal71 
and  via  an  interactive  map  viewer  designed  and  hosted 
by the European Environment Agency72. 

Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive  

Romania  has  been  struggling  to  implement  the  Urban 
Waste  Water  Treatment  Directive  and  is  lagging  behind 
other  Member  States.  According  to  the  latest  reporting, 
only  2.5 %  of  Romania’s  waste  water  load  was  collected 
(8  agglomerations)  in  accordance  with  the  Directive, 
while  6  agglomerations  met  the  secondary  treatment 
requirements  and  only  1  agglomeration  met  the  more 
stringent treatment requirements. 

The final deadline for Romania to reach compliance with 
the  Directive  is  31 December  2018  according  to  its 
Accession  Treaty.  Given  the  very  low  compliance  rates, 
the  Commission  decided  to 
infringement 
procedure against Romania on the basis of the 2013 and 
2015 intermediate deadlines set in the Accession Treaty, 
i.e.  on  compliance  of  agglomerations  above  10 000  p.e. 
with collection and treatment requirements. 

launch  an 

The estimated investment needed to ensure appropriate 
collection  and  treatment  of  waste  water  from  the 
remaining  agglomerations 
is  estimated  at  EUR 12 
billion73. This figure remains high in spite of a significant 
number  of  EU  supported  projects74.  Other  ongoing 
studies suggest even higher investment needs. According 
to the latest report75, the last forecasted projects should 
be  completed  by  2027-2030,  far  beyond  the  final 
deadlines  of  2015  and  2018  set  in  Romania’s  Accession 
Treaty.  Romania  should 
for 
agglomerations  in  breach  of  the  Directive  as  soon  as 
possible. 

the  projects 

finalise 

In  order  to  reach  compliance,  Romania  should  improve 
the  prioritisation  of  the  water  projects  proposed  for 
support  from  EU  funds  and  speed  up  their  preparation 
and implementation. Moreover, the revenues generated 
by  water  companies  should  ensure  the  sustainability  of 
the newly constructed infrastructure. 

Figure  18  shows  that  in  2017,  out  of  Romania’s  50 
bathing  waters  50 %  were  of  excellent  quality,  48 %  of 
good  quality  and  2 %  of  sufficient  quality70.  In  2016  all 

67European Commission, Commission's Synthesis Report on the Quality 
of Drinking Water in the Union examining Member States' reports for 
the 2011-2013 period, foreseen under Article 13(5) of Directive 
98/83/EC; COM(2016)666, and accompanying country reports 
68 European Commission, Impact Assessment SWD(2017)449 final of 
1.2.2018 accompanying the Drinking Water Recast Proposal 
COM(2017)753 final  
69 European Environment Agency, 2018. European bathing water quality 
in 2017, p. 21. 
70 European Environment Agency, 2017. European bathing water quality 
in 2016, p. 17. 

71 Romania’s national bathing waters web portal.  
72 EEA, State of bathing waters. 
73 European Commission, Ninth Report on the Implementation Status 
and the Programmes for Implementation of the Urban Waste Water 
Treatment Directive (COM(2017) 749) and Commission Staff Working 
Document accompanying the report (SWD(2017)445). 
74 29 ISPA pre-accession projects (€ 1,1 bil) and 97 projects from SOP 
Environment 2007-2013 (€ 3,2 bil).  
75 European Commission, Ninth Report on the Implementation Status 
and the Programmes for Implementation of the Urban Waste Water 
Treatment Directive (COM(2017) 749) and Commission Staff Working 
Document accompanying the report (SWD(2017)445). 

20 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Floods Directive 

The  Floods  Directive  established  a  framework  for  the 
assessment and management of flood risks, aiming at the 
reduction  of  the  adverse  consequences  associated  with 
significant floods. 

Romania  has  adopted  and  reported  its  first  Flood  Risk 
Management Plans under the Directive and the European 
Commission conducted an assessment. 

The  Commission’s  assessment  found  that  good  efforts 
were made with positive results in setting objectives and 
devising  measures  focusing  on  prevention,  protection 
and  preparedness.  The  assessment  also  showed  that,  as 
was the case for other Member States, Romania’s Flood 
Risk  Management  Plans  include  measures  that  are  not 
linked to the objectives (including  clarifying whether the 
planned measures are sufficient to reach the objectives) 
and an as complete as possible estimation of the cost of 
measures  with 
identification  of  specific  sources  of 
funding.  In  addition,  there  is  scope  for  improving  the 
flood  risk  management  cycle’s 
integration  of  the 
successive steps into the Flood Risk Management Plan.  

2019 priority actions 

 

 

 

 

 

Strengthen  monitoring  of  surface  water  by  covering 
all  relevant  quality  elements  in  all  water  categories, 
including  hydromorphological  quality  elements  and 
improve  quantitative  and  chemical  groundwater 
monitoring;  
Ensure that projects, which potentially can affect the 
status of water bodies, are thoroughly assessed and 
justified  in  line  with  the  requirements  in  the  Water 
Framework Directive (Article 4(7)); 
Improve  the  implementation  of  the  requirements 
under  the  Urban  Waste  Water  Treatment  Directive 
in  relation  to  the  requirement  of  more  stringent 
into 
treatment  of  wastewaters 
sensitive areas, and ensure investments to allow for 
appropriate  treatment  of  waste  water  from  big 
cities; 
Step  up  efforts  to  ensure  implementation  of  the 
Urban  Waste  Water  Treatment  Directive, 
in 
particular  by  establishing  a  realistic  and  efficient 
implementation  plan  spanning  the  coming  years, 
including forecasted financing sources; 
Take  steps  to  improve  the  integration  of  the  flood 
risk  management  cycle’s  successive  steps  into  the 
Flood Risk Management Plan. 

for  discharge 

Chemicals 

The  EU  seeks  to  ensure  that  by  2020  chemicals  are 
produced and used in ways that minimise any significant 
adverse  effects  on  human  health  and  the  environment. 
An  EU  strategy  for  a  non-toxic  environment  that  is 
conducive  to  innovation  and  to  developing  sustainable 
substitutes,  including  non-chemical  options,  is  being 
prepared. 

legislation76  provides  baseline 
The  EU’s  chemicals 
protection for human health and the environment. It also 
ensures  stability  and  predictability 
for  businesses 
operating within the internal market. 

In  2016,  the  European  Chemicals  Agency 
(ECHA) 
published  a  report  on  the  operation  of  REACH  and  the 
CLP Regulation77 that showed that enforcement activities 
are still evolving. Member States cooperate closely within 
the 
on 
Enforcement78.  This  cooperation  has  shown  that  the 
effectiveness  of  the  enforcement  activities,  particularly 
for registration obligations and safety data sheets where 
the level of non-compliance is still relatively high. 

Information 

Exchange 

Forum 

for 

of 

While progress has been made, there is room to improve 
further and harmonise enforcement  activities across the 
EU,  including  controls  on  imported  goods.  Enforcement 
remains  weak  in  some  Member  States,  particularly  for 
controls  on  imports  and  supply  chain  obligations.  The 
enforcement  architecture 
in  most  EU 
countries and enforcement projects reveal differences in 
compliance between Member States. 

is  complex 

A  2015  Commission  study  already  emphasised  the 
importance  of  harmonised  market  surveillance  and 
enforcement  when  implementing  REACH  at  Member 
State  level,  deeming  it  to  be  a  critical  success  factor  in 
the operation of a harmonised single market79. 

In March 2018, the Commission published an evaluation 
of  REACH80.  The  evaluation  concludes  that  REACH 
delivers  on  its  objectives,  but  that  progress  made  is 
slower  than  anticipated.  In  addition,  the  registration 
dossiers often are incomplete. The evaluation underlines 

76 Principally for chemicals: REACH (OJ L 396, 30.12.2006, p.1.); for 
Classification, Labelling and Packaging, the CLP Regulation (: OJ L 252, 
31.12.2006, p.1.), together with legislation on biocidal products and 
plant protection products. 
77 European Chemicals Agency, Report on the Operation of REACH and 
CLP 2016. 
78 ECHA, on the basis of the projects REF-1, REF-2 and REF-3.79 European 
Commission. (2015). Monitoring the Impacts of REACH on Innovation, 
Competitiveness and SMEs. Brussels: European Commission. 
79 European Commission. (2015). Monitoring the Impacts of REACH on 
Innovation, Competitiveness and SMEs. Brussels: European 
Commission. 
80 COM(2018) 116. 

21 

                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

the need to enhance enforcement by all actors, including 
registrants,  downstream  users  and 
in  particular  for 
importers,  to  ensure  a  level  playing  field,  meet  the 
objectives  of  REACH  and  ensure  consistency  with  the 
actions envisaged to improve environmental compliance 
and  governance.  Consistent  reporting  of  Member  State 
enforcement activities  was considered  important  in that 
respect. 

The competent authorities for REACH in Romania are: 

- 

- 

- 

The  Ministry  of  the  Environment  as  coordinating 
authority; 
The  National  Environmental  Protection  Agency 
(Agenţia  Naţională  pentru  Protecţia  Mediului)  for 
REACH implementation; 
The National Environmental Guard (Garda Naţională 
de Mediu) for REACH enforcement. 

Making cities more sustainable 

EU policy on the urban environment encourages cities to 
put  policies  in  place  for  sustainable  urban  planning  and 
design.  These  should  include  innovative  approaches  to 
urban  public 
sustainable 
buildings,  energy  efficiency  and  urban  biodiversity 
conservation. 

transport  and  mobility, 

living 

in  Europe 

in  urban  areas 

The  population 
is 
projected to rise to just over 80% by 205081. Urban areas 
pose  particular  challenges  for  the  environment  and 
human  health,  but  they  also  provide  opportunities  for 
using  resources  more  efficiently.  The  EU  encourages 
municipalities to become greener through initiatives such 
as  the  Green  Capital  Award82,  the  Green  Leaf  Award83 
and the Green City Tool84. 

Financing greener cities 

Romania has  committed to  ensuring that at least  5 % of 
its European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) national 
allocation  will  be  dedicated  to  sustainable  urban 
development85. 

As  part  of  the  initiatives  under  the  Urban  Development 
Network, the ERDF is supporting urban innovative actions 
(UIAs) as a way of testing new and unproven solutions to 
address urban challenges. There is a total ERDF budget of 
EUR 372  million  for  UIAs  for  2014-2020.  Romania  is  not 
participating in the UIA programme. 

Participation in EU urban initiatives and networks 

81 European Commission, Eurostat, Urban Europe, 2016, p.9. 
82 European Commission, European Green Capital. 
83 European Commission, European Green Leaf Award. 
84 European Commission, Green City Tool. 
85 Government of Romania, Partnership Agreement 2014-2020, 2014, p. 
434. 

Romanian  municipalities  are  generally  involved  in  EU 
initiatives  on  environmental  protection  and  climate 
change. 

Romanian  cities  are  also  actively  involved  in  initiatives 
such as Eurocities and the EU Covenant of Mayors. As of 
June 2018, 85 Romanian cities were signed up to the EU 
Covenant of Mayors. 

The city of Oradea in western Romania was one of seven 
cities  that  applied  for  the  2018  European  Green  Capital 
Award. 

These  urban  initiatives  and  networks  are  welcomed  and 
encouraged,  as  they  can  contribute  to  a  better  urban 
environment.  People 
in  Romanian  cities  are 
increasingly taking a more positive view of the area they 
live  in.  However,  in  2017,  21 %  of  them  considered  that 
the area they lived in was affected by pollution, crime or 
other environmental problems (EU-28 average: 20 %)86.  

living 

Nature and cities  

Around 3% of Natura 2000 network in Romania is to be 
found  within  functional  urban  areas87,  which  is  slightly 
above the EU average of 15% (see Figure 19). 

86 European Commission, Eurostat, Pollution, grime or other 
environmental problems by degree of urbanisation. 
87 European Commission, Definition of Functional Urban Areas. 

22 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Figure  19:  Proportion  of  the  Natura  2000  network 
intersecting with Functional Urban Areas (FUA)88 

Some  8  municipalities  are 
in  the  URBACT 
initiative  to  support  sustainable  urban  development, 
through 28 different thematic networks89. 

involved 

Urban sprawl 

Romania  had  one  of  the 
lowest  weighted  urban 
proliferation rates, at 0.78 UPU/m2 in 2009 compared to 
a European average (EU-28+EEA-4) of 1.64 UPU/m2, with 
a 6.84 % increase from 2006 to 20099091. 

Traffic congestion and urban mobility 

The  total  number  of  road  vehicles  in  Romania  has 
increased to 6.5 million in 2018. 

Romania’s  2016-2020  national  climate  change  strategy 
includes  among  its  strategic  objectives  the  ‘protection 
and  extension  of  natural  recreational  areas  in  cities  and 
their  surroundings’.  The  country’s  2035  territorial 
development  strategy  includes  a  measure  to  develop 
green space in urban areas and green belts around large 
cities. The strategy mentions the need to start a process 
for  planning  public  space  and  developing  networks  of 
green  spaces  in  urban  areas.  It  also  mentions  that  the 
creation of green belts will require: (i) including them in 
planning  documents;  and  (ii)  using  legislation  and  tax 
incentives to make the green belts a reality. It is unclear 
to  what  extent  implementation  of  these  measures  has 
progressed. 

88 European Commission, The 7th Report on Economic, Social and 
Territorial Cohesion, 2017, p. 121. 
89 URBACT, Associated Networks by country. 
90 Urban Permeation Units measure the size of the built-up area as well 
as its degree of dispersion throughout the region. 
91 EEA, Urban Sprawl in Europe, Annex I, 2014, pp.4-5. 

23 

 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Part II: Enabling framework: implementation tools 

4. Green taxation, green public procurement, environmental 

funding and investments 

Green  taxation  and  environmentally  harmful 
subsidies 

incentives, 

taxation  and  other  economic 
Financial 
instruments  are  effective  and  efficient  ways  to  meet 
environmental  policy  objectives.  The  circular  economy 
action  plan  encourages  their  use.  Environmentally 
harmful  subsidies  are  monitored  in  the  context  of  the 
European  Semester  and  the  energy  union  governance 
process. 

from  environment-related  taxes 
Romania’s  revenue 
remains in line with the EU average. Environmental taxes 
accounted  for  1.9 %  of  GDP  in  2017  (EU-28  average: 
2.4 %)  (Figure  20),  and  energy  taxes  for  1.76 %  of  GDP 
(EU  average  1.84 %92).  In  the  same  year,  environmental 
tax  revenues  were  7.39 %  of  total  revenues  from  taxes 
and social-security contributions (EU average of 5.97 %). 

Figure  20:  Environmental  tax  revenues  as  %  of  GDP 
(2017)93 

92 Eurostat, Environmental tax revenues, 2018. 
93 Eurostat, Environmental tax revenues, 2018. 

24 

Romania’s  tax  structure  results  in  a  lower  proportion  of 
revenues  from  labour  tax  in  total  tax  revenues  than  the 
EU average. Romania’s labour tax revenues were 38.8 % 
in  2016,  while  the  implicit  tax  burden  on  labour  was 
28.8 %94.  Consumption  taxes  remained  relatively  high 
(41.4 %, fifth in the EU-28), showing that there is limited 
potential  for  shifting  taxes  from  labour  to  consumption, 
particularly to environmental ones. 

There  are  some  examples  of  sound  fiscal  measures  for 
the  environment,  such  as  the  packaging  tax,  one  of  the 
country’s  most 
important  environmental  taxes:  all 
economic  operators  are  responsible  for  all  packaging 
waste  generated.  Therefore,  they  are  responsible  for 
recovering waste95. 

In  2015,  fossil  fuel  subsidies  were  among  the  highest  in 
the EU. Post-tax subsidies (which  include not  only price-
gap  subsidies  but  also 
the  negative  externalities 
associated with fossil fuel use, such as local air pollution, 
faster climate change and congestion) amounted to USD 
14 billion in 201596. 

Substantial  progress  has  been  made  on  reducing  the 
‘diesel  differential’  (difference  in  the  price  of  diesel 
versus  petrol)  since  2005.  In  2016  there  was  only  a  7 % 
gap between petrol and diesel tax rates, while in 2005 it 
was 31 %97. Excise tax rates levied on petrol and diesel in 
2016 remained unchanged compared with those in 2015 
(RON 2.04 per litre for petrol and RON 1.90 for diesel98). 
CO2-based motor vehicle taxes are in place in Romania99. 
A three-year fleet renewal scheme was launched in May 
2017,  which  includes  incentive  bonuses  for  scrappage, 
and  for  buying  electric  and  hybrid  vehicles  and  vehicles 
with CO2 emissions lower than 98 g/km100. 

Incentives  to  encourage  people  to  buy  cars  with  lower 
CO2  emissions  were  put  in  place  in  2016.  These  were 
linked  to  annual  circulation  taxes  and  subsidies,  road 
tolls,  congestion  or  low  emission  zone  charges  and  also 

94 European Commission, Taxation Trends Report, 2017. 
95 Institute for European Environmental Policy, Case Studies on 
Environmental Fiscal Reform, The Packaging tax in Romania 
96 European Parliament and IMF, Fossil Fuel Subsidies, 2017, pp. 10-11. 
97 European Environment Agency 2017, Environmental taxation and EU 
environmental policies, p. 27. 
98 European Commission, Taxes in Europe Database, 2018. 
99 ACEA, CO2 based motor vehicle taxes in Europe. 
100 European Commission, European Semester Country Report 2018, p. 
17. 

 
 
 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

to 

to  buying  cleaner  vehicles.  There  are  some  incentives 
connected 
the  preferential  use  of  public 
infrastructures101. Emission levels of new vehicles bought 
in Romania are in line with the EU average, with average 
CO2  emissions  of  122  grams  per  kilometre  (EU  average 
118 grams in 2016102). 

This report also suggests that the tax system can be used 
to  support  environmental  policy  while  also  generating 
revenue.  In  particular,  the  implementation  of  a  landfill 
tax and its gradual increase would divert recyclable waste 
from the landfills (see Chapter 1 on waste management) 
and  fiscal  incentives  can  also  help  lower  emissions  (see 
Chapter 3 on air quality).  

The use of alternative fuels in new passenger cars sold in 
Romania has remained low over the past few years. The 
percentage share of new passenger cars using alternative 
fuels  was  0.17 %  in  2016  falling  from  0.44 %  in  2013103. 
Most of these are electric vehicles. Since 2013 there have 
been  few,  if  any,  sales  of  compressed  natural  gas  (CNG) 
vehicles  in  the  country.  Favourable  tax  treatment  for 
company  cars  is  not  a  cause  for  concern  in  Romania104. 
However, a  relevant fiscal measure has been introduced 
in  relation  to  company  cars  in  2018:  the  car  tax  refund 
granted  to  certain  types  of  low-polluting  vehicles  is  no 
longer available105. 

Green public procurement 

The  EU  green  public  procurement  policies  encourage 
Member  States  to  take  further  steps  to  apply  green 
procurement  criteria  to  at  least  50 %  of  public  tenders. 
The European Commission is helping to increase the use 
of  public  procurement  as  a  strategic  tool  to  support 
environmental protection. 

The purchasing power of public procurement amounts to 
around  EUR 1.8  trillion  in  the  EU  (approximately  14%  of 
GDP).  A  substantial  proportion  of  this  money  goes  to 
sectors  with  a  high  environmental 
impact  such  as 
construction  or  transport.  Therefore,  green  public 
procurement  (GPP)  can  help  to  significantly  lower  the 
negative  impact  of  public  spending  on  the  environment 

101 European Environmental Agency, Appropriate taxes and incentives 
do affect purchases of new cars, 18 May 2018. 
102 European Environment Agency, Average CO2 emissions from new 
passenger cars sold in EU-28 Member States plus Norway, Iceland and 
Switzerland in 2016  
103 European Commission, Transport in the European Union Current 
Trends and Issues, 2018, pp.27-28. 
104 European Commission, Taxation of commercial cars in Belgium, 
2017, p. 3. 
105 FleetEurope, Major changes to company car taxation in Europe. 

25 

and  can  help  support  sustainable  innovative  businesses. 
The Commission has proposed EU GPP criteria106. 

In April 2016, Romania adopted a law dedicated to green 
public  procurement.  The  country  will  establish  a  set  of 
criteria  for  procuring  green  products  as  well  as  services 
categories.  The law provides  for (i) a  guide that includes 
minimum  criteria  for  the  environmental  protection  of 
goods  and  services,  (ii) the  standard  specifications  and 
(iii)  a  multi-annual  action  plan  on  green  public 
procurement at national level. According to the law, the 
guide  will  be  approved  by  joint  order  of  the  Ministry  of 
Environment  and  the  National  Agency 
for  Public 
Procurement.  Currently,  this  order  is  undergoing  an 
internal  consultation  process.  Following  this  process  the 
Ministry of Environment will develop the national action 
plan  on  green  public  procurement  that  includes  specific 
annual targets. 

Environmental funding and investments 

European  Structural  and  Investment  Fund  (ESIF)  rules 
oblige  Member  States  to  promote  environment  and 
climate  in  their  funding  strategies  and  programmes  for 
rural 
economic, 
development and maritime policy. 

social  and 

territorial 

cohesion, 

Achieving  sustainability  involves  mobilising  public  and 
private financing sources107. Making use of the European 
Structural  and  Investment  Funds  (ESIFs)108  is  essential  if 
countries  are  to  achieve  their  environmental  goals  and 

106 In the Communication ‘Public procurement for a better 
environment’ (COM (2008) 400) the Commission recommended the 
creation of a process for setting common GPP criteria. The basic 
concept of GPP relies on having clear, verifiable, justifiable and 
ambitious environmental criteria for products and services, based on a 
life-cycle approach and scientific evidence base. 
107 See, for example, Action plan on financing sustainable growth 
(COM(2018) 97).  
108 i.e. the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Cohesion 
Fund (CF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the European Agricultural 
Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Maritime and 
Fisheries Fund (EMFF). The ERDF, the CF and the ESF are referred to as 
the ‘cohesion policy funds’. 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

these 

into  other  policy  areas.  Other 
integrate 
instruments such as Horizon 2020, the LIFE programme109 
and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI)110 
may also support the implementation and spread of good 
practices. 

Cooperation and EUR 4.7 billion from the European Social 
Fund  (ESF).  There  are  four  programmes  funded  by  the 
European  Regional  Development  Fund  (ERDF)  and  the 
Cohesion Fund, and two programmes funded by the ESF 
including the Youth Employment Initiative. 

According  to  the  2017  Special  Eurobarometer  468  on 
attitudes of EU citizens towards the environment, 80 % of 
in 
investment 
greater 
Romanians 
environmental protection (EU28 average being 85 %). 

support 

EU 

European Structural and Investment Funds 2014-2020 

Making  good  use  of  the  European  Structural  and 
Investment  Funds  (ESIF111)  is  essential  to  achieve  the 
environmental goals and integrate these into other policy 
areas.  Other  instruments  such  as  the  Horizon  2020,  the 
LIFE  programme112  and  the  EFSI113  may  also  support 
implementation and spread of best practice. 

Through  eight  national  and  regional  programmes, 
Romania  has  been  allocated  EUR 30.84  billion  from  ESIF 
funds  for  2014-2020.  This  means  that  with  its  national 
contribution  of  EUR 5.63  billion,  Romania  has  a  total 
budget  of  EUR 36.47  billion  to  invest  in  various  areas, 
such as creating jobs and growth, promoting innovation, 
protecting  the  environment  and  supporting  social 
inclusion114. 

to  promote  green 

The 2014-2020  Partnership  Agreement (a  strategic  plan 
with  investment  priorities  covering  the  ESIF)  reiterates 
infrastructure.  The 
the  need 
Agreement  lists  ecological  corridors,  ‘green  bridges’  and 
eco-passages  as  examples  of  how  artificially  fragmented 
natural areas can be reconnected. Other funds are from 
the ‘Large Infrastructure Operational Programme’ (LIOP), 
the  Interreg  V-A  Romania-Hungary  programme  (2014-
2020)  (see  below),  and  European  Economic  Area  (EEA) 
and  Norway  grants.  LIFE 
funding  also  provides 
opportunities. 

Cohesion policy 

Romania receives around EUR 23 billion from EU sources 
in  total  cohesion  policy  funding115  for  2014-2020, 
for  European  Territorial 
including  EUR 453  million 

109 European Commission, LIFE programme. 
110 European Investment Bank, European Fund for Strategic 
Investments, 2016. 
111 ESIF comprises five funds — the European Regional Development 
Funds (ERDF), the Cohesion Fund (CF), the European Social Fund (ESF), 
the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), and the 
European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF). The ERDF, the CF and 
the ESF together form the Cohesion Policy funds. 
112 European Commission, 2017 LIFE Romania Sheet. 
113 European Investment Bank, 2016 European Fund for Strategic 
Investments. 
114 European Commission, European Structural and Investment Funds 
(Country factsheet Romania), 2017. 
115 Cohesion Fund, European regional Development Fund, European 
Social fund and YEI. 

In  total,  EUR 7.1  billion  is  allocated  for  environmental 
investments  under  the  Cohesion  policy  (see  Figure  21). 
For 2014-2020 there is no separate operating programme 
for  the  environment  as  was  the  case  for  2007-2013. 
However, environment is part of the ‘large infrastructure 
operational  programme’  and  to  a  lesser  extent  of  the 
together  with 
‘Regional  operational  programme’, 
transport  and  energy,  managed  by  the  Ministry  of 
European  Funds  and 
the  Ministry  of  Regional 
Development and Public Administration. 

Figure  21:  ESIF  2014-2020:  EU  allocation  by  theme, 
Romania (EUR billion)116 

From  for  the  period  2014-2020,  EUR  7.1  billion 
is 
allocated  for  environmental  expenditure  within  the 
low-carbon 
Cohesion  Policy:  TO4:  Shift  towards  a 
economy  —  EUR  2.9  billion;  TO5:  Climate  change 
adaptation  &  risk  prevention  and  management  —  EUR 
479  million;  and  TO6:  Environmental  protection  & 
resource efficiency — EUR 3.7 billion. Compared to 2007-
2013, the overall allocation for Romania is slightly higher. 
However, the allocation for environment is lower for the 
new  period.  For  the  period  2014-2020,  as  mentioned 

116 European Commission, European Structural and Investment Funds 
Data By Country. 

26 

                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

above,  environment  is  part  of  the  ‘large  infrastructure 
operational  programme’  and  the  ‘Regional  Operational 
Programme’. 

The  declared  investment  priorities  for  this  2014-2020 
period are to support Romania in improving the quality of 
its environment and in promoting the sustainable use of 
its natural resources. The main sectors targeted by these 
investments are: (i) waste management, (ii) water supply 
and  wastewater  treatment,  (iii)  biodiversity  and  nature 
protection, and (iv) risk prevention and management. 

Romania  is  also  targeting  gaps  in  its  implementation  of 
environmental  measures  through  its  ESIF  investment 
operational programmes.  

Rural Development 

Under  the  national  rural  development  programme, 
EAFRD funds amount to EUR 3.252 billion — 40 % of the 
total budget for environmental measures. However, only 
11 % is dedicated to agri-environment-climate measures. 
The  Rural  Development  Programme  (RDP)  has  a  sound 
link  with 
logic  which  makes  the 
intervention 
its 
contribution 
the  environmental 
implementing 
for 
legislation. 
introduced  new  sub 
measures  under  the  agri-environmental  commitments, 
aimed  at  protecting  (i)  agricultural  lands  that  are  major 
feeding  grounds  for  the  Lesser  Spotted  Eagle  (Aquila 
Pomarina),  (ii) ecological  refuges  on  arable  land  for 
common  bird  species  and  (iii)  agricultural  lands  that  are 
important  protection  areas  for  the  Great  Bustard  (Otis 
Tarda). 

In  2018,  Romania 

for  all  Member  States)  are: 

On integrating environmental concerns into the common 
agricultural  policy  (CAP),  the  two  key  areas  for  Romania 
(i) to  use  rural 
(as 
development  funds  to  pay  for  environmental 
land 
management  and  other  environmental  measures,  while 
avoiding  financing  measures  which  could  damage  the 
environment; and (ii) to ensure that the first pillar of the 
CAP is implemented effectively for cross-compliance and 
first pillar ‘greening’.  

The  Direct  Payment  budget  for  Romania  is  EUR 8.949 
billion117),  30 %  of  which  (EUR  2.740  billion)  is  allocated 
to  greening  practices  that  help  the  environment.  If 
Romania  was  ambitious 
implementing  first  pillar 
in 
‘greening’,  it  would  clearly  help  improve  the  country’s 
environmental  situation  in  areas  not  covered  by  rural 
development  schemes,  including  areas  under  intensive 
use.  The  country  could  review, 
its 
implementation of first pillar ‘greening’. 

if  appropriate, 

117 According to Commission delegated regulation (EU) No 994/2014 of 
13 May 2014. 

European Maritime and Fisheries Fund 

Fund 

Fisheries 

(EMFF).  On 

EUR 224  million  available  for  2014-2020  includes  more 
than  EUR 168  million  for  the  allocation  to  the  European 
the 
Maritime  and 
environment,  the  priorities  of  the  Romanian  fisheries 
promote 
operational 
environmentally 
efficient, 
innovative,  competitive,  and  knowledge-based  fisheries 
(EUR 17.8  million),  and  (ii)  to  promote  environmentally 
sustainable,  resource  efficient,  innovative,  competitive 
and knowledge-based aquaculture (EUR 112.3 million). 

to 
resource 

sustainable, 

programme 

are: 

(i) 

The Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) 

The  CEF  is  a  key  EU  funding  instrument  developed 
specifically  to  direct 
investment  towards  European 
transport,  energy  and  digital  infrastructure  to  address 
identified  missing  links  and  bottlenecks  and  promote 
sustainability. 

By the end of 2017, Romania had signed agreements for 
EUR 1.2 billion for projects under the CEF118. 

Horizon 2020 

Romania has benefited  from Horizon 2020 funding since 
the programme started in 2014. As of January 2019, 343 
participants  have  been  granted  a  maximum  amount  of 
EUR 55.5 million for projects from the Societal Challenges 
work 
environmental 
issues119 120.  

dealing  with 

programmes 

In  addition  to  the  abovementioned  work  programmes, 
climate and biodiversity expenditure is present across the 
entire  Horizon  2020.  In  Romania,  projects  accepted  for 
funding  in  all  Horizon  2020  working  programmes  until 
December  2018  included  EUR  44  million  destined  to 
climate  action  (32.5 %  of  the  total  Horizon  2020 
contribution  to  the  country)  and  EUR  6  million  for 
biodiversity-related  actions  (4.7 %  of  the  Horizon  2020 
contribution to the country)121. 

LIFE programme 

launch 

in  1992,  the  LIFE  programme  has 
Since  its 
financed 68 projects in Romania. Of these, 22 have been 
focused  on  environmental  innovation,  42  on  nature 

118 European Commission, European Semester Country Report for 
Romania, 2018, p. 14. 
119 European Commission own calculations based on CORDA (COmmon 
Research DAta Warehouse). A maximum grant amount is the maximum 
grant amount decided by the Commission. It normally corresponds to 
the requested grant, but it may be lower. 
120 i.e. (ii) Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine 
and maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy; (iii) 
Secure, clean and efficient energy; (iv) Smart, green and integrated 
transport; and (v) Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and 
raw materials. 
121 European Commission own calculations based on CORDA (COmmon 
Research DAta Warehouse). 

27 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

on 

and 

three 

information 

and 
conservation 
communication. Under the new LIFE programme, the EU 
has  been  co-financing  one  capacity-building  project  in 
Romania.  This  project  aims  to  improve  the  capacity  for 
supporting  potential  LIFE  project  applicants  in  Romania, 
and  increase  the  number  of  successful  applications 
submitted to the LIFE programme. 

In  2014-2017  the  EU  allocated  EUR 3.5  million  to 
Romanian  projects122.  The  LIFE  project 
‘Connect 
Carpathians123  —  Enhancing  landscape  connectivity  for 
brown  bear  and  wolf  through  a  regional  network  of 
NATURA  2000  sites  in  Romania’  runs  until  2019.  'The 
project,  which  runs  from  September  2013  to  February 
2019,  aims  to  put  in  place  an  ecological  corridor  linking 
Natura 2000 sites in western Romania so that bears and 
wolves can move between the two areas. It will enhance 
functional  connectivity  such  as:  building  capacity  of 
responsible agencies and Natura 2000 site administrators 
in 
local 
stakeholders  in  connectivity  management,  securing  land 
to  develop  linkage  corridors  and  managing  corridors  to 
create carnivore-permeable landscape.  

conservation, 

landscape 

involving 

scale 

European Investment Bank 

In 2013-2017, EIB loans to Romania amounted to nearly 
EUR 10.4  billion124.  In  2018  alone,  The  EIB  group  (the 
European Investment Bank and the European Investment 
Fund) 
in  the  Romanian 
economy.  Of  this,  EUR 110.2  million  (8 %)  was  allocated 
to the environment. 
Figure 22: EIB loans to Romania in 2018 125 

invested  EUR 1.31  billion 

European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) 

The  EFSI  is  an  initiative  to  help  overcome  the  current 
investment gap in the EU. In January 2019, The EFSI has 

mobilised more than EUR 652 million in Romania. This is 
set to trigger EUR 2.7 billion in additional investments126. 

The  EIB  is  providing  a  EUR  7.5  million  EFSI  loan  to 
GreenFiber  International  SA,  a  producer  of  recycled 
Polyethylene  Terephthalate 
in 
furniture, cars, clothes, and in construction. This circular 
economy  project  will  help  create  280  full-time  jobs  and 
increase  the  amount  of  waste  collected  and 
will 
processed in Romania by over 50 000 tonnes per year. 

fibres,  used 

(PET) 

National environmental financing 

Romania  spent  EUR 1.064  billion  on  environmental 
protection  in  2016,  a  decrease  of  33.4 %  from  2015127. 
47.4 %  of  these  payments  were  allocated  to  waste 
management activities (the annual average percentage of 
environmental spending allocated to waste management 
spending in the EU is 49.7 %). Some EUR 233 million was 
allocated  to  wastewater  management  (21.9 %  of  total) 
and  EUR 294  million  to  pollution  abatement  (27.6 %  of 
total).  Some  0.6 %  of  environmental  expenditure  was 
allocated  to  protecting  biodiversity  and  the  landscape 
(EUR 5.9  million).  Between  2012  and  2016,  general 
government  funding  for  environmental  protection  was 
EUR 6 120 billion128. 

As it has been mentioned through the report, one of the 
challenges  for  Romania  is  to  ensure  that  environmental 
financing remains at an adequate level. Existent financial 
in  areas  such  as  waste  management,  green 
gaps 
infrastructure  or  biodiversity  are  delaying  the  correct 
implementation  of  EU  environmental  law  and  policies. 
Therefore,  ensuring  financial  resources  to  reduce  the 
implementation  gap  should  be  considered  as  a  priority 
for the country. 

2019 priority actions 

 

  Mobilise investment, including through EU funds, to: 
prevent  waste,  encourage  separate  collection  and 
recycling;  reduce  air  pollution;  promote  sustainable 
water  management,  and  protect  biodiversity  and 
develop green infrastructure; 
Ensure  projects  are  better  prepared,  better 
operated, and better prioritised so that EU funds can 
be used more effectively and better absorbed;  
Ensure  that  the  rural  development  programme  and 
greening measures boost biodiversity and contribute 
to  achieving  a  favourable  conservation  status  of 
habitats and species. 

 

122 Commission services based on data provided by EASME. 
123 The LIFE project ‘Connect Carpathians”  
124 EIB, Romania and the EIB, 2018. 
125 EIB, Romania and the EIB, 2018.. 

126 European Investment Bank, EFSI project map. 
127 Eurostat, General Government Expenditure by function, 2018. 
128 Eurostat, General Government Expenditure by function, 2018. 

28 

 
                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

5. Strengthening environmental governance 

Information, public participation and access to 
justice 

Citizens  can  more  effectively  protect  the  environment  if 
they  can  rely  on  the  three  ‘pillars’  of  the  Aarhus 
Convention:  
(i) access to information;  
(ii) public participation in decision making; and  
(iii) access to justice in environmental matters.  

It is of crucial importance to public authorities, the public 
and  business  that  environmental  information  is  shared 
efficiently  and  effectively129.  Public  participation  allows 
authorities  to  make  decisions  that  take  public  concerns 
into account. Access to justice is a set of guarantees that 
allows  citizens  and  NGOs  to  use  national  courts  to 
protect the environment130. It includes the right to bring 
legal challenges (‘legal standing’)131. 

Environmental information 

Romania  has  a  dedicated  national  environmental  portal 
hosted by the National Environmental Protection Agency 
(ANPM132).  This  portal  covers  all  relevant  fields  and  is  a 
good  resource  for  legal  documentation.  The  INSPIRE 
geoportal is a separate site that contains data for some of 
the fields, while other data can be found on the national 
open  data  portal.  There  is  no  link  between  the  INSPIRE 
portal and the environmental portal. ANPM’s portal has a 
viewing  service.  However,  at  the  moment,  it  offers  little 
in  terms  of  monitoring  data  or  historical  datasets. 
Overall,  the  site  appears  to  be  a  work  in  progress.  It  is 
well structured and easy to navigate, the search function 
works  well  and  it  is  easy  to  access  the  information 
available,  which  spans  many  fields.  ANPM  has  a  good 
portal  —  it  just  needs  to  incorporate  the  field-specific 
data — ideally including proper metadata and licencing. 

Romania’s  performance  on  implementing  the  INSPIRE 
Directive  needs  to  be  improved.  The  accessibility  of 
spatial  data  through  ‘view  and  download’  services  is 
poor. Romania performance has been reviewed based on 

129 The Aarhus Convention, the Access to Environmental Information 
Directive 2003/4/EC and the INSPIRE Directive 2007/2/EC together 
create a legal foundation for the sharing of environmental information 
between public authorities and with the public. This EIR focuses on 
INSPIRE. 
130 The guarantees are explained in Commission Notice on access to 
justice in environmental matters, OJL 275, 18.8.2017 and a related 
Citizen’s Guide. 
131 This EIR looks at how well Member States explain access to justice 
rights to the public, and at legal standing and other major barriers to 
bringing cases on nature and air pollution. 
132 National Environmental Protection Agency, national environmental 
portal.  

its  2016  implementation  report133  and  its  most  recent 
monitoring  data  from  2017134.  Romania  has  made  good 
progress  in  data  identification  and  documentation  of 
data.  Additional  efforts  are  needed  to  make  data 
accessible  through  services.  Romania  also  has  to  make 
additional  efforts  to  improve  the  conditions  for  data 
in  the 
reuse  and  prioritise  environmental  datasets 
implementation  of 
In 
particular,  it  needs  to  prioritise  datasets  identified  as 
high-value spatial datasets135.  

environmental 

legislation. 

Figure  23:  Access  to  spatial  data  through  view  and 
download services in Romania (2017)  

Public participation 

In  Romania,  public  participation  is  mainly  regulated  in 
relation  to  plans,  programmes  (Governmental  decision 
564/2006  and  Governmental  decision  1076/2004)  and 
projects (Governmental decision 445/2009/). For all new 
investments  during  the  period  2017-2018,  the  main 
applicable  regulations  in  Romania  were  Government 
Decision 445/2009 and Ministerial Order 135/2010 which 
applying 
approves 
environmental impact assessments for public and private 
projects.  Moreover,  sectoral  provisions  in  the  area  of 
nature protection exist. 

the  methodology 

used 

for 

The  transposition  of  the  revised  EIA  2014/52/EU  has 
been  fulfilled  in  December  2018136.  The  new  EIA  Law 
should ensure the possibility for the public to participate 

133 INSPIRE RO country sheet 2017. 
134 INSPIRE monitoring dashboard. 
135 List of high value spatial data sets. 
136 Law No. 292/2018 on the assessment of the impact of certain public 
and private projects on the environment was adopted and published on 
10/12/2018 in the Romanian Official Journal (Official Gazette No. 1043, 
Part I). 

29 

 
                                                                 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

in  the  EIA  procedure  before  the  final  development 
consent is granted. 

limited 

However, 
information  exists  on  how  public 
participation  works  in  practice  and  whether  it  covers 
environmental policy overall and not just the policy areas 
mentioned above. 

The Eurobarometer  figures  from 2017  show that people 
(78 %  of 
strongly 
relatively 
in  Romania  agree 
respondents)  that  an 
in 
individual  can  play  a  role 
protecting 
the  environment.  This  percentage  has 
decreased compared to 2014. 

Access to justice 

Significant  progress  is  needed  in  informing  the  general 
individuals  and 
public  about  effective  remedies  for 
environmental  associations  on  access  to 
in 
justice 
environmental matters under Romanian and EU law. The 
official website of the Ministry of Justice contains general 
information,  not  tailored,  for  access  to 
in 
environmental issues. 

justice 

According  to  Article 5  of  the  framework  Environmental 
Protection  Law  —  Government  Emergency  Order  no 
195/2005137, ‘the State recognises to any person the right 
to  a  healthy  and  ecologically  balanced  environment  and 
guarantees: …  d)  The  right  to  appeal  directly  or  through 
the  environmental  organisations  to  the  administrative 
and  judicial  authorities  regarding  environmental  issues, 
regardless  of  whether  an  injury  or  damage  occurred;  e) 
The  right  to  compensation  for  the  damages  suffered’. 
These rights apply both to individuals and organisations. 
It  is  important  to  point  out  that,  despite  these  rules, 
environmental  cases  are  rarely  brought  before  the 
Romanian  courts.  However,  important  cases  have  been 
brought  to  the  Romanian  courts  in  the  field  of  nuclear 
activities and mining activities. 

The environmental permit and other regulatory decisions 
in  the  approval  procedure,  as  well  as  the  Natura  2000 

137 Romanian Environmental Protection Law  

approvals issued for a project can be challenged in court 
by third parties. However, the environmental information 
made  available  to  the  public  is  not  easily  found  on  the 
websites  of  local  environmental  protection  agencies,  as 
generally  the  structure  of  their  websites  is  rather  poor 
and searches are difficult to carry out. A complaint to the 
court  can  be  filed  within  6  months  of  the  answer  from 
the administrative authority being received or from when 
it should have been received. 

In Romania, the costs consist of: (i) the court’s fee, (ii) the 
lawyer’s  fee, and (iii) the judicial expert’s fee. The ‘loser 
pays’  principle  applies.  Court  fees  are  relatively  low  and 
are regulated by law138. Article  90 of the  Romanian  Civil 
Procedure Code139 facilitates the access to justice of the 
public by either sparing/reducing/staggering/delaying the 
Court  fees,  or  by  nominating  a  public  defender  (court-
appointed  attorney)  when  the  individual  would  not  be 
able to pay the amount demanded. 

2019 priority actions 

 

 

Improve  access  to  spatial  data  and  services  by 
making  stronger  links  between  the  central  INSPIRE 
website and regional portals. Identify and document 
all  spatial  datasets  required  for  the  implementation 
of  environmental  law140,  and  make  the  data  and 
documentation  at  least  accessible  ‘as  is’  to  other 
public  authorities  and  the  public  through  the  digital 
services set out in the INSPIRE Directive; 
Improve  the  legal  framework  and/or  the  practical 
application  (e.g.  by  setting  up  a  single  webpage)  to 
facilitate public participation across the board when 
implementing  EU 
legislation  that  could  have  a 
negative impact on the environment, in line with the 
Aarhus Convention; 

  Better inform the public about their rights to access 
justice,  notably  in  relation  to  air  pollution  and 
nature; 
Ensure that there is legal standing for environmental 
NGOs  to  bring  legal  challenges  on  air  pollution  and 
nature cases. 

 

138 Emergency Governmental Ordinance number 80/2013. 
139 The Civil Procedure Code republished 2015. Law 134/2010 on the 
Civil Procedure Code republished 
140 European Commission, INSPIRE. 

30 

 
                                                                 
 
 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

Compliance assurance 

to  ensure 

Environmental compliance assurance covers all the work 
that 
undertaken  by  public  authorities 
industries,  farmers  and  others  fulfil  their  obligations  to 
protect  water,  air  and  nature,  and  manage  waste141.  It 
includes  support  measures  provided  by  the  authorities, 
such as:  
(i) compliance promotion142;  
(ii) inspections and other checks that they carry out, i.e. 
compliance monitoring143; and  
(iii)  the  steps  that  they  take  to  stop  breaches,  impose 
sanctions  and  require  damage  to  be  remedied,  i.e. 
enforcement144.  
Citizen  science  and  complaints  enable  authorities  to 
liability145 
focus  their  efforts  better.  Environmental 
ensures that the polluter pays to remedy any damage. 

Compliance promotion and monitoring 

is  an 

information 

Online information is given to farmers on how to comply 
with  obligations  on  nitrates  and  nature.  The  quality  of 
this 
indicator  of  how  actively 
authorities  promote  compliance  in  subject-areas  with 
implementation  gaps.  Romania’s  agricultural 
serious 
paying  agency  (Agentia  de  Plati  si  Interventie  pentru 
Agricultura146)  publishes  guides147  and  booklets148  with 
information  on  requirements  to  be  complied  with  by 
farmers  in  order  to  receive  payments,  including  on 
fertiliser  use  and  manure  storage  according  to  the 
Nitrates Directive and obligations under Natura 2000.  

The  National  Research  Institute  for  soil  study,  agro-
chemistry  and  environmental  protection  published 
guidance on fertilise use149. 

Major  industrial  installations  can  be  a  serious  pollution 
risk. Public authorities must have plans in place to inspect 
these  installations  and  to  make  individual  inspection 
reports available to the public150. The Romanian National 
Environmental Guard published a strategic plan for 2014-

141 The concept is explained in detail in the Communication on ‘EU 
actions to improve environmental compliance and governance’ 
COM(2018)10 and the related Commission Staff Working Document, 
SWD(2018)10. 
142 This EIR focuses on the help given to farmers to comply with nature 
and nitrates legislation. 
143 This EIR focuses on inspections of major industrial installations. 
144This EIR focuses on the availability of enforcement data and co-
ordination between authorities to tackle environmental crime. 
145 The Environmental Liability Directive 2004/35/EC, creates the 
framework. 
146 Romania’s agricultural paying agency. 
147Romania’s agricultural paying agency, guides. 
148 Romania’s agricultural paying agency, booklets. 
149 The National Research Institute for soil study, agro-chemistry and 
environmental protection, guidance on fertilise use. 
150 Article 23, Industrial Emissions Directive, 2010/75/EU. 

31 

2016151.  There  does  not  seem  to  be  any  information 
given  by  authorities  on  operational  inspection  plans. 
Individual inspection reports do not appear to have been 
published.  However,  the  NEG  publishes  monthly  activity 
reports  with  information  on  the  number  of  inspections 
carried  out,  the  number  of  warnings  issued  and  fines 
imposed152.  

Citizen science and complaint handling 

Engaging  the  general  public  through  citizen  science,  can 
increase knowledge about the environment and help the 
authorities in their work. Romania recognises the added 
value of public engagement in environmental compliance 
monitoring.  For  instance,  a  map-based  tool153  called 
‘Forest Inspector’ and a mobile application developed by 
the  Ministry  of  Forests  ensures  that  the  public  are 
involved in the fight against illegal logging. 

In 2018, the National Environmental Guard launched the 
INCOLAB  –  a  mobile  application  that  allows  citizens  to 
report  cases  that  might  affect  protected  habitats  or 
species in a certain protected area (such as dead animals, 
poaching,  nets  destroyed,  cutting  of  trees,  fires  and 
pollution) to responsible authorities154. 

The availability of clear online information about how to 
make a  complaint  shows how responsive authorities are 
to  complaints  from  the  public.  In  Romania,  the  National 
Environmental  Guard  set  up  a  webpage  for  written 
complaints155,  with  information  regarding  the  applicable 
legislation. Complaints may be submitted online156 or via 
telephone.  Complaints  submitted  can 
include  those 
concerning  the  alleged  failure  of  an  environmental 
administration  to  deal  with  an  environmental  nuisance 
from  a  waste  facility  or  industrial  installation  or  an 
alleged failure by an environmental authority to address 
damage  to  a  Natura  2000  site.  The  NEG  publishes 
complaints  statistics.  Some  NGOs157  also  offer  tools  to 
help people submit environmental complaints. 

Enforcement 

identifies  problems,  a  range  of 
When  monitoring 
responses  may  be  appropriate.  The  NEG  activity  reports 
include  some  statistics  on  warnings,  fines  and  criminal 
complaints  submitted  to  the  competent  prosecutor 

151 The Romanian National Environmental Guard, Strategic plan for 
2014-2016  
152 http://www.gnm.ro/sitenou/note_prim.php?id=2 
153 The Ministry of Waters and Forests, a map-based tool. 
154the National Environmental Guard., INCOLAB app. It also provides the 
map of two protected areas located on Danube border area as well as 
information on the species that might live there (name, scientific name, 
short description and photos);  
155The National Environmental Guard, web page for written complaints. 
156 The National Environmental Guard, online submission   
157 The National Environmental Guard, complaints statistics. 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

office. However, there is no structured publicly available 
information on whether penalties have been imposed, if 
compliance was attained after follow-up measures and if 
enforcement  action  had  been  taken.  Information  on 
responses  to  cross-compliance  breaches  on  nitrates  and 
nature is also lacking. 

is  especially  challenging. 

Tackling  waste,  wildlife  crimes  and  other  environmental 
It  requires  close 
offences 
cooperation  between  inspectors,  customs  authorities, 
police  and  prosecutors.  The  NEG’s  cooperation  with 
several  relevant  authorities,  including  the  gendarmerie, 
and  NGOs  and  universities,  is  based  on  memoranda  of 
understanding  and  protocols  which  are  publicly 
available158. 

Environmental liability 

The  Environmental  Liability  Directive  (ELD)  establishes  a 
framework  based  on  the  ‘polluter  pays’  principle  to 
prevent  and  remedy  environmental  damage.  The  2017 
information  on 
EIR 
environmental  damage,  on 
financial  security  and 
guidance.  The  Commission  is  still  collecting  evidence  on 
the progress made. 

focused  on  gathering  better 

2019 priority actions 

  Better 

inform 

the  public  about 

compliance 
promotion,  monitoring  and  enforcement.  At  a 
minimum  this  should  involve  providing  more  online 
information  on  inspection  plans  and  reports  on 
industrial  inspections.  Similarly,  it  should  involve 
the  outcomes  of 
publishing 
follow-up  to 
enforcement  action  and  on  the 
detected cross-compliance breaches on nitrates and 
nature. 
Improve  financial  security  for  liabilities  and  ELD-
guidance  and  publish  information  on  environmental 
damage. 

information  on 

 

Effectiveness of environmental 
administrations 

in 

involved 

implementing 

Those 
environmental 
legislation at EU, national, regional and local levels need 
to have the knowledge, tools and capacity to ensure that 
the  legislation  and  the  governance  of  the  enforcement 
process bring about the intended benefits. 

Administrative capacity and quality 

As  already  underlined  in  the  2017  EIR  report,  there  are 
still  issues  to  be  dealt  with  related  to  administrative 
capacity,  and  this  can  still  be  observed  across  all 

environmental fields. 

Implementation remains the main challenge as indicated 
by  the  fact  that  Romania,  despite  only  joining  the  EU  in 
2007, is among the countries with the highest number of 
environmental  infringements,  mainly  in  the  areas  of 
(i) waste and wastewater management (e.g. operation of 
substandard  landfills  and  lack  of  urban  waste  water 
facilities), (ii) air pollution (e.g. PM10 emission limit values 
being  exceeded), 
large 
combustion plants to EU standards, and (iv) authorisation 
of  projects  without  the  necessary  assessments  and 
permits. 

(iii)  non-adaptation  of  old 

There are a high number of public complaints. 

The  implementation  of  the  legislation  on  the  ground  is 
still a challenge, prompted by, among other things, a lack 
of  planning,  coordination  and  appropriate  funding.  The 
gap in implementing legislation is problematic in several 
areas,  particularly  waste  management  and  waste  water 
treatment. Romania is encouraged to make better use of 
EU  funds  to  address  these  challenges  and  improve  the 
coordination  of 
its  administrative  mechanisms  and 
ensure that projects in the environmental field are better 
prepared and prioritised. 

Central, regional and local administrations must have the 
ability  to  carry  out  their  own  tasks  and  work  effectively 
with  each  other  within  a  system  of  multi-level 
governance. 

The 

projects’ 

implementation, 

Overall, the implementation  of legislation has been very 
slow. 
including 
environmental  ones,  has  been  seriously  delayed  for 
land 
reasons  such  as 
acquisition,  relocation  of  utilities,  delayed/contested 
tendering procedures and general contract management 
difficulties  due 
insufficient  administrative  and 
technical capacity. 

insufficient  preparation  on 

to 

Use of the EIR peer-to-peer tool by Romania 
The first TAIEX-EIR159 peer 2 peer event took place on 22-
24 January  2018  in  Bucharest  at  the  request  of  the 
Romanian  Ministry  of  Environment.  The  request  was 
related  to  the  need  to  increase  expertise  on  landfill 
closure  and  rehabilitation,  to  address  an  ongoing 
infringement  procedure.  The  Commission  selected 
their  Romanian 
experts 
counterparts  as 
to 
overcome  a 
in  waste 
critical 
management  10-15  years  ago.  The  Irish  experts  shared 
their experience with the Ministry of Environment and in 
a workshop with a broader range of participants from the 
National  Environmental  Protection  Agency,  National 
Environmental Guard and county councils. This field visit 

successfully  managed 

to  advise 

situation 

Ireland 

Ireland 

similar 

from 

158 The National Environmental Guard, memoranda of understanding 
and protocols. 

159 TAIEX stands for Technical Assistance and Information Exchange. 

32 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

helped to exchange knowledge on how to overcome legal 
and  financial  hurdles  to  properly  closing  down  landfills 
and  to  ensuring  sufficient  aftercare.  Moreover,  the  Irish 
experts provided advice on how to strategically approach 
the challenge and practically manage this process. 

2019 priority action 

  Administrative 

the 
capacity 
coordination/governance  must  be  improved.  This 
will  also  help  address  gaps 
implementing 
legislation. 

and 

in 

Coordination and integration 

As  mentioned  in  the  2017  EIR,  the  transposition  of  the 
revised  EIA  Directive160  into  national  law  provides  an 
opportunity  for  countries  to  streamline  their  regulatory 
framework  on  environmental  assessments.  Romania  has 
notified  the  transposition  of  the  Directive  in  December 
2018. 

in  environmental  assessments 

The  Commission  encourages  the  streamlining  of  the 
environmental  assessments  to  reduce  duplication  and 
avoid  overlaps 
for 
projects.  Streamlining  helps  to  reduce  unnecessary 
It  also  accelerates  decision 
administrative  burden. 
making,  without  compromising  the  quality  of  the 
environmental  assessment  procedure161.  Romania  has 
introduced 
environmental 
streamlining 
assessments  under  the  EIA  Directive,  the  Habitats 
Directive,  Water  Framework  Directive  and  the  Industrial 
Emissions Directive, which has enabled funds to be used. 

the 

of 

Adaptability, 
(eGovernment) 

reform 

dynamics 

and 

innovation 

Romanian  public  authorities  are  increasingly  adopting 
and  using  electronic  services  to  interact  with  public  or 
regulated  entities  online.  However,  for  Digital  Public 
Services,  Romania  had  a  score  of  only  0.27/1  based  on 
Europe's Digital Progress Report 2017, this is lower than 
the  EU28  average  (0.55/1)162.  In  the  DESI  Report  2018, 
Romania  had  a  score  of  41  out  of  100  on  digital  public 
services, higher than the EU average of 58163. 

Enabling financing and effective use of funds 

160 Directive 2014/52/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of 16 April 2014 amending Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of 
the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. 
161 The Commission issued a guidance document in 2016 regarding the 
setting up of coordinated and/or joint procedures that are 
simultaneously subject to assessments under the EIA Directive, Habitats 
Directive, Water Framework Directive, and the Industrial Emissions 
Directive, OJ C 273, 27.7.2016, p. 1. 
162 European Commission, Europe's Digital Progress Report (EDPR) 2017 
Country Profile Romania, 2017, p. 9,  
163 European Commission, Digital Economy and Society Index Report 
2018, Digital Public Services. 

Although substantial EU funds have been made available 
to  improve  the  situation  in  a  number  of  environmental 
areas,  it  seems  that,  overall,  there  is  considerable  room 
for improvement in terms of administrative capacity and 
in  preparing,  operating  and  prioritising  projects. 
Therefore, while requirements in the environmental field 
are immense, there are risks of funds being lost through 
either  the  decommitment  of  funds  allocated,  or  the 
to  other  priorities.  Public 
reallocation  of 
investment is characterised by low efficiency particularly 
in preparing and prioritising projects. 

funds 

Only a limited number of new environmental projects has 
been  developed  and  approved 
current 
programming  period.  The  major  proportion  of  the 
expenditures  claimed  by  the  beginning  of  2019  comes 
the  previous 
from 
programming period. 

the  projects  phased 

from 

the 

in 

2019 priority action 

  Romania 

can 

further 

overall 
environmental  governance  (such  as  transparency, 
citizen  engagement,  compliance  and  enforcement, 
as well as administrative capacity and coordination). 

improve 

its 

International agreements 

The  EU  Treaties  require  the  EU  environmental  policy  to 
promote  measures  at  international  level  to  deal  with 
regional or worldwide environmental problems. 

The EU is committed to strengthening environmental law 
and its implementation globally. It therefore continues to 
support  the  Global  Pact  for  the  Environment  process, 
which  was  launched  by  the  United  Nations  General 
Assembly  in  May  2018164.  The  EIR  is  one  of  the  tools  to 
ensure  that  the  Member  States  set  a  good  example  by 
respecting  European  Union  environmental  policies  and 
laws and international agreements. 
Forests:  EU  Timber  Regulation  (EUTR)165/  Forest  Law 
Enforcement 
(FLEGT) 
Regulation166 

Governance 

Trade 

and 

In accordance with the EUTR, which prohibits the placing 
on  the  EU  market  of  illegally  harvested  timber,  EU 
Member  States  competent  authorities  must  conduct 
regular  checks  on  operators  and  traders,  and  apply 
penalties in case of non-compliance. 

164 UN General Assembly Resolution 72/277 and Organizational session 
of the ad hoc open-ended working group.  
165 Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 20 October 2010 
166 Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 of 20 December 2005 on the 
establishment of a FLEGT licensing scheme for imports of timber into 
the European Community. 

33 

                                                                 
                                                                 
Environmental Implementation Review 2019 — Romania 

In  the  period  March  2015  to  February  2017,  Romania 
conducted  40 %  of  the  3 759  checks  that  were  planned 
for operators dealing in domestic timber and 63 % of the 
126  checks  planned  for  operators  importing  timber. 
These  numbers  should  be  correlated  to  the  estimated 
number of Romanian operators who place timber on the 
EU  market  for  the  first  time167.  Romania  also  conducted 
550  checks  on  traders168.  Romania  reported  issuing  the 
highest  number  of  penalties  to  operators,  primarily 
related to domestic timber169. 

On  cooperation  (Article 12  EUTR),  Romania  reports 
collaboration  between  various  government  institutions. 
The  country  has  also  cooperated  with  other  EU 
competent  authorities,  mainly  through  the  FLEGT/EUTR 
expert  group  meetings  and  the  ad  hoc  expert  group  on 
FLEGT. 

Genetic  resources:  Nagoya  Protocol  on  Access  to 
Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of 
Benefits Arising (ABS)170  

into  the  EU 

Under  the  EU  ABS  Regulation,  which  transposes  the 
required  compliance  measures  under 
the  Nagoya 
Protocol 
legal  system,  Romania  has 
appointed  competent  authorities  for  genetic  resources 
and  has  applied  sanctions  for  infringements  of  the 
Regulation.  The  government  is  still  working  towards 
setting  up  a  risk-based  plan  for  checks.  However, 
Romania has not submitted a due diligence declaration to 
date,  nor  has  it  applied  any  penalties.  Romania  has  still 
not  submitted  its  first  ABS  Regulation  report  to  the 
Commission.  Therefore,  the  country  needs  to  comply 
with its reporting obligation. 

International  wildlife 
the  Convention  on 
trade: 
International  Trade  in  Endangered  Species  of  Wild 
Fauna and Flora (CITES)171 

In  line  with  the  obligations  laid  down  in  the  Basic 
Regulation172,  which  transposes  the  major  obligations  of 
the  Convention  on  International  Trade  in  Endangered 
Species  of  Wild  Fauna  and  Flora  (CITES)  into  EU  law, 

167 Based on customs’ data, it was estimated that 4 372 Romanian 
operators placed domestic timber on the EU market for the first time 
and 162 imported timber. 
168 Traders were checked by 19 countries, with numbers of checks 
ranging from 1 (Denmark, France, Luxembourg) to 747 (Cyprus). 12 out 
of 19 countries conducted between 1 and 65 checks. 
169 Romania imposed 382 penalties on operators of domestic timber 
and 17 penalties on operators importing timber. 
170 Regulation (EU) No 511/2014 of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 16 April 2014 on compliance measures for users from the 
Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and 
Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation in the Union 
Text with EEA relevance. 
171 The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). 
172 Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 on the protection of species of 
wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein (the Basic Regulation). 

Romania has established relevant national authorities for 
the  international  wildlife  trade  and  regularly  processes 
requests for import, export, re-export, and intra-EU trade 
documents. 

Reports  on  seizures  of  illegal  wildlife  shipments,  in 
particular those reported every 6 months to TRAFFIC (the 
wildlife  trade  monitoring  network)  under  its  contract 
with the Commission, and those  exchanged through the 
EU-TWIX  platform  developed  to  assist  national 
law 
enforcement  agencies, 
including  CITES  Management 
Authorities  and  prosecutors,  in  their  task  of  detecting, 
analysing and monitoring illegal activities related to trade 
in  fauna  and  flora  covered  by  the  EU  Wildlife  Trade 
Regulations), show the extent of the customs authorities’ 
activity. 

To  ensure  the  EU  wildlife  action  plan  (2016)  is  fully 
implemented, Romania has notably been involved in the 
project  ‘LIFE  for  Danube  Sturgeons173’,  which  aims  to 
improve the enforcement of laws and regulations against 
sturgeon  poaching  in  Bulgaria,  Romania,  Serbia  and 
Ukraine. 

2019 priority action 

 

Increase  efforts  to  be  party  to  relevant  multilateral 
environmental 
the 
agreements,  by 
remaining agreement. 

ratifying 

Sustainable 
implementation of the UN SDGs 

development 

and 

the 

Sustainable development links environmental, social and 
economic policies in a coherent framework and therefore 
helps  to 
legislation  and 
policies. 

implement  environmental 

According  to  Romania’s  Department  for  Sustainable 
Development,  the  current  institutional  structure  is  not 
appropriate  for  the  implementation  and  monitoring  of 
SDGs174.  A  project  to  create  special  structures  to 
implement the SDGs is to be designed and put in place. 

Romania’s  national  sustainable  development  strategy  is 
being  revised.  A  voluntary  national  review  on  the 
implementation of the SDGs was submitted to the UN in 
2018175. 

173EU LIFE project, LIFE for Danube Sturgeons. 
174 Department of Sustainable Development. 
175 Romania’s voluntary national review: Transformation towards a 
sustainable and resilient Romania. 

34