The problems concerning the environment represent a strategic component of sustainable development; they look into the functioning of the whole ecosystem in which societies develop, the way key resources are put to use (air, soil, water, wood, minerals, etc.), as well as the impact of various economic and social activities on the environment. The various activities and types of activities pertaining to the environment are interrelated and synthesized in this field, as the state of the environment is an expressive result of states’ preoccupation with the quality of life of present and future generations. [read more]
Protecting and preserving the environment is quintessentially a global problem, given that pollution and global warming are not strictly limited to a national dimension. Although the sources of pollution can be identified specifically within a state’s borders, their consequences affect the global community. That is the reason why specific provisions for climate change are made in international treaties and agreements, whose priorities are practically assumed by the international community.
These were the premises that guided us in designing the four subfields: 1. Climate change and air pollution; 2. Environmental quality; 3. Use and preservation of natural resources; 4. Environment and waste management. These subfields are operationalized by means of 9 main indicators and 31 secondary indicators. An important selection criterion was harmonization with the system of indicators accepted and used internationally, to allow comparative analyses. The statistical data for the main and secondary indicators can support the design and promotion of environmental conservation policies. The aim of our enterprise is to contribute to the design and implementation of measures/policies/regulations that can create the framework for sustainable development and the minimization of negative effects on the environment (for instance, waste management, number and surface of protected areas, etc.). The system of indicators is transdisciplinary and highlights the dynamics and interdependence between resources and natural environment, the sustainability of political and economic measures and quality of life evolution. In this respect, the identification and monitorization of environment indicators represent a crucial component in grounding investment and intervention strategies at local and global level.
Climate change and air pollution
Environmental quality
Use and preservation of natural resources
Environment and waste management
Climate change represents one of the most serious environmental challenges at global level. The reports of international organizations detail how these changes manifest themselves: increase in Earth surface temperature, changes in quantity and frequency of precipitation, sea and ocean level rise, land degradation and desertification. Climate change has determined an increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme phenomena: hurricanes, heavy rainfall and massive floods, drought. [read more]
Climate change is associated with an increase in greenhouse gases (the quantity of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere). Their main sources are industrial activities and transportation, as well as massive deforestation, with consequences on air quality.
Air quality impacts both the environment, and the health of the population. According to World Health Organisation, over 95% of the European urban population is exposed to air pollution levels that exceed European standards. Among the main factors that impact air quality are gas emissions generated by urban traffic. Air pollution continues to affect vegetation and ecosystems (which face excessive nitrogen deposits, a major cause for the disappearance of species). Despite the existence of a series of national and European regulations on gas emissions reduction, in the medium and long term the impact of these norms is expected to be quite low (according to European Commission’s estimations for the European economic area in 2030). This subfield has two main indicators: GHG emissions, per sectors, and GHG emissions in ESD sectors (an acronym used to evaluate greenhouse gas emissions from nonindustrial and non-agricultural activities, such as air transport). The subfield has four secondary indicators: air pollutants, by source sector; annual mean of exposure to air pollution by particulate matter; mean near surface temperature deviation, as well as average annual precipitation, per region.
A country’s environmental quality is ensured by several fundamental elements: water, air, forest area, biodiversity. Water is essential for life, for natural processes, for industrial activity, and is equally an important climate factor supporting ecosystems development. Romania has rivers, lakes, groundwater, marine water, being one of the European countries with high potential in this field, with its high density of rivers, distributed relatively homogeneously on its territory, and the contribution of the Danube and its Delta. [read more]
Forests are important for maintaining air quality, and for protecting the soil, contributing to maintaining its fertility. According to the European Commission’s investigation in 2015, 32.7% of Romania’s surface is covered by forests, close to the European average (36.2%).
Regarding biodiversity, Romania offers rich patrimony to the European Union, with its numerous plant and animal species that are rare in other parts of Europe. In the context of climate change processes, the field faces a series of major challenges: acceleration of the erosion of biological diversity, which reflects in the disappearance of some plant and animal species, fragmentation of many species’ habitats, restriction or destruction of types of habitats or ecosystems from transition areas.
This subfield has 2 main indicators and 11 secondary indicators, meant to offer a broader image of major areas covered here. The main indicators of this subfield are: Freshwater resources, by categories, respectively Forest area (% of total land area at national level). The secondary indicators cover the following areas: quality of groundwaters; renewable water resources; water abstracted by sector of use; quantity of water used by categories; organic matter emissions; percentage of population connected to wastewater treatment plants, forest area (by countries and regions); volume of wood in cubic feet; protective function of forests; percentage of annual wood harvesting (in total volume), respectively gross annual growth of wood supplies (cubic feet).
This subfield focuses not only on how natural resources are preserved, but also on their optimal exploitation. The first perspective concerns the efficient use of resources, among which the most important is water (although it is not the sole focus). Water exploitation is relatively deficient, Romania being below EU average in what concerns basic infrastructure. Part of the systems that supply localities with water need to be improved in terms of bacteriological parameters, turbidity, ammonia, nitrate, iron levels, as well as treatment of waste dumped into water (by industrial actors or households). In this respect, one of the strategic directions of sustainable development at national level is the improvement of quality and access to water supply infrastructure in most inhabited areas, as well as the establishment of efficient regional structures for water services/wastewater management. The second perspective concerns the issue of protected areas and built-up areas (percentage of total land area), in view of efficiently conserving natural patrimony and of sustainable urban development. [read more]
The subfield contains 2 main indicators and a number of 8 secondary indicators, with an important role in describing the problems. The main indicators are: Resource productivity (describes the efficiency in using resources, domestic consumption included), respectively land cover, by category (the extent of land cover with industrial buildings and areas, as a measure of the rate of urbanization). The secondary indicators are: water resources productivity; domestic material consumption; components of domestic material consumption; artificially covered area, by categories (% of total area), by countries and regions; productivity of artificial land; protected areas surface; sufficiency of protected sites under the EU Habitats Directive; quantity of pesticides used in agriculture.
Waste management directly impacts the decrease in air, water and soil pollution levels, consequently quality of life and sanitation; in the same time, waste management creates alternative sources of energy and even the possibility for their reuse as raw materials, by recycling. At the level of this subfield, the strategic direction focuses on the development of an integrated waste management system by improving waste management and reducing the number of polluted areas. Achieving this aim implies a series of correlated actions to prevent, collect selectively, recycle, use, treat and eliminate waste. This subfield offers information on the importance of environment protection and efficient management for central and local administration. In this respect, the subfield offers data on specialized units equipment, number of employees, readiness of waste recycling, etc. The data from the European Commission Report on the environment in 2017 show that Romania was on the last position in Europe regarding waste management (with 67 landfills needing to close down).[read more]
The subfield comprises three main indicators: Annual generation of waste excluding major mineral wastes; Recycling rate of municipal waste, as well as Environmental protection expenditure of the public sector. The first main indicator highlights the volume of waste produced by households and industrial consumers. The second indicator gives the recycling rate of municipal waste (% of total waste). The third indicator reveals the level of environmental protection expenditure of the public sector (% of total public expenditure at national level). The eight secondary indicators refer to: dangerous waste production (by type of economic activity); waste production; annual volume of deposited waste (relative to volume of recycled waste); volume of collected waste (by regions); annual toxic substances production (by toxicity class); environmental protection expenditure by types of public or private producers; number of employees in the environment sector; value added in the environment sector.
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