Prime minister and Social Democrat (PSD) leader Marcel Ciolacu and Senate speaker and Liberal (PNL) head Nicolae Ciucă are the two presidential candidates that have so far added the creation of green belts around cities in Romania to their electoral programs for the upcoming elections. 

Both candidates have previously signed the Memorandum for Clean Air, Health, and the Future, a pillar of the Together for the Green Belt/Împreună pentru Centura Verde civic platform aimed at safeguarding the forests of Ilfov county and creating a green belt around Bucharest - an initiative that managed to unite leaders from across the political spectrum. Now, Alex Găvan, the founder of the civic platform, says that green belts should be an official priority for all candidates to the presidential seat.

"Invitations to assume green belts as part of a country program for Romania have also been issued to other candidates, two more of whom have already accepted, and probably, in the next few days, we will also have their public announcement," Găvan said in a press release.

Marcel Ciolacu added the green belts to the 'A sustainable future begins with protecting the environment' chapter of his presidential program, where he notes the signing of the Memorandum for Clean Air, Health, and the Future as a keystone in creating such green belts for Bucharest and other cities nationwide. 

He also refers to the amendments to the new Forestry Code bill that aim to protect the forests of Ilfov county, which passed the Senate in spring and moved to the Chamber of Deputies for a final vote. According to Marcel Ciolacu, December 2024 is the deadline for adoption.

Meanwhile, Nicolae Ciucă promises in his electoral program to set up and coordinate a working group on environmental issues, including the creation of green belts.

"The working group will focus on increasing the degree of reuse of raw materials, increasing the air quality in cities through policies to reduce pollution and create green belts around urban agglomerations, as well as increasing the population's resilience to climate change and natural disasters," reads the chapter 'Energy and environment security' of the Liberal leader's presidential program.

Alex Găvan, high-altitude climber, conservationist, and founder of the Together for the Green Belt civic platform, commented: "The fact that two candidates have publicly assumed the green belts as part of their country programs for the presidential elections shows the relevance and importance of this project. Green belts are a concrete part of the solution toward healthier and more climate-resilient cities and, implicitly, happier people. As you all know, I am apolitical, and one of my roles, and that of the platform I founded, is to bring politicians to the same table, regardless of party, to bring institutions and civil society together because the solution is not found in one place but, in part, lies with each of us."

The Together for the Green Belt civic platform, launched in April 2023, has been joined by over 150 non-profits, civic groups, and public figures. As its initiators say, it is a public health project with a strong social, climate change mitigation, and anti-pollution component, which also involves environmental actions. Details are available here (in Romanian). 

The platform, with support from several MPs, submitted amendments to the new Forestry Code reform aimed at safeguarding the forests in Ilfov, the county surrounding Bucharest. The bill passed the senators' vote and moved to the Chamber of Deputies. To become law, once it passes both chambers of the Parliament, the legislative proposal also has to be signed by the president.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: courtesy of Alex Găvan)