Romania Faces Waste Scandal

Six Romanian companies are being investigated for illegal imports of waste

Roxana Vasile, 19.07.2016, 13:25

Following last month’s customs checks, 16 trucks carrying almost 300
tons of waste were stopped at the Romanian border. 13 of them came from Germany
and the others from Austria and Hungary. Under the Romanian law, Romania solely
allows entry of green waste that can be recycled. The 300 tons of waste
searched at the border were registered in documents as recyclable and usable in
the textile industry.

In reality, the green wastes had been mixed with
hazardous medical waste and were bound for six companies that were going to
dump them in landfills from southeastern Romania. One of the companies would
have received 40% of the total amount of waste. Unfortunately, Romania is known
as an attractive destination for waste, as it charges nothing for dumping,
unlike other states where dumping waste in a landfill costs 80 euros per ton.

In a press conference, the Environment Minister Cristiana Paşca
Palmer has pointed out that, starting next year, Romania will also charge waste
dumping. She has underlined that the authorities should be cautious and conduct
thorough border checks.

Cristiana Paşca Palmer: I would like all companies to understand it very clearly:
Romania is not Europe’s dumping ground dfill of Europe. As long as we have laws in this regard,
they should be strictly observed and companies should import only recyclable
waste, otherwise such imports are illegal.

Cristiana Paşca Palmer has made it clear that last month’s
illegal transports identified while attempting to cross Romania’s border could
be just the tip of the iceberg and part of an illegal business with
ramifications across Europe. The aforementioned illegal wastes have been sent
back to the countries of origin and the Romanian companies that tried to
introduce them into the country by breaking the law are now facing prosecution.

In another development, the Romanian authorities’ efforts to renew
the national car fleet have been met with success. The so-called ‘Rabla’ car
scrappage program has this year been allotted a total of 220 million lei, that
is almost 50 million euros, out of which 75 million lei are destined for the
‘Rabla Plus’ program, under which Romania can buy 100% electric cars or new
hybrid cars. Part of the money will be channeled into funding the network of
charging stations. The Environment Ministry estimates that through the ‘Rabla’
scrappage program as many as 20 thousand polluting cars will be scrapped.