The LIFE Programme in Romania

the life programme in romania It’s been 26 years since the launch in Romania of the LIFE Programme, a financing instrument of the European Union for protecting nature.

It's been 26 years since the launch in Romania of the LIFE Programme, a financing instrument of the European Union for protecting nature. The programme's general aim is to contribute to the successful application of EU policy and legislation on the environment by co-funding European added value projects. This project has helped restore forests and aquatic habitats, saving numerous endangered species. Many sites are also protected through the Natura 2000 network. Europe has today 27,000 such sites, which cover 18% of EU's territory. We found out more from Madalina Cozma, project manager with the Ministry of the Environment:


"The EU believes it is very important to have a financial instrument dedicated to biodiversity and the protection of a clean and healthy environment. Fortunately, things have expanded, as the EU has realised it's a also good thing to support productive activities, so Life Programme financing also covers this aspect, alongside the conservation of biodiversity and the environment. We should keep in mind that productive activities, which create jobs, have to be in harmony with a clean environment. We need industrial production in harmony with EU directives for environmental protection and conservation. The LIFE Programme also deals with activities aimed at climate, but also information and governance. Therefore, people have to be informed on the procedures involved in this programme, the way in which they can influence European legislation, but also the way in which they can act regionally."


Romania has valuable ecosystems, recognised at a European level, covering a surface area of 1.6 million hectares, as well as the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve with its 580,000 hectares. Protected natural areas in Romania, including the Natura 2000 sites, account for 23% of the country's surface area. The new LIFE Programme supports parties interested in protecting nature and conserving endangered species. The new integrated LIFE projects aim to put into application environment and climate legislation, in order to tackle issues such as water shortages, climate change, the circular economy and loss of biodiversity. Here is Madalina Cozma from the Romanian Ministry of the Environment:


"We are doing everything in our power to inform interested parties, potential beneficiaries and the people running projects about the way in which they can be implemented, what they should do and how to comply with EU provisions. New elements were launched on 18 April. This year we'll be able to upload the projects on the EU's digital platform in two stages: we can make a concept note presenting what we as potential beneficiaries can do and informing the people financing our ideas for projects. This means writing within a template provided by the EU, about ten pages long, where to express our ideas and provide a financial evaluation. This document is then posted on the EU's digital platform until June 10. In October the EU provides an answer as to whether the idea is worth financing, then we write the project in long form, the template for which can also be found on the EU website, and then we submit the project and we'll get an answer in January 2019. In July 2019 we can begin implementing the project. We have a National Point of Contact within the Ministry of the Environment, where you can call the line dialling 021.4089609, or you can go to the website of the ministry, where you have all the data."


Since 1992, when the LIFE Programme was launched, 3,942 projects have been implemented, with 52 projects in Romania in all areas covered by the programme. Madalina Cozma gave us a few examples:


"Projects dealing with conservation and biodiversity. Here we have valuable projects recognised at the European level, such as the Management and Protection of Large Carnivores. We also have projects aimed at protecting birds. We have projects such as the one for protecting a rare species of bird, a project developed together with our colleagues in Hungary and a bird protection NGO. We have a project, which we plan to continue, regarding another species of bird that was all but extinct in Europe, endemic to the western pat of the country, from the Banat region to the Pannonian Basin. This was a very successful project, which we also presented at EU level. We continue to strive to attract as many potential beneficiaries as possible and to explain the role of these types of financing and how they can apply within the programme. With this programme, we want to access as much funding as we can so as to be able to conserve a large part of Romania's treasure trove of nature and biodiversity."


The financial package for the application of the LIFE Programme for 2014-2020 is over 3 billion euros, compared to 2 billion euros for the 2007-2013 interval. 



www.rri.ro
Publicat: 2018-04-27 13:40:00
Vizualizari: 2461
TiparesteTipareste