Radio România Internațional

Tag: drought

  • July 9, 2022 UPDATE

    July 9, 2022 UPDATE

    COVID – The Health Ministry announced that starting next week the authorities will revert to daily reports of COVID infections and fatalities, due to an increase in teh number of daily cases in recent weeks. According to the Health Ministry, 7,726 new cases of COVID infection were reported over June 27 – July 3, of whom 1,307 retested positive.



    INFLATION – The inflation rate is expected to slightly drop in the next months, the Central Bank (BNR) announced. However, prices might again peak next spring unless the government extends its national schemes capping electricity and gas prices past the April 2023 deadline, the BNR spokesman Dan Suciu has told Radio Romania. Romania has an imported inflation, Dan Suciu argues, meaning that it is generated by the global increase in energy and fuel prices. In May, the inflation rate stood at 14.5%. The authorities expect the rate to grow and peak by the end of July.



    DROUGHT – 70% of Romanias surface is affected by drought. People in a number of areas have access to tap water only for a few hours every day. Traffic on the Danube River is also affected, as the water level is half the multiannual average and is estimated to keep dropping. The Porțile de fier I and II hydroelectric power plants are also reporting difficulties. Navigators will have to observe a maximum mass limit to avoid getting stuck in sand crossings on the bottom of the river. The National Water Administration has given assurances that right now there are no water shortage risks in centralized water supply systems in large urban settlements. At the same time, Agriculture Minister, Petre Daea, told a private TV station that irrigation systems are functioning normally without any major impact on shelf prices due to the shortage of water. This years crops will cover internal demand and Romania will export any excess, the Minister went on to say.



    ENERGY – Romania will have energy independence and security, Romanias Energy Minister, Virgil Popescu, wrote on Saturday on Facebook. The Romanian official explained Romania will be producing coal-based electricity at full capacity over the coming years in order to overcome the current energy crisis. Minister Popescu recalled the authorities decision to invest in a new power plant that will produce electricity using Romanian gas. The energy crisis has forced a number of European states to reopen coal-based power plants, despite environmental concerns. European governments are thus seeking to curb their dependency on Russian energy imports. In recent months, Moscow has significantly reduced its exports to Europe, fueling fears it might cut off the supply altogether.



    REFUGEES – 107,837 people entered Romania on Friday, of whom 22,298 Ukrainian nationals, a 104% increase compared to the previous day, the Romanian Border Police Inspectorate reports. Since February 24, some 1.5 million Ukrainians have entered Romania.



    SWIMMING – Romania has so far won six medals at the European Junior Swimming Championships hosted by Otopeni, and is now ranked third in the medal standings, after Poland and Hungary. On Saturday, David Popovici qualified to the 100m freestyle final, scheduled for Sunday. So far Romania has won gold in the mens 4x100m relay event (David Popovici, Vlad Stancu, Ștefan Cozma and Patrick Sebastian Dinu), in the 200m freestyle event (David Popovici), in the 50m freestyle event (David Popovici) and in the 1,500m freestyle event (Vlad Ștefan Stancu). Additionally, the mix 4x100m relay team won silver (David Popovici, Patrick Sebastian Dinu, Bianca Costea and Rebecca Aimee Diaconescu), while Bianca Costea scooped silver in the 50m freestyle event. Attending the European Junior Swimming Championships are 500 athletes from 42 countries. Romania is represented by 26 swimmers, 14 in the mens competition and 12 in the womens competition. (VP)



  • September 19, 2020 UPDATE

    September 19, 2020 UPDATE

    COVID-19 Romanian authorities have reported another 1,333 coronavirus infections out of over 23,000 tests, as well as 42 new deaths. The number of patients in intensive care is 461. Since the start of the pandemic, the total number of cases in Romania is 111,550. Of them, 89,119 have recovered, and 4,402 died. The European Commission recommends extensive testing to identify COVID-19 cases as quickly as possible, and suggests a common strategy across the EU. Brussels has included Romania in a list of 6 countries where testing is based on a priority system because of inadequate testing capabilities. 18 member states use a compulsory testing system, whereas other countries encourage voluntary testing.



    PROTEST A protest was held in Bucharest on Saturday, against the protection measures introduced in schools in the new academic year. The participants oppose all healthcare recommendations, including face masks and physical distancing, and dismiss the studies that prove the efficiency of these measures and even the risks posed by the COVID-19. Gendarmes warned the protesters that they were breaking the rule banning outdoor events attended by more than 100 people during the state of alert, and reminded them of the obligation to wear face coverings and maintain physical distance from each other.



    ELECTIONS The Central Electoral Bureau has made a number of decisions to be implemented in next Sundays local elections in Romania. Among other things, a ballot will be considered valid even if the stamp exceeds the margins of a specific rubric in the form, provided that the voters choice is clear. Also, a person may vote even if the electronic monitoring system warns that the person in question has already voted. However, the person must sign a form acknowledging that if found guilty of voting fraud, the sentence is prison or a fine. In the September 27th ballot, Romania will elect 41 county council presidents, some 3,200 mayors, over 1,300 county councilors and over 40,000 local councillors. The local election, originally scheduled for June, was postponed over the COVID-19 pandemic, and local elected officials had their terms extended by half a year. Special voting rules in be in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The next election in Romania is the parliamentary election scheduled for December 6.



    CLIMATE Romanian farmers must adapt quickly to the effects of climate change. A new farming season has started this month, following a long drought, and weather experts warn that such periods will be increasingly frequent. In a statement for Radio Romania, the head of the National Meteorology Agency, Elena Mateescu, said farmers should replace sowing technologies, focus on plant species that are resistant to higher temperatures and have shorter growth periods. Also, Elena Mateescu argues, the farming calendar should be delayed. According to official data, around 1 million hectares of crops have been destroyed by drought this year.



    MARATHON Around 1,500 people, both children and adults, are taking part in the 5th edition of a marathon entitled Black Sea 24-hours Autism, held in Romania this weekend. The race started at the same time in around 100 locations in the country. The competing teams are running for a humanitarian cause in their local community. The routes—beachers, forests, parks—are monitored by judges and the data are centralized by the organizer of the competition, the Black Sea Psychology Centre in Constanţa (south-eastern Romania). The minimum requirement is to complete 100 km, with each km rewarded with a specific amount of money. This year the money will go not only to children with autism spectrum disorders, but also to other causes, such as building a home for a single mother of 6, supporting day care centres and buying school books for children with disabilities.



    TENNIS The Romanian Simona Halep, number 2 in the world, Saturday qualified into the semi-finals of the WTA tournament in Rome, after the Kazakh Yulia Putintseva (30 WTA) retired. Also on Saturday, Raluca Olaru (Romania) and Anna-Lena Friedsam (Germany) moved up into doubles final, having outplayed the Japanese Shuko Aoyama / Ena Shibahara. The tournament in Rome is held without a live audience, and competitors have to observe strict rules to prevent coronavirus infections.



    ATHLETICS The Balkan Association of Athletics Federations, jointly with the Romanian Athletics Federation, organise this weekend in Cluj-Napoca (north-west), the 73rd Balkan Outdoor Athletics Championships. Taking part are Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, the Republic of Moldova, Montenegro, Turkey, Romania, Serbia, and Ukraine. Romania is represented by 64 athletes. (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

  • September 19, 2020

    September 19, 2020

    COVID-19 Romanian authorities have reported another 1,527 coronavirus infections out of over 25,000 tests, as well as 48 new deaths. The number of patients in intensive care has dropped to 447. Since the start of the pandemic, the total number of cases in Romania is 110,217. Of them, 88,235 have recovered, and 4,360 died. The European Commission recommends extensive testing to identify COVID-19 cases as quickly as possible, and suggests a common strategy across the EU. Brussels has included Romania in a list of 6 countries where testing is based on a priority system because of inadequate testing capabilities. 18 member states use a compulsory testing system, whereas other countries encourage voluntary testing.



    ELECTIONS The Central Electoral Bureau has made a number of decisions to be implemented in next Sundays local elections in Romania. Among other things, a ballot will be considered valid even if the stamp exceeds the margins of a specific rubric in the form, provided that the voters choice is clear. Also, a person may vote even if the electronic monitoring system warns that the person in question has already voted. However, the person must sign a form acknowledging that if found guilty of voting fraud, the sentence is prison or a fine. In the September 27th ballot, Romania will elect 41 county council presidents, some 3,200 mayors, over 1,300 county councilors and over 40,000 local councillors. The local election, originally scheduled for June, was postponed over the COVID-19 pandemic, and local elected officials had their terms extended by half a year. Special voting rules in be in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The next election in Romania is the parliamentary election scheduled for December 6.



    CLIMATE Romanian farmers must adapt quickly to the effects of climate change. A new farming season has started this month, following a long drought, and weather experts warn that such periods will be increasingly frequent. In a statement for Radio Romania, the head of the National Meteorology Agency, Elena Mateescu, said farmers should replace sowing technologies, focus on plant species that are resistant to higher temperatures and have shorter growth periods. Also, Elena Mateescu argues, the farming calendar should be delayed. According to official data, around 1 million hectares of crops have been destroyed by drought this year.



    MARATHON Around 1,500 people, both children and adults, are taking part in the 5th edition of a marathon entitled Black Sea 24-hours Autism, held in Romania this weekend. The race started at the same time in around 100 locations in the country. The competing teams are running for a humanitarian cause in their local community. The routes—beachers, forests, parks—are monitored by judges and the data are centralized by the organizer of the competition, the Black Sea Psychology Centre in Constanţa (south-eastern Romania). The minimum requirement is to complete 100 km, with each km rewarded with a specific amount of money. This year the money will go not only to children with autism spectrum disorders, but also to other causes, such as building a home for a single mother of 6, supporting day care centres and buying school books for children with disabilities.



    TENNIS The Romanian Simona Halep, number 2 in the world, plays today in the quarter-finals of the WTA tournament in Rome against the Kazakh Yulia Putintseva (30 WTA). Also today, in the semi-finals of the doubles tournament, Raluca Olaru (Romania) and Anna-Lena Friedsam (Germany) are facing the Japanese Shuko Aoyama / Ena Shibahara. The tournament in Rome is held without a live audience, and competitors have to observe strict rules to prevent coronavirus infections. (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Environment protection measures

    Environment protection measures

    The long drought this year affects farming in the south and east of Romania more and more severely, and forestry officials are once again pleading for shelterbelts along plots of farmland. The head of the Forestation Service in the Romsilva National Forestry Authority, engineer Marius Ureche, says such shelterbelts create microclimates that protect from wind and humidity, keeping crop land safe from drought and desertification. He also says that shelterbelts have been needed in the south and east of the country for decades, but that most farmers have cut down trees and shrubs in order to extend their farms.



    Marius Ureche: “Unfortunately, since 1989 part of these shelterbelts have been cut down. This was a mistake, because farmers sought short-term gains, but they have come to realise that the impact on the agricultural yield has been dramatic.



    In this context, the Environment Ministry Wednesday launched the autumn stage of a forestation campaign entitled ‘A forest as big as a country, which follows a first stage implemented this spring. The annual reforestation programme provides for the reforestation of over 12,500 hectares, in 2 campaigns. Two-thirds of the total surface area will be subject to natural reforestation plans, and one-third to artificial forest regeneration projects.



    Over 17 million trees will be planted in this autumns edition of the campaign, mostly in the counties of Tulcea, Galaţi, Ialomiţa, Dolj and Vaslui, in the east and south of the country. Of these, over one million are oak trees, and the others are poplar trees, willow, ash, maple and other species.



    The Environment Ministry also announced that entirely new forests will be planted on 1,100 hectares, while additional trees will be planted on a total area of over 2,000 hectares. In the spring edition of this campaign, 2,400 forests were planted from scratch, and another 7,000 young forests were extended. Most of them are located in the counties Suceava (north-east), Maramureş (north) and Sibiu (centre).



    In related news, as part of the same effort to protect the environment, a second stage of a project designed to broaden Black Sea beaches is scheduled to start soon. The project benefits from over 800 million euros worth of EU funding. Several Black Sea resorts will have broader beaches to welcome their tourists, and they will be consolidated with seawalls. The project is also aimed at solving erosion issues in the Romanian seaside resorts. The works are scheduled to begin in October, and the total beach area is planned to increase by 200 hectare thanks to these measures.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • The European Agrometeorology Center

    The European Agrometeorology Center


    Extreme weather phenomena have occurred with a growing frequency and intensity as of late; their impact on the social and economic activity is a major one. The aftermath of all that is being felt by each and everybody. Specialists have confirmed such an aftermath, also warning that global warming will prompt us to change our way of life significantly. Specialists opinions are supported by existing data, the analysis of which revealing that, at global level, the year 2019 was the second warmest year in the last 140. For Romania in particular, it was the warmest year since 1900; furthermore, the last decade has reportedly been the hottest, or so the history of weather measurements has revealed. Reports have been compiled and specialist studies have been conducted at world level. One such study has also been carried by the Romanian Academy, revealing that humankind runs the risk of being devastated by the aftermath of global warming at a much faster pace than it had been estimated. According to some of the scenarios, in 2050, global temperature readings may stand at a level capable of generating 20 days of lethal temperature readings per year. What does that mean, specifically? The Romanian Academys secretary general, Ion Dumitrache:


    “20 days of lethal temperature readings in a year may cause the collapse of a number of ecosystems; over 1 billion people should be relocated. The pace of global warming is much faster for the 1888-2000 period. The average global temperature reading has grown with over one degree Celsius, while until 2100 the temperature reading may grow by 4 degrees Celsius. The reported carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere has gone beyond the threshold of 400 parts per million, given that in the last four hundred thousand years it did not exceed 300 parts per million. Right now, global warming occurs ten times faster as compared to the most recent global warming.”


    Todays global warming phenomenon is different from the previous ones since it is the first one enhanced by human activity. The carbon dioxide emissions, coming from steam power plants and running vehicles, the farming -generated methane, the intensive chemical fertilization of farming cultivations or the large-scale logging are some of the factors that have a strong bearing on global warming. Specialists have unanimously agreed over the fact that global warming cannot be stopped since it also has its natural causes, but they also say it can be stalled. Statistics have revealed that annually, 35 bn of tones of carbon dioxide are generated by human activity.


    The Director of Romanian Academys Geography Institute Dan Balteanu.


    “The greenhouse effect generated by carbon dioxide has been significantly enhanced in the last 40 years. This time span is also known as the great acceleration.”


    The aftermath of global warming has already come to be felt at all levels, ranging from nature to world economy and geopolitics. In Romania, the consequences with the strongest impact have to do with weather phenomena. Heat waves episodes have become increasingly persistent, while times of drought alternate with short spells of heavy downpours causing water inrush or flooding, regionally or locally. Such data point to a reality which is hard to ignore and that is why the time has come for us to show no delay in implementing efficient and sustainable measures with regard to the use of water and soil resources” the authorities have stated. Because high temperatures cause drought, for instance, drought limits crop yields and that leads up to a price hike, also raising the risk posed by a possible food crisis.”


    According to weather forecast specialists, Romania will be one of the European countries worst-hit by the drought, a phenomenon that has been on the rise in the last 20 years. The director of the National Meteorology Administration Elena Mateescu:


    “19 of the warmest years have been reported since 2000 to the present day. The year 2019 was the warmest, with a temperature reading raised by almost 0.5 degrees Celsius. Poor precipitations output generated strong and extreme drought at earth level at the moment, reported for the main farming areas countrywide. Over January 1 and 26, only 3 liters of precipitations were reported per square meter, as compared to the accepted climate standard, accounting for 33.6 liters per square meter. “


    The fight for stalling global warming means world and national programs implemented for the reduction of emissions in industry, investment in green energy, forestation or recycling, but also decisions taken by each and everybody, such as the reduction of the individual energy consumption. Among the measures taken to mitigate the impact climate change has on the environment and society is the setting up of the European Agrometeorology Center for Europes 6th region the worlds first such pilot program which will be operational in Romania. The decision was taken in the summer of 2019 in Geneva, as part of the World Meteorology Congress. Apart from the creation of a specialized agrometeorological bulletin at European level, the center will also provide for the training of future specialists across Europe, who will be doing their job as part of the meteorology services at European level, the director of the National Meteorology Administration also said.




  • May 25, 2020 UPDATE

    May 25, 2020 UPDATE

    COVID-19 IN ROMANIA
    – The death toll for COVID-19 in Romania has exceeded 1,200, the Group for
    Strategic Communication reports. The total number of confirmed cases is 18.200,
    of whom over 11.600 people have recovered. On Monday the Bucharest City Hall
    kicked off a free testing program addressing 10,500 people from Bucharest, to
    be conducted on Romania’s largest stadium, National Arena, while observing all
    international regulations in the field. According to Bucharest Mayor Gabriela
    Firea, as many as 8 thousand people from Bucharest have signed up on an online platform
    set up by the City Hall. State Secretary with the Health Ministry, Horatiu Moldovan
    told a private TV station that the Government is planning to test 30,000 people
    across the country, in an action that will take place once the pandemic has
    peaked.




    COVID-19 IN THE WORLD
    – The total number of confirmed infections with COVID-19 has exceeded 5.5
    million at global level, with the death toll standing at some 347.000. Over 2.3
    million people have recovered. Brazil is now the second most affected country
    in the world, with 350.000 infected. Europe continues to report the highest
    number of deaths, with 126.000 victims in only four countries – Great Britain,
    Italy, Spain and France. Meanwhile European countries are gradually relaxing
    restrictions imposed to limit the spread of the virus, considering the number
    of new cases remains low compared to the peak period. Restaurants in Germany
    and Greece reopened on Monday, while beaches officially opened in Italy. The cities
    of Madrid and Barcelona, currently the most affected in Spain, on Monday
    entered the first of the four-stage plan for lifting lockdown restrictions. In
    the first phase churches, museums and outlets will admit only a third of
    entries. Additionally groups of people are limited to a maximum number of 10.
    These measures have already been adopted by other regions in Spain, which on Monday
    entered the second phase of the plan. Meanwhile Japan has lifted the state of
    emergency.




    MOTION – The
    Bucharest Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday debated a simple motion against the
    Education Minister Monica Anisie, tabled by the MPs with the leftist Social
    Democratic Party and Pro Romania Party, both in opposition. The signatories are
    asking for the minister’s resignation, who they say is lacking vision and a
    strategy for the education system. The opposition also claims the education
    system is plunged in chaos, unlike any other time in the last 30 years.
    Minister Anisie admitted the Romanian education system is facing a great many
    challenges, although pointing out she couldn’t solve in seven months what
    others failed to do during the course of several years. The vote will be held
    on Wednesday. Another minister that has to pass the test of a simple motion is Interior
    Minister Marcel Vela. He is expected to appear before the Senate on Tuesday to
    present the measures taken during the crisis triggered by the coronavirus
    pandemic. The motion against Vela was initiated by the Social Democrats, who
    say that the military decrees adopted included contradictory decisions and
    measures that were later cancelled.




    HEALTH – 15
    specialists with the Romanian defense Ministry on Monday left for the United
    States to help authorities in the state of Alabama fight the coronavirus
    pandemic. The five doctors, five nurses and five military specialized in
    defense against chemical, biologic, radiologic and nuclear weapons will grant
    expert support to their American colleagues in the medical units in Alabama and
    also report on the methods the US is using to combat the pandemic. Romania and
    the US are NATO allies and bound by a Strategic Partnership. We recall that over
    April 17-24, a Romanian team made up of 11 doctors and 6 nurses travelled to
    Italy to help the medical staff there fight the coronavirus. Also, another team
    travelled to the neighboring Republic of Moldova, with a similar mission.




    AGRICULTURE -
    Some 1.6 million hectares of farmland are affected by drought, while some 941
    thousand have already been inspected, Agriculture Minister Adrian Oros said on
    Monday. The authorities will compensate all farmers who have been affected,
    although the data used for these compensations has to be accurate, Minister
    Oros also said. Previously, the Romanian Agriculture Minister said this is the
    most severe drought in the last 60 years in Romania, adding that the irrigation
    system cannot function at full capacity, as many rehabilitation works are
    subpar or cannot be correlated with private infrastructure works implemented by
    farmers.


    (Translated by V. Palcu & E. Enache)





  • May 20, 2020

    May 20, 2020

    Covid-19 Ro. Another four people infected with the new coronavirus have died in Romania, raising the death-toll to 1141, the Strategic Communication Group has announced today. According to authorities, the total number of infections has exceeded 17 thousand. 10 thousand people have been cured. As regards the Romanians abroad, some three thousand have been contaminated, mostly in Italy, Spain and Germany. 103 have died, most of them in Great Britain, Italy and France.



    State of alert. The Romanian Parliament convenes today to vote on the recent decision of the Liberal Government on the state of alert in Romania, declared with the aim of preventing and combating the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the new law, parliament has five days, from the endorsement request, to issue a decision. The opposition Social Democratic Party intends to bring changes to the document. They include exceptions from the obligation to wear protective masks, especially for those with health issues, but only under certain conditions. Also, the Government might have to present in parliament, on a regular basis, the measures it takes. The state of alert was declared for a period of 30 days, but, according to the law, which came into force on May 18th, if it covers the entire territory of Romania, it has to be endorsed by parliament.



    Meeting. The Romanian PM Ludovic Orban has attended an informal meeting with his Bulgarian and Greek counterparts and the president of Serbia. The meeting was held at the initiative of the Bulgarian PM and focused on the situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic and the prospects of relaxing cross-border traffic restrictions between the four states, in a coordinated manner. The circulation of people between Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia will be allowed as of June 1st, without the obligation of going under a 14 day quarantine, the Bulgarian Government has announced. Romania has not made any decision yet.



    Labour. The Romanian Labour Minister Violeta Alexandru and her German counterpart Hubertus Heil have discussed in Berlin the situation of the Romanian seasonal workers in Germany and signed a joint declaration of intent on boosting cooperation with regard to the labour market and social policies. Romanian workers must benefit from the same rights of social protection, health and safety at work, said the federal minister. In turn, the Romanian Ambassador to Berlin, Emil Hurezeanu, has stated that the protests staged by the Romanian workers at several farms and abbatoirs in Germany against labour and accommodation conditions will lead to a change in the countrys labour legislation. He has added that the German Labour Minister will present Chancellor Angela Merkel with a bill on this matter. The leadership of the Romanian Parliament has approved, at the proposal of the opposition Social Democrats, the setting up of an investigation commission, responsible for checking the situation of seasonal workers abroad during the pandemic.



    Drought. The drought that affects the countries in the east of the EU is devastating harvests and will cause the most serious economic recession in the region since the fall of Communism, according to Bloomberg, quoted by Agerpress. According to the quoted source, in some parts of Romania and Poland, this years drought is the most severe in the past 100 years, and in the Czech Republic, the worst in the past 500 years. Romania, which is the second largest exporter of wheat in the EU, has reported a drop to half the annual average, which usually stood at 9 million tons. That is why the Romanian Government banned the export of wheat to destinations other than the EU, and that triggered a lot of criticism. A week later, the Government dropped the ban. Recently, the Romanian agriculture minister Adrian Oros has stated that more than one million hectares of farming land have been affected.



    Ban. As of today, the sale of menthol cigarettes is banned in Romania. The decision falls under the EU Tobacco Product Directive, which was transposed into Romanian laws four years ago. According to the EC, menthol cigarettes are more harmful than other cigarettes, as menthol turns into carcinogenic substances. According to market representatives, there are some 4.2 million adult smokers in Romania, and 16% of them smoke menthol cigarettes, mostly women.



    WHO. The annual ministerial meeting of the WHO has adopted a resolution proposed by the EU on the need for an investigation of the global reaction to the coronavirus pandemic. In the meantime, the number of infections has reached 5 million around the world, and the death-toll is standing at 325 thousand. 2 million people who had tested positive have been declared cured, according to Worldometers. The US remains the most affected country in the world, with some 92 thousand deaths and more than 1.5 million cases of contamination. Brazil has exceeded the threshold of 1000 deaths in one day, with 1179 deaths reported in the past 24 hours, raising the total to approximately 18 thousand. In Europe, the UK reports the largest number of deaths, some 43 thousand, followed by Italy, France and Spain. Madrid authorities have announced that in Spain wearing a mask is mandatory for all, except for children below 6, both in enclosed and open spaces, if the distance of at least 2 meters between individuals cannot be observed. (M.Ignatescu)

  • The drought could up prices for foodstuffs

    The drought could up prices for foodstuffs

    Romania will be
    able to spend 80 million euros to support farmers affected by the COVID-19
    crisis, after European fora have accepted our country’s request to employ
    unused funds allotted under the European agricultural fund for rural
    development (EAFRD) to this end, Agriculture Minister Adrian Oros has said.
    Assistance will cap at 5,000 euros for individual farmers and at 50,000 euros
    for food processors. The assistance adds to the national bailout plans for
    farmers affected by the drought. The Government plans to create a fund for
    loans and guarantees, as well as support for the payment of day workers, which
    is meant to help producers, Minister Oros told Radio Romania. The Romanian
    official claims over a million hectares of farmland are affected by drought
    this year, the areas facing the most problems being in the south-east and
    north-east. The Minister has nonetheless given assurances that the state has
    enough reserves to cover the domestic food demand. As regards the evolution of
    basic foodstuffs, Adrian Oros said:


    I cannot make
    an estimate right now. For instance, prices for a number of products are low,
    because retailers are overstocked. We can’t say exactly where things are
    headed, what the autumn harvest will look like, how long this crisis will last
    and the extent to which it will impact the economic performance of farmers and
    food companies. So far there are only a few fields affected by the crisis. If
    we recover within a month and resume production, consumption will go up as well
    and the relations between consumers, producers, processors and retailers will
    return to normal, so we might not report too many losses.


    Minister Oros
    also pointed out that even in the grimmest scenarios referring to the effects
    of the drought this year, this autumn’s harvest will cover the entire domestic
    consumption of cereals. The Romanian official went on to say the Government is
    considering the possibility of halting exports of basic products, if the
    situation requires it. Adrian Oros:


    We are certain
    we have enough cereal reserves to last us until the new harvest, then we will
    make sure we have enough cereals in our granaries across the country to cover
    the daily consumption of Romanian citizens. If the situation demands it, we
    will cease certain exports, a measure we have used before.


    According to
    data provided by the Environment Ministry in Bucharest, April, 2020 was the
    driest month on record, exceeding the record set in 2007.


    (Translated by
    V. Palcu)



  • April 27, 2020 UPDATE

    April 27, 2020 UPDATE

    Covid-19 Romania Romania’s
    president Klaus Iohannis has announced that schools and universities in Romania
    will stay closed this school year, and the average grades will be calculated on
    the basis of the grades that the students have already received. Pupils will
    come back to normal schooling in September. The president has also stated that
    people aged over 65 will have two intervals during which they are allowed to
    get out of their homes. The information has been confirmed by the Interior
    Minister Marcel Vela, who has presented the measures included in the military
    decree no.10, adopted on Monday. Among other things, the new measures include
    an extension of the suspension of commercial flights to and from Spain for
    another 14 days. Also extended are restrictions regarding flights to and from
    Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, the US, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Turkey
    and Iran for another 13 days, as of May 2nd. Starting May third,
    commercial flights to and from Italy are suspended for an additional 14 days. In
    the two months that have passed since the first case of coronavirus infection was
    reported in Romania, some 11.300 people have tested positive, and 631 have
    died. According to the latest data provided by the Strategic Communication
    Group, more than 3000 patients have been cured. Abroad, more than 1,500
    Romanian citizens have been infected with the new coronavirus, mostly in Italy
    and Spain. 75 of them have died.




    Pandemic More
    than 3 million people have been infected with the
    new coronavirus across the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. Most
    cases have been reported in the US, which is followed by countries from Europe:
    Spain, Italy, France, Germany and Great Britain. Equally affected by the
    pandemic are Turkey, Iran, China and Russia. The death toll has exceeded
    207 thousand, with 55 thousand dead in the US alone. Despite this situation,
    several countries are getting ready to relax restrictions: in Italy economic
    activity is going to be partly resumed while preserving public protection
    measures. People movement remains restricted, schools will open only in autumn
    and Italian churches will stay closed. France is preparing regional relaxation
    strategies starting May 11. A mobile phone application will warn people about
    the risk of getting in contact with an infected person. The same will happen in
    Germany and such an application is already operational in Australia and Israel.




    Budget In the first quarter of the year, Romania
    registered a budget deficit of 1.67% of the GDP, which is approx. 3.7 million
    Euro, 3 times bigger than in the same period last year, according to data
    published on Monday by the Finance Ministry. The increase is explained mainly
    by the unfavorable evolution of budget collections from companies, in the
    context of the pandemic, and refunds of paid VAT to support liquidities in the
    private sector. Revenues to the general consolidated budget dropped in the
    first three months of the year 2020 by 3.3% as against the similar period last
    year, reflecting mainly a contraction of collections in March following fiscal
    incentives granted to support the economy during the state of emergency.




    Study A study conducted
    by sociologists with the Research Institute for Quality of Life of the Romanian
    Academy shows that Romania is faced with two crises in the context of the
    COVID-19 pandemic: one medical and one economic, and that the living standards
    will be affected mainly after the medical crisis has ended. The report shows that
    it will take five years for people to be able to get to the purchasing power they
    had before the crisis. Researchers recommend authorities to abrogate or
    prorogate the pension law adopted in 2019, to index-link the pension point with
    the inflation rate, to raise salaries only to compensate for the inflation rate
    and to reintroduce a unitary national salary grid for the local administration






    Agriculture All autumn
    crops, especially those in the north and south of Romania, have been affected
    by drought, the agriculture minister Adrian Oros has announced.
    According to data provided by the line ministry, 3 million hectares of the
    crops sown in autumn have already been affected. At present, only 10% of the
    farming land can be irrigated. The agriculture minister Adrian Oros has promised
    that farmers will get compensation for the losses caused by drought. (M.Ignatescu)

  • April 27, 2020

    April 27, 2020

    Covid-19 Romania — The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Monday called a new meeting to deal with measures aimed at managing the coronavirus pandemic. Attending are the PM Ludovic Orban, the health, interior and education ministers as well as other officials. The authorities are preparing to re-start the economy, mainly through investments. The PM said the government could grant incentives to private companies that make investments during this period of crisis. 60 days after the first case of Covid-19 was registered in Romania, latest reports show that 11,300 people have tested positive for Covid-19 and 631 have died. The latest data provided by Strategic Communication Group show that over 3 thousand people have recovered from the infection. In the Diaspora, more than 1,500 Romanian citizens have been infected mostly in Italy and Spain and 75 have died.



    Covid-19 world — All over the world, almost 3 million people are infected with the new coronavirus, according to the US University Johns Hopkins. Most cases have been reported in the US, which is followed by countries from Europe: Spain, Italy, France, Germania and Great Britain. Equally affected by the pandemic are Turkey, Iran, China and Russia. The death toll has exceeded 206 thousand, with 54 thousand dead only in the US. Despite the situation, several states are getting ready to relax restrictions: in Italy economic activity is going to be partly resumed while preserving protection measures in public. People movement remains restricted, schools will open only in autumn and Italian churches will stay closed. France is preparing regional relaxation strategies starting with May 11. A system will be implemented by means of mobile phones, to warn people against getting in contact with an infected person.



    Romanian Academy – A study conducted by sociologists with the Life Quality Research Institute within the Romanian Academy shows that Romania is faced with two crises in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: a medical and economic crisis respectively, and that the living standards will be affected mainly after the medical crisis ends. The report shows that people will have the same purchasing power that they had before the crisis only in 5 years’ time. Researchers recommend the authorities to abrogate or prorogate the pension law adopted in 2019, among others, to index-link the pension point with the inflation rate, to raise salaries only to compensate for the inflation rate and to reintroduce a unitary national salary grid for the local administration



    Agriculture — All autumn crops, especially those in the north and south of Romania, have been affected by the drought, the agriculture minister Adrian Oros has announced. According to data provided by the line ministry, 3 million hectares of the crops sown in autumn have already been affected. At present, only 10% of the farming land can be irrigated. The agriculture minister Adrian Oros promised that farmers will receive damages to cover for the losses caused by the drought.



    TAROM – The Romanian state-owned airline TAROM has announced it will resume flights as of May 2. The first destination will be Amsterdam and in the next days flights will be operated to such destinations as Athens, Paris and Frankfurt. The Romanian low-cost company Blue Air has also announced resuming flight operation. They reintroduced in the booking system flights from Romania to several cities in Romania and Europe that will be operated as of mid May. The Romanian government approved during Thursday’s meeting granting aid funds to help the two Romanian companies. They had previously asked for 130 million Euros worth of aid to be able to overcome the coronavirus crisis. (tr. L. Simion)

  • Severe drought in Romania

    Severe drought in Romania

    In 2015, Romania was launching a programme to revamp its old irrigation system. It was an ambitious 5-year programme targeting a total surface area of around 2 million hectares by the end of 2020.



    However, at present only about 850,000 hectares are irrigable, and the programme was extended several years. In other words, only 10% of the countrys total farm area can be irrigated.



    Even so, farmers have only filed applications for around 100,000 hectares, says the line minister Adrian Oros. The situation is dramatic, because although Romania takes pride in its fertile land, its agriculture continues to rely heavily on the weather.



    And it has hardly rained at all in Romania over the past few months, there was little to no snow during the winter, and the consequences are increasingly evident.



    According to centralised data, in April we had 7 litres of precipitation per square metre, as opposed to an average of 53 litres.



    In short, Romania is facing a drought described by Minister Adrian Oros as “strong and extreme, as we havent seen in recent years.



    The worst situation in reported in Dobrogea, Bărăgan and Moldavia, that is in the south-east, south and east of the country. Here is how Nicolae Moraru, the mayor of a village in the east, describes the situation:



    Nicolae Moraru: “There are farmers in difficult positions, who own 400 – 500 hectares each and incur substantial expenses. They are threatened by bankruptcy. They have used their land, property, homes as collaterals. The situation is disastrous in our region.



    According to the Agriculture Ministry, 3 million hectares under crops since autumn are already destroyed. The rape, wheat, rye and barley crops are the most affected. Many farmers already warn that bread will be more expensive this autumn, although authorities argue that it is too soon to tell.



    In an interview to a private TV channel, minister Adrian Oros explained that even if half of the crops were destroyed, the domestic demand would still be covered:



    Adrian Oros: “It is much too soon. What happens in Europe and in the rest of the world is also important. During the good years, when it rained enough, Romanias wheat yield was 7, 8 or even 9 million tons of wheat, and we only use around 2 and a half to 3 million tons. The same for maize, the yield was 14-15 million tons, and the maximum demand in Romania is 7 million tons. So even if half the crops were destroyed, the domestic demand would still be covered.



    Weather experts bring us a piece of good news: on Friday they expect rain across the country. But the precipitation amount is not likely to be very large—an average of 10 litres per square metre.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • August 5, 2017

    August 5, 2017

    HEAT WAVE – A quarter of Romanias territory has been placed under code red alert for extreme heat until Saturday night; in 12 counties in western Romania temperatures are expected to soar to 42 degrees Celsius. This is the second code red alert issued this summer, after the one in early July. The rest of the country remains under a code orange alert with temperatures of 39 degrees Celsius. The code red alert will stay in place on Sunday in 2 counties in the south-west, and nearly 3-quarters of the country will remain under a code orange warning. The thermal discomfort index went over 80 and could reach 82-84 units. Over the past two days 2 people died and hundreds required assistance because of the extreme heat. First-aid tents have been set up in all major cities to provide fresh cold water to people. Mobile ambulance and medical services have been placed on high alert and speed restrictions are in place on the national railway network as well as on the countrys main roads with a view to avoiding accidents. The drought Romania is currently facing has severely damaged the corn and sunflower crops. Weather experts say that the heat wave will last until mid-next week, but only in the south, while atmospheric instability will increase, particularly in the mountains and in the north of the country.




    ALERT – Extreme temperatures are also reported across Europe this weekend. Code red alerts are in place in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Hungary, in most of Slovenia, south of Poland, south of Slovakia, south of Switzerland, in central and south-eastern Italy as well as in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. High wildfire risks are reported in Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Albania, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Turkey. The Foreign Ministry recommends that areas under alert should be avoided, and says that Romanian diplomatic missions abroad are prepared to provide assistance to those who request it.



    SAXONS – The city of Sibiu in central Romania is hosting, until Sunday, the 27th and largest so far meeting of Transylvanian Saxon ethnics, under the motto “Home around the world, heart in Transylvania. Taking part are around 12,000 Saxon ethnics, most of them living at present in Germany, Austria and the USA. More than 50 events will take place in the medieval squares of Sibiu, from exhibitions and book launches to music and dance performances. The most eagerly awaited of them is a parade of Saxon traditional costumes, an event scheduled for today and in which the President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, himself a German ethnic, is expected to take part. The head of state said this years meeting is an opportunity for the younger generation of Saxons living in Germany to get to know and like more their parents home country. The Saxon ethnics settled in Transylvania starting in the mid-12th Century.



    HEROES Romania continues to commemorate today its WWI heroes through a series of ceremonies held all over the country. The peak of these events organised by the National Defence Ministry and the Vrancea County Council will be on Sunday, when the country marks 100 years since the Battle of Marasesti, a watershed moment for Romania in the Great War. Regarded as one of the most impressive monuments in the country, the Mausoleum in Marasesti was built in the place where, in the summer of 1917, the Romanian soldiers stood their ground against a technically superior and better-trained German army, losing 480 officers and over 21,000 troops.



    CLIMATE – The USA notified the UN on the intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, but will continue to take part in international negotiations, the American State Department announced. Washington will take part in the forthcoming annual UN conference on climate, due in November in Bonn, Germany. On June 1, the US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of the country from this agreement aimed at containing global warming and signed in 2015 by 195 states. Trump says the deal damages the American economy, but he does not rule out the US rejoining the process after renegotiations or even the signing of a new agreement able to protect the US. Under the Agreement, an official withdrawal notification can only take effect 3 years after the agreement has come into force, that is on November 4, 2016. Donald Trump will therefore be able to renounce the deal only at the end of 2019, with a one-year notice, AFP reports.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • August 4, 2017 UPDATE

    August 4, 2017 UPDATE

    HEAT A quarter of Romanias territory has been placed under code red alert for extreme heat until Saturday night; in 12 counties in western Romania temperatures are expected to soar to 42 degrees Celsius. The rest of the country remains under a code orange alert with temperatures of 39 degrees Celsius. The thermal discomfort index went over 80 and could reach 82-84 units. Weather experts say that the heat wave will last until mid-next week, but only in the south, while atmospheric instability will increase. First-aid tents have been set up in all major cities to provide fresh cold water to people. Mobile ambulance and medical services have been placed on high alert and speed restrictions have been imposed on the national railway network as well as on the countrys main roads with a view to avoiding accidents. The drought Romania is currently facing has wreaked havoc on the corn and sunflower crops. Numerous countries in Europe like Italy, Poland, Hungary, Switzerland, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Germany, Spain, France and the Republic of Moldova have also been affected by this heat wave.




    HEROES Romania is commemorating its WWI heroes through a series of ceremonies held all over the country these days. At the Soveja Mausoleum, in the east of the country, which hosts an ossuary of over 2,000 Romanian and Russian soldiers, a religious service was held on Friday. The peak of these events will be on Sunday, when the country marks 100 years since the Battle of Marasesti, a watershed moment for Romania in the Great War. In the summer of 1917 the Romanian soldiers stood their ground against a technically superior and better-trained German army, losing 480 officers and over 21,000 troops.




    TALKS Romanias government Friday passed an emergency order under which pensions will no longer be adjusted to salary increases, but only to the inflation rate, to the effect that the net pension benefits can no longer be higher than the net salaries an individual has received prior to retirement. The age and length in service required for an employee to be able to retire remain unchanged. The bill only concerns the pensions of Interior and Defence Ministry personnel, of intelligence service employees, of civil aviation pilots, diplomats, of court staff, MPs and other Parliament employees. Another bill concerns the increase of police staff salaries by 10% and of Interior Ministry civilian staff by 15%. Also on Friday, the Government approved a ceiling on child allowances of roughly 1,850 euros per month as of September.




    MEASLES Over the past week more than 100 new measles cases have been confirmed, taking the total number up to 8,455, according to the data centralised by Friday by the National Centre for Infectious Disease Monitoring and Control. Thirty-two people, most of them babies and small children, have died since the onset of the measles epidemic in September 2016. Health Minister Florian Bodog said on Friday that the measles vaccination rate grew nearly 4 times in the last 2 weeks.




    FOOTBALL Romanias vice champions FCSB formerly known as Steaua Bucharest will be playing in the qualifying play-offs for the Champions League Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon. The first game will be played in Portugal on August 15th and the return match in Bucharest a week later. Also on Friday the champions Viitorul found out their opponent in the Europa League play-off: the Austrian champions FC Red Bull Salzburg. Viitorul will play the first leg at home on August 17 and the return match in Salzburg on August 24. Romania has only these two sides in the European competitions. Another three Romanian sides, Dinamo Bucharest, Astra Giurgiu and CSU Craiova were eliminated from the Europa League, after the defeats they conceded on Thursday, away from home. Contender teams for the Romanians were Athletic Bilbao from Spain, the famous Italian squad AC Milan and Ukraines Oleksandria.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • August 19, 2016

    August 19, 2016

    EUROBAROMETER – The Romanians confidence in justice and the legal system has decreased by 13 % as compared to 2015, the Eurobarometer issued by the European Commission shows. Figures show that 60% of the respondents say they tend not to take confidence in the judiciary in Romania, thus registering a 12% increase as compared to 2015. 72% of the respondents say they have confidence in the Army, 4% less than in 2015. Some 50% of the respondents trust the police, registering 1 percentage point more than in the fall of 2015. Higher percentages are also being registered in the case of political parties, amounting to 13%, one percentage point more than in the fall of 2015. The poll was conducted between May 21 and 31, 2016.



    ROAD CARRIERS – Romanian road freight carriers go on a token strike and will run every day at a speed of 30 km/hour anywhere in Romania, until the car insurance premiums are reduced to 4,907 lei per year, that is 1,100 de euros, a communiqué issued by the National Union of Road Carriers in Romania and made public by the AGREPRES news agency on Friday, shows. Apart from the token strike, the Union, together with the other employers associations in the field of road transportation will organise a big protest movement, at national level, on September 15, 2016. Most commercial carriers are brought to the brink of bankruptcy after insurance premiums for commercial freight and passenger transportation have increased by over 300% as compared to the previous year and by over 500% as compared to 2014. The union also considers that the insurance companies are not interested in reducing risks, but to conceal their inefficiency and place the burden on carriers.



    DROUGHT – Prolonged drought in Romania, in recent times, has affected over 350,000 ha of farm land, but it is only at the end of the year that the relevant authorities can made public the exact surface of the affected area, because they are still receiving notifications from the field, agriculture minister Achim Irimescu has said. He has added that the ministry he runs has taken into consideration an assistance plan to compensate the debts accumulated by farmers who no longer managed to pay electricity and water bills. In another move, farmers protested again yesterday in front of the Government headquarters, being discontent about the delayed payment of subsidies in agriculture. Some of them have gone on hunger strike and claim they will continue this extreme form of protest until the government makes all payments. They have rejected any invitation to negotiations by the agriculture minister, who has been reproached for failing to comply with the commitments he has made.



    BORDER SECURITY – The Romanian Interior Ministry has increased the number of border police officers and gendarmes deployed along the border with Serbia, after two illegal border crossing attempts by small groups of migrants have been registered this week, a communiqué issued by the Romanian Interior Ministry writes. Furthermore, the already deployed troops are now accompanied by thermovision cars, canine border patrols and additional ground troops. These ground missions will be backed by a helicopter. These actions are aimed at maintaining public order and fighting cross-border crime on Romanias south-western border.



    TENNIS – Romanian Simona Halep, the worlds no. 4 tennis player, qualified on Thursday to the quarter-finals of the WTA tournament in Cincinnati, totalling 2.5 million dollars in prize money. In the round of 16, Halep knocked out Daria Gavrilova of Russia, 47th WTA. In the next round, Halep will go up against Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, 5th WTA. Halep is seeded 2nd in Cincinnati and may win her third consecutive tournament, after Bucharest and Montreal.



    ​RIO OLYMPICS – On the 14th day of the Olympics, Romanian athletes are competing in the womens 20 km race walk, the mens 50 km race walk and the womens 4×400 m relay team events, as well as in wresting and rhythmic gymnastics. So far, Romania has grabbed only four medals: the gold obtained by the women’s epee team, the silver obtained by the pair Florin Mergea/ Horia Tecau in the men’s tennis doubles, and two bronze medals, obtained by Gabriel Sincraian in weightlifting, and by the women’s coxed eight rowing team.


    (Translated by Diana Vijeu)

  • 28 July, 2016 UPDATE

    28 July, 2016 UPDATE

    Deputy Prime Minister Vasile Dancu on Thursday discussed with local
    authorities ways to fight the effects of drought in several counties in
    southern, eastern and central Romania. Vegetable, corn, sunflower, soy and
    fodder crops are bearing the brunt of the scorching weather. Furthermore, the
    irrigation system is still not operational while weather forecasts for August
    show scarce rains and high temperatures. According to Agriculture minister
    Achim Irimescu, it’s preferable for farmers to be given subsidies in advance
    rather than being paid damages later. Irimescu went on to say that farmers
    would need around 6.7 million euros to irrigate their crops.






    The Romanian
    authorities have started taking the necessary steps to implement the decisions
    taken at the recent NATO summit in Warsaw, including the setting up of a
    multinational brigade on Romanian territory. The Romanian Defence Minister
    Mihnea Motoc said on Thursday that at least six allies, including Bulgaria and
    Poland, have shown signs that they are interested in taking part in this new
    brigade. Poland said it would deploy one company, while Bulgaria will send
    around 400 soldiers. In another development, the defence minister announced on
    Wednesday that Romania would contribute to the international coalition fighting
    the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria with 50 soldiers, who will be assigned a
    counselling mission starting this autumn. The announcement was made on
    Wednesday in the opening of a large-scale drill in Cincu, central Romania,
    where 27 hundred troops from 10 countries are training between July 27th
    and August 7th.




    The foreign ministry in Bucharest welcomes the appointment of the
    Romanian expert Maria-Cristina Stepanescu as the head of the EUCAP
    Nestor crisis management mission as of September 2016. According to the
    ministry, this is the first time Romania holds the chairmanship of a EU crisis
    management mission. The decision to appoint her was taken recently by the EU Political and Security Committee
    following a proposal from the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and
    Security Policy. The EU’s civil mission in the Horn of Africa,EUCAP
    Nestor,    was launched
    in July 2012 under the auspices of the Common Security and Defence Policy and
    aims to provide assistance to the states in the area, in particular Somalia,
    for capacity building in the field of maritime security, including the fight
    against piracy.






    Romania strictly observes the highest control standards in exporting
    military gear, the Foreign Ministry in Bucharest has announced. According to
    the ministry, the exports are regulated through domestic legislation being in
    line with Romania’s international commitments as a member of NATO, UN and the
    OSCE and as a signatory country of the Arms Trade Treaty. The National Control
    Authority approves export licenses following rigorous research and Romania
    promptly participates in any investigation on the destination of weapons made
    in Romania, the ministry also said. The statement comes after the British daily
    The Guardian has published an article on Romania’s discreet sales of 1 billion
    dollars worth of weapons to some Middle Eastern countries. According to the
    daily, weapons made in Romania have reached Syria.




    German chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday stood firm on Germany’s
    migration policy, after coming under pressure after two terror attacks by
    asylum seekers in recent days. Merkel told a press conference in Berlin that
    she would do everything to prevent new attacks, saying the state must rebuild
    trust after the fear caused by the recent incidents. She announced a security
    plan facilitating the expulsion of refugees whose asylum applications have been
    rejected or who break the law, so as to detect radicalised migrants among asylum
    seekers. More than 1 million asylum seekers arrived in Germany last year.




    Romania has been included in the
    Urban_Wins European project on the management of human resources, alongside
    five other states, namely Austria, Italy, Portugal, Sweden and Spain. The
    project, which is financed under the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation
    Programme, will be carried out over 3 years and will study the way in which
    cities use their resources and products and how they eliminate the waste they
    generate. A series of plans will be tested in 8 pilot cities, including
    Bucharest. Urban_Wins seeks the transition to sustainable consumption and
    production models and the development of a more efficient waste management
    system to improve the quality of urban living and citizens’ well-being.