Bucharest will fine IOR Park owners if they clear all vegetation, mayor says

Bucharest mayor Nicuşor Dan said that the city will impose a fine of EUR 350 million if the vegetation across the entire surface of the restituted area of IOR Park is cleared.

So far, Bucharest City Hall has issued a fine of EUR 35 million for the deforestation of one hectare of land. The fine came after the owner preferred to eliminate the vegetation totally following a series of fires, with the purpose of changing the use of the land, presumably towards building properties

"There are 10 or 12 hectares [restituted] in IOR Park. On one of these hectares, the owner not only cut down the trees but also removed the vegetation layer. As such, we issued that EUR 35 million fine. If the owner clears the vegetation on 10 hectares, we will issue a EUR 350 million fine, to send a very clear message to any owner of green spaces that they will not build on green spaces," said the mayor during a press conference held at the PMB headquarters.

Part of the IOR Park was given back to private individuals in 2005 after a court decision. Dan mentioned that the former owner of the restituted land has passed away and that the succession process is underway.

"The EUR 35 million, I remind you, was contested by the former owner, Mrs. Cocoru. In the meantime she has passed away, and our lawyers have been monitoring the succession process. It has not yet begun. We will include this fine in the inheritance estate, so that when the succession of Mrs. Cocoru is debated, we will also be there with the EUR 35 million [fine]. So, it will take time, but I am optimistic that the Bucharest Municipality will recover either this money or the land for the actions that were committed there," said the general mayor.

IOR Park is one of Bucharest’s largest green areas. Seven out of ten Bucharest residents believe that the main priority for the future of their city is the creation of a greener and more sustainable urban environment, according to a survey done last year.

In 2021, Romania's capital had seven square meters of green spaces per inhabitant. At the same time, cities like Constanta or Cluj-Napoca offered around 5.6 square meters of green areas for their inhabitants, according to Statista.

(Photo source: Inquam Photos | Octav Ganea)