Bill seeking to protect forests around Bucharest, one step away from final vote in Parliament

The draft law amending the Forest Code so as to put the entire forest vegetation of Ilfov county under protection is officially one step away from the final vote in Parliament. Ilfov is the county surrounding Bucharest, and if passed, the legislative initiative would be the starting point for creating a green belt around the capital city.

Introduced on April 12 as part of the civic platform Together for the Green Belt/Împreună pentru Centura Verde, the bill reached the Chamber of Deputies this fall after being unanimously passed by the Senate in the summer.

On Wednesday, November 14, all members of the Chamber of Deputies’ environment committee voted in favour of the legislation, moving the initiative one step closer to the last stage in its legislative process in the Parliament. Next, the draft law only needs the agriculture and forestry committee's report before moving forward to the final and decisive debate and vote in the Chamber.

Once it passes the Parliament, the bill also needs to be signed into law by president Klaus Iohannis.

The legislation is one of the main pillars of the Together for the Green Belt civic platform - a call for action focused on solutions to make the Romanian capital a healthier city that brings together more than 150 non-profits, civic groups and public figures. An online public petition with the same goal has gathered more than 11,000 signatures so far, while a memorandum of understanding has been backed by several high-ranking political and executive decision-makers. Among them Bucharest mayor Nicuşor Dan, Ilfov county president Hubert Thuma, and Senate president Nicolae Ciucă.

In fact, representatives of the civic platform say that the Social Democratic Party (PSD) is the only party that still didn’t sign the memorandum. Thus, as several of the document’s points of action can be met only with support from executive decision-makers, the platform and its supporters invite prime minister Marcel Ciolacu and acting Chamber of Deputies speaker Alfred Simonis to join in and sign the document, as their contribution is highly important in this quest to create a green belt around Bucharest.