Romanian court confirms status of protected natural reserve for Buzău’s Crâng Forest

The Ploiești Court of Appeal reinstated the status of protected natural reserve for the Crâng Forest, a remnant of the famous Vlăsiei Woods, in a ruling made public on Tuesday, May 13.

In 2024, the Buzău County Council approved the revision of a 1995 decision concerning the protection of natural areas and monuments, removing Crâng Forest from the list of county-level protected areas because “parks and public or private recreational gardens are not subject” to legal protections.

The act adopted in the Council plenary was subsequently challenged in the Buzău Tribunal by the Prefect institution and a former environmental assessor.

The first court decided in November 2024 to annul the Council’s decision, according to Agerpres.

The case concerning the revision of the protected areas list in Buzău County was then moved to the Ploiești Court of Appeal, where the County Council filed an appeal. On Tuesday, the court definitively rejected the appeal, upholding the Buzău Tribunal’s decision to annul the administrative act that removed Crâng Forest from the list of protected areas.

Earlier this year, a study on converting Crâng Forest into a park forest, approved by a decision of the Buzău Municipal Local Council, was definitively annulled by the Ploiești Court of Appeal.

(Photo source: primariabuzau.ro)