Overview of the bio-based circular economy policy situation in Romania

The state of alert related to the COVID-19 pandemic in Romania ended on the 8th of March 2022 and all restrictions were cancelled. Since then, there has been a constant decrease in the numbers of active cases, hospitalizations, patients in need of intensive care and COVID-19 related deaths, so there is no sign of a new surge.

From the economic point of view, the country is facing a high inflation rate, as a result of rising fuel prices, affecting vulnerable parts of the population.

The Government is currently focusing on support measures to avoid recession, considering also the war in Ukraine, which can further impact fuels and food supplies to Europe. The measures include caps on energy prices, food vouchers for vulnerable people, grants and loan guarantees for SMEs to increase production and exports, grants for start-ups etc.

Circular bio-based economy is included in the new operational programmes for 2021-2027, and specific measures for biogas and recycling stations are eligible for the support schemes.

As of 20 April 2022, the Department for Sustainable Development of the Romanian Government announced that the national Circular Economy Strategy will be adopted by fall. Romania has low recycling rates and low resource efficiency, but the amount of waste produced per capita is lower than the EU average. The Circular Economy Strategy is going to focus on six priority areas: construction, textiles, tourism, consumer goods, industry and the agri-food sector.