Romanian civil society proposes a fair green transition
More than 40 Romanian civil society organizations with expertise in climate, energy, agriculture and biodiversity propose a list of measures needed to make the European Green Transition a fair one that leaves no country, region or citizen behind. The demands of the Romanian civil society are mentioned in a position paper which will be submitted to the European institutions. The civil society organizations request the representatives of the Romanian state to strategically support the economic interests of the country and its citizens on these issues, which are part of the major dossiers that will be on the table of the future structures of the European Commission and Parliament.
Over 40 organizations participated recently in a round table co-organized by the Centre for the Study of Democracy (initiator of the Romanian Observatory on Energy Poverty), the Romanian Centre for European Policies, Bankwatch Romania and the Natura 2000 Coalition Federation, under the aegis of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), entitled "The future of the European Green Pact, between ecological balance and social equity".
European Green Pact objectives
The European Green Pact is an unprecedented opportunity to tackle climate warming, biodiversity loss and pollution. However, the success of the Green Pact will depend on minimizing social risks and a fair distribution of the costs and benefits of the green transition. Public consensus-building is also needed.
Romanian experts support a green transition that will ensure sustainable economic growth, well-paid jobs, the development of industry, agriculture, better living conditions for citizens, reducing the risks of worsening social inequality in the European Union. Recommendations were made, such as: recommendations on energy and climate, biodiversity recommendations and recommendations on the agri-food system.
Proposed action of the civil society
Necessary actions proposed:
- Support all decisions with impact assessments and proper communication with those most affected by these decisions;
- The introduction of a European Commissioner for the Agri-Food System, with responsibility not only for agriculture but also for the agri-food, health and international trade systems in the future structure of the European Commission. The current framework of international trade agreements is deeply affecting the competitiveness of European agri-food producers, because the environmental standards imposed on them are not respected by agricultural and food producers in third countries;
- Carbon taxation at the border (the CBAM mechanism) must be extended to the agri-food sector in order to combat the influx of cheap, high-emission and unregulated food products from third countries;
- Decentralize the agri-food system and support short agri-food chains;
- Strategic support for sustainable agricultural practices, in particular regenerative agriculture;
- Stimulating innovation in agriculture by funding the piloting and scaling up of solutions such as: carbon neutral fertilizers, new disease resistant and climate change adapted varieties and the use of artificial intelligence in agriculture.