Fourth National Report to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity

The large area of the country, the diversity of bio-geographical zones (alpine, continental, Black Sea, panonic, steppic), the lack of recent and centralized information on flora and vegetation, the lack of an update of the position of threatened species and habitats in relation with international law, disparities regarding the nomenclature, required a specific methodological way to allow application of the unit set of selection criteria (endangered species and habitats, special botanical importance), internationally accepted IPA identification and selection differs from the designation process of protected areas from national network, through purpose, criteria and methodology. In this regard, IPA' s are designed as key sites, focal points for conservation of threatened species and habitats and of flora concentrations of high botanical value, considered threatened globally, European and nationally.

There are areas to which priority should be to focus conservation efforts in the country that hosts them. Accordingly, there is no sign of equality between national IPA network sites and the national network of protected areas. An IPA may be a part of a protected area, may include a protected area may coincide with a protected area or can be an unprotected area, which fully meets the selection criteria and to which should be oriented national efforts of conservation. The project “Identifying Important areas for plants protection and conservation from Romania”, contributed to the alignment of scientific research of flora and vegetation with international standards and to identify (scientifically documented) some areas in Romania which have proved a priority for vegetal diversity conservation on global and European level.

The database project provides scientific foundation required for a proper management, sustainable adequate. Taking account of these, are clearly out the valences of the national projects which have no aim to validate the status of protected areas for the IPA' s, but only to identify them, to assess their current state of protection, to support the need of their protection and preservation, providing for governmental structures the scientific information necessary to implement the objectives of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation. Identification of the IPA' s was based on the application of three categories of scientific criteria, internationally valid: Criterion A – endangered species, criterion B - vegetal diversity, Criterion C - endangered habitats.

To be identified and declared IPA, an area must meet at least one of three criteria or any combination of them. Taking into account the requirements of these criteria, a first methodological step was drawing up the national lists for species and habitat types recognized as globally and / or European endangered and recommended for conservation in the international reference documents (Global Red List, Habitats Directive, the Bern Convention).

A Criteria – endangered species

Areas selected under this criteria must shelter significant populations of the most endangered species at global and European level, also endemic and sub-endemic endangered species.

Under this criteria were identified following 4 categories:

Are taken into account taxon included in the Global Red List, Habitats Directive - Annex II b & IV b, the Berne Convention – App. I.

Are taken into account vasculary plants included simultaneous in Habitats Directive – Anexele II b & IV b, Bern Convention – App I, briophites from European red List, lichens from Macrolichens Red List – 1989 and fungi from Bern Convention Red List completed inn 2004 for Romania;

Aiii – Areas populated with endemic and endangered taxa

Are taken into account taxa included in Romanian Red List, endangered and vulnerable species and which are not included in Ai and Aii categories.

Aiv – Areas populated with subendemic and endangered taxa

Are taken into account taxa included in Romanian Red List, endangered and vulnerable species and which are not included in Ai, Aii and Aiii categories.

A number of 276 IPAs (Important Plant Areas) have been identified, covering 5% of the country, of which 210 within protected areas. Areas selected under these criteria must shelter an exceptional botanical wealth (vegetal communities and/or vascular plants, briophytes, lichens, fungi, algae) whose protection is important for the global conservation of vegetal diversity.

3.3 Genetic diversity
Tn Romania, in the “ex situ” activity which implies the conservation of the vegetal diversity components out of their natural habitat, the agricultural research institutes botanical gardens, Agronomical and Biological Sciences Universities as well as the Gene-bank of Suceava are involved.

All other collections are considered work collections for research or amelioration purposes, except the collection from the Gene-bank.

The Bank of Vegetal Genetic Resources - Suceava was founded in March 1990, as an independent enterprise with juridical personality and national character.

Tts purpose is to preserve the national collection of phytogenetic resources propagated through seeds and to offer biologic material highly resistant to biotic and abiotic stress factors for amelioration programs. For achieving this goal, the Gene-bank develops specific activities of collection, characterization and estimation, regeneration, multiplication, conservation and documentation.

The situation of the present genetic resources as well as the biologic creations obtained by the Romanian zootechnical research institutes, included in the annual report for the FAO Program/2002 on “Conservation of animal genetic resources”, The problem of genetic diversity in poultry is more intricate, the native breeds were not recorded in the first stage and after that they began to disappear. Consequently, from the 94 poultry breeds that were preserved in the National Bank of Animal Genes recorded at DAD-TS, only 6 were native.

Unfortunately, at present, the National Bank of Animal Genes is liquidated due to lack of funds and inadequate management.

From the scientific point of view, the problem of animal genetic resources includes the following peculiarities:

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  taxonomy aspects still unresolved in our country and abroad leading to numerous confusions regarding the belonging of an animal to a certain breed. Tn this context we have to mention the involvement of molecular genetics in taxonomic delimitations;
  
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  biodiversity conservation “in situ” through a modern methodology and in close collaboration with the international bodies involved in this activity;
  
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  drawing up the amelioration national plans.
  

Some of the most important issues identified were:

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  Unbalanced distribution of investments in the field of nature conservation.
  
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  Legislative inflation;
  
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  Lack of specific regulations to ensure implementation of CBD on technical and scientific cooperation;
  
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  Strong institutional instability (at an organizational level, including environmental structures) also reflected at an individual level;
  
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  Capacity of institutions to attract financial resources is insufficiently developed;
  
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  There is no clear and complete evidence of the proprieties regime of terrains inside the natural protected areas;
  
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  The educational system isn't adapted to the needs and requests of the CBD;
  
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  Mechanism of clearing-house non-functional;
  
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  Weak public involvement;
  
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  Lack of transparency of public institutions.
  

The European Platform for Biodiversity Research Strategy (EPBRS)¹ has identified further research needs.

Measures must be carefully implemented and monitored to ensure that they achieve their objectives. Long-term monitoring is essential and the research results should be widely shared and used.

Species distribution models provide a useful first approximation of the potential impact of climate on biodiversity and ecosystems.

Monitoring habitats, species’ abundances and distributions, ecosystem functions and services are nevertheless indispensable processes to verify the direction and the rate of changes, and these should contribute over the longer term to the development of more realistic models via improved baseline data.

The influence of climate changes on species’ phenology is still poorly understood and needs to be monitored as a prerequisite to detecting the risk of decoupling of species’ interaction in time and in space.

Protecting biodiversity and ecosystems and using them sustainable, thus preserving and enhancing their resilience, is one of the best and most cost effective defences against the adverse impacts of climate change.

Considering the present status of biological diversity in Romania and the European provisions for nature conservation and Natural resources management, there are several operational objectives to be taken into account.

Anyway the accent of the biodiversity conservation policy and sustainable use of Natural resources will move also from the cleaning measures and actions to the preventive ones.

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  Halting the loss of biodiversity with a significant reduction by 2010;
  
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  Extending the surface occupied by forests, at the average European percentage;
  
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  Finalizing the “Strategic Plan for protecting the costal zone”;
  
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  It is envisaged the designation of new protected areas and also Natura 2000 sites;
  

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  Effective contribution to achieving of the four global objectives on forests by 2015;
  
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  Defining the optimal network of protection forest curtains;
  
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  Increasing the accesibility of forest fund (optimistic scenario:12 m/ha; pesimistic scenario: 10 m/ha);
  
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  Adequate planning of land use, that will contribute to the mitigation of urban dispersion and to the reduction of land fragmentation with losses of natural habitats and biodiversity.
  
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  Soil protection through the rehabilitation and reuse of brown field sites, contaminated or not, and the space-saving spatial planning with the aim of reducing the soil sealing and ensuring rational use of soil;
  
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  Developing the monitoring system of Protected Areas Network (inclusively Nature 2000 sites), of the reporting system on their evolution, in order to identify the favourable conservation status and further on to achieve the European environmental policy;
  
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  Improving the efficiency of resources, reducing the general usage of non-renewable resources and the environmental impact of using raw materials through using of the renewable sources with the rate that doesn’t exceed their regeneration capacity;
  
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  Avoiding the generation of waste and enhancing efficient use of natural resources by applying the concept of „life-cycle” thinking and promoting reuse and recycling;
  
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  Protection, conservation and regeneration of diversity specific for the agro-ecosystems, implementing technologies that favour the sustainable agriculture;
  
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  Establishing the methodology for calculating the value of lands and products obtained for a correct and equitable granting of the compensations under the conditions of imposing of a management compliant with the conservation objectives;
  
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  Legislative Framework for applying the organic farms formula and for creating better conditions for the animals owned by farmers.
  
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  Institutional support for Nature 2000 sites management (control, training, developing the institutional capacity, preparing the scientific studies, the inventories, mapping, preparing and implementing the management plans for Nature 2000 sites and the action plans for the protection and conservation of community interest species, awareness raising activities and environmental education);
  
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  Investments in public-private partnership, for supporting the natural reconstruction, protection and conservation of habitats and species, infrastructure development (building and endowing the headquarters of the reservations’ administrations and the visiting centres etc) and purchasing the necessary lands for the adequate management with the view of extending the surfaces for nature conservation;
  
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  Establishing the monitoring systems of natural protected habitats and of wild species;
  
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  Elaborating some local guides containing measures and actions for prevention, protection and intervention in case of natural risks;
  
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  The designing of works for eliminating or mitigating as much as possible the floods’ effects will be done in stages from the point of view of financing and execution, depending on the vulnerability to floods of different basins of hydrographical spaces, the size of budgetary allocations, the frequency and scope of phenomena etc.
  

Following the prioritization of investments, the most urgent projects (ecological reconstruction of heavy metal polluted soils, detoxification and rehabilitation of the soils polluted with oil, oil products and waste through bio-remediation actions, developing of reconstruction technology of the affected lands) will be financed under this measure.

The development of rural tourism activities, studies and pilot projects for promoting non-conventional energies in the „Danube Delta” Biosphere Reserve;

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  Enhancing the requirements for giving in custody the protected areas;
  
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  Elaborating an Action Plan for Biomass usage as a renewable energetic resource.
  
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  Ensure durable support for long-term monitoring;
  
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  Encourage and assist existing monitoring networks such as those for birds or butterflies;
  
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  Support LTER as European contribution to the Global Climate Change Network planned by UNEP;
  
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  Implement "synergy" or "no regret" measures that provide multiple win solutions i.e. adaptation and mitigation measures that benefit conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services.
  

Biodiversity policy needs to evolve to deliver biodiversity protection and enhance ecosystem resilience under changing climatic conditions.

However, in the mean time we should make best use of existing relevant legislation such as the Nature Directives, Water Framework Directive, Marine Strategy Directive, Strategic Environmental Assessment and Environmental Impact Assessment etc.

The implementation of the Nature Directives provides an essential minimum area for protected species and habitats and the ecosystem functions provided by them.

An extension of the network to accommodate the possibility of better dispersal of species and to reduce the risks of habitat fragmentation could be achieved by making best use of Article 3 of the Birds Directive and Articles 5 and 10 of the Habitats Directive.

While fully implementing existing instruments, we have to develop further measures appropriate for protecting biodiversity and increasing resilience not only to climate change, but also to the combination of climate change with other pressures.

This will include landscape level protection, improved opportunities for movement of species and habitats, development of skills and technical adaptation capacity.

Ecosystem resilience can be increased by protecting existing habitats from destruction, managing habitats appropriately, reducing external threats and where necessary, by creating or restoring habitats to increase the size of core areas and their functional connectivity to enable species to move through the wider environment and establish new populations in more suitable locations – inter alia - by linking ecological networks (e.g. the Nature 2000 Network).

Working with nature rather than against it offers opportunities to involve people and build responsibility to allow sustainable development within the ecological limits for a future which offers: opportunity for welfare, equity, security and human development.

Therefore the maintenance and restoration of diverse, functioning ecosystems across the wider terrestrial, freshwater and marine environment must be a guiding principle as we move forward to climate proof our policies.

Amongst the measures to reduce emissions there are "low cost-co benefit" measures which may also contribute to conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

They include restoration of degraded land, forests, organic soils and wetlands, reduction in conversion of pastureland, less slash and burn practices, and improved grassland management.

These ecosystem-based approaches also help to maintain ecosystem services that are important for human wellbeing (Table 4).

Table 4 Engagement of sectors

Engagement of sectors
- Fully implement the EU Biodiversity Action Plan and integrate biodiversity and ecosystem service aspects into other sectoral policies, including agriculture, regional policy, water, fisheries, forestry, transport, energy, tourism and development policy.

This means ensuring the contribution of ecosystem services is acknowledged and protected.

Examples of some pertinent measures are presented below.

Sector	Measure
Agriculture	- Develop multi-functional agricultural landscapes. - Step up agro-environmental schemes
Regional Policy	- Develop spatial plans that include clear objectives that support and enhance biodiversity and ecosystem conservation. - Develop a programme of action to improve landscape permeability for species at risk ideally linked with spatial planning policies. This should help ensure that all land use e.g. forestry, agriculture and urban areas, include minimum amounts of key habitat features.
Fisheries	- Review impact of policies relating to trade and fisheries and take measures to prevent over-fishing.
Water	- Avoid unsustainable water use. - Promote ecosystem-based approaches for water purification and storage.
Forestry	- Promote sustainable forest management and prevent deforestation and forest degradation.
Transport	- Introduce overarching policies to reduce fragmentation or destruction as a result of development of new transport infrastructure. - Review EU and Member State external action on transport including air and shipping and interactions with climate change and implication for biodiversity globally.
Energy	- Introduce policies to stimulate markets where appropriate for energy sources that will restore biodiversity (e.g. coppicing/wood fuel). - Review EU and Member State external action on energy and interactions with climate change and implication for biodiversity globally.
Development Policy	- Support ecosystem-based approaches by development programmes including those in EU Overseas Countries and Territories. - Recognize biodiversity and ecosystem conservation as a means to disaster reduction. - Ensure that development programmes do not negatively impact on biodiversity and ecosystems.
Tourism	- Support sustainable eco tourism and encourage green supply chains.

We need to raise awareness, involve stakeholders, build capacity and partnerships.

The responsibility of all stakeholders for the protection of biodiversity under a range of pressures, including climate change, must be communicated, facilitated and promoted through education, guidance, incentives and partnership working.

It is hoped that people will take an interest in biodiversity and nature conservation.

Farmers, landowners, schools, communities and NGOs can play a key role and should be engage in project planning and management.

Education and training programmes could be linked to the establishment, restoration and management of nature conservation and restoration sites.

To achieve a coherent network of protected sites we need a bold partnership of governments and their agencies, planners, businesses (including fishing, agriculture and forestry), landowners and NGOs.

Such a partnership will deliver social, economic and environmental benefits, but will require a high degree of coordination across multiple jurisdictions to provide landscape cohesion.

Capacity needs to be built across agencies and within competent authorities, both in terms of staff resources and expertise in biodiversity and climate change issues in order to deliver a coherent cross sectoral response.

To achieve a multiplier effect of useful investments, partners need to be identified and partnerships established. Ideally the wider public should also be involved.

Support campaigns that raise awareness for the link between biodiversity, ecosystems and climate change.

- Include issues related to biodiversity, ecosystem services and climate change in school Curricula.

- Facilitate stakeholder participation via existing and newly created opportunities.

- Build institutional capacity and partnerships.

- Identify vulnerable habitats and species, i.e. assessing the extent to which sensitivity and exposure are likely to result in actual impacts taking into account each species’ and habitats’ adaptive capacity. In particular models of impacts on species need to take into account the likely presence of suitable habitats within areas of suitable “climate space” and the potential for species to disperse to them.
- Step up research on habitat restoration. Research programmes should relate in particular to the needs of restoration and management.
- Integrate consideration of biodiversity and ecosystems with other disciplines and approaches that explicitly address the roles of institutions, policies, politics and people in successful biodiversity conservation and climate change strategies.
Adaptation measures for biodiversity can be described as a threefold process:

This process includes:

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  maintenance of genetic and species diversity;
  
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  preservation of habitat heterogenity and connectivity to maintain migration routes and access to sites which can act as refuges from extreme temperatures;
  
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  conservation of physical features and the protection of sites from other human pressures;
  
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  management of entire catchments and the regulation of extraction and water use;
  
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  restoration of degraded sites;
  
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  development and implementation of adaptive management strategies to maintain flexibility.
  

Specific measures are listed bellow:

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  Enhance the implementation of existing instruments and make them more rigorous by requiring the consideration of climate change impacts.
  
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  Protect and appropriately manage existing protected areas and other areas of high ecological value and maintain existing connectivity amongst them.
  
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  Take special action for vulnerable species, habitats and ecosystems.
  
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  Apply the ecosystem approach for landscape planning to ensure that ecological function is given due weight alongside conventional socio-economic considerations.
  
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  Increase in appropriate places the numbers of hedges, ponds, water-filled ditches, patches of woodland, scrub and extensively managed grasslands and field margins.
  
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  Accommodate change by facilitating the movement of species to track suitable climate conditions and habitat through the countryside. The enlargement of existing sites should be explored.
  
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  Create ecologically functional corridors (e.g. riparian habitats, hedgerows, forest strips) and stepping stones between nature conservation sites to allow dispersal and migration of species. The concept of an ecological network implies measures to conserve the integrity of the natural systems on which species and habitats depend. Corridor creation is a strategic and dynamic concept that could provide a framework to redress previous fragmentation.
  
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  Take up strategic measures that ensure connectivity across the wider landscape. These include safeguarding of potential sites, buffer zones, enlargement of core areas, stepping stones, and habitat restoration.
  
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  Facilitate migration and adaptation potential by locating nature conservation sites with reference to focal species or community distribution, such as in their core areas or on their extreme boundaries.
  
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  Ensure adaptive management, which by monitoring and responding to changes and activities enables action to be modified on the basis of past experience.
  
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  Co-ordinate ecological networks regionally, but manage locally in association with local authorities-governmental and NGOs–and in dialogue with local stakeholders.
  

Added value is provided by restoration schemes, since they can provide links or corridors between isolated nature reserves or create space in which species may survive.

The range of policy options to achieve this includes legislation, market-based instruments, guidance, insurance and collective action, as well as use of the planning and development process.

The maintenance and restoration of diverse and functioning ecosystems across the wider terrestrial, freshwater and marine environment must be a guiding principle as we move to make all our policies resilient to and protective against adverse climate change impacts.

Plans to deal with climate-induced disasters should identify not only the damage to human settlements but also to local ecosystems on which they depend.

This approach would protect ecosystems both as economic mainstays of local people and as havens of biodiversity.

The major difficulties are related to the still unclear landownership within and near protected areas, insufficient staff in the Park Administration Units, the reorganisation of the Environmental Agencies, insufficient staff, and lack of economic compensation mechanisms.

The range and extent of ecosystem services provided the Nature 2000 Network and other protected areas are often not recognised, but they contribute to a variety of human needs (e.g. clean water, air, recreation, flood protection).

They form the central pillar to maintain the critical mass and variety of services necessary to cope with changing conditions. It is vital to maintain these areas as space for nature, even if the species for which they had been originally designated may have moved away.

They will provide necessary habitat for other shifting species.

Maintaining genetic and species diversity is important for ecosystem function, since it may increase ecosystem resilience by ensuring that enough redundancy of response capacity exists to maintain ecological processes and to protect against unforeseen disturbances.

Therefore conservation areas should encompass large areas, including both a broad range of habitats and a high genetic and species diversity.

National network contains 956 protected areas, covering about 7.8% of the country’s surface, in accordance with the rules of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

These areas were identified by studies carried out by Romanian research institutes under the advisement of the Romanian Academy.

Protected areas include biosphere reserves, Ramsar sites, world heritage sites, national parks, natural parks, nature reserves, nature monuments and strictly protected scientific reserves.

Through Governmental Decision no. 2151/2004 and 1143/2007 the surface grew up to 7%.

A part of the protected areas are botanical, based on the presence of one or more threatened species or on the landscape value of the area.

The following adaptation principles are fundamental to conserving biodiversity under changing climatic conditions:

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  take action now;
  
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  maintain and increase ecosystem resilience;
  
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  accommodate change;
  
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  develop knowledge and facilitate knowledge transfer;
  
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  use adaptive conservation management