Draft amendment to Law on establishing "Danube Delta" Biosphere Reserve, tacitly adopted by the Senate

The legislative proposal for amending and supplementing Law no. 82/1993 on the establishment of the "Danube Delta" Biosphere Reserve initiated by PSD parliamentarians and a deputy from minorities, Ibram Iusein, was tacitly adopted by the Senate on Monday, by fulfilling the term for debate and adoption.

In 2019, a large draft amendment to Law no. 82/1993 on the establishment of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve was submitted in Parliament, which went through all the parliamentary stages and was adopted in the meeting of the Chamber of Deputies on November 24, 2020 with 135 votes "for" and 86 abstentions.

Upon the notification of President Klaus Iohannis, the Constitutional Court by Decision no. 70/2021 unanimously admitted by vote the objections of unconstitutionality submitted by him and declared the draft law adopted in 2019 unconstitutional in its entirety.

The head of state formulated a notification of a priori unconstitutionality of the draft, a first argument being that the normative act was adopted as an ordinary law, although in its content there are provisions that fall within the field of regulation of the organic law.

The initiators of the legislative proposal to amend Law no. 82/1993, which is currently under parliamentary debate, eliminated the articles declared unconstitutional and resubmitted the normative act.

According to the explanatory memorandum, the legislative initiative is the result of extensive debates with all stakeholders - Tulcea County Council, Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration (DDBRA), fishermen's associations and tourism operators in the Delta and with central public authorities.

There are a number of substantial changes to the law, including the introduction of two new areas - fish-sparing and the differentiation between wild and unmanaged beaches, which will lead to better resource conservation and better beach management. Also, the composition of the Advisory Board of Directors is modified, so that it can become functional and it is established by law that it be convened at least twice a year, it is explained in the document.

The access conditions in the strictly protected areas are also modified, so that this can only be done with an authorized reservation guide or with the relevant staff. Last but not least, the amount of contraventions is updated and the finding procedure is simplified.

The draft will be debated and adopted in the Chamber of Deputies, for decision.