The Federation of Forestry Unions SILVA is organizing a protest rally in Victoriei Square on Tuesday, together with two other federations, and is warning that the reorganization of Romsilva needs a viable project, negotiated with all responsible parties, not a pretext for plundering the forest patrimony.
"A superficial or wrong reorganization plan, intentional or not, can lead to the loss of this exceptional heritage of Romania. We do not want to be part of such destruction, nor can we legitimize a new minister who does not have sufficient knowledge of forestry. The reorganization of Romsilva following a project made on the sidelines is a mistake that can have dramatic consequences," according to the quoted source.
The trade unionists emphasize that the new Minister of the Environment, Diana Buzoianu, did not want to talk to them and listen too much to the arguments of the professionals and specify that she prefers environmental NGOs.
"The new minister responsible for the fate of those who care for the forest did not want to talk to us. She did not want to listen too much to the arguments of the professionals. Ms. Buzoianu prefers the company of environmental NGOs, as she has personal experience in collaborating with them. Without intending to offend anyone, we must say that the role of the forest is more complex, the functions of the forest are both environmental, but also economic and social. The fierceness of maintaining an unfounded project to reorganize Romsilva is incomprehensible. Why refuse to collaborate with professionals? It is hard to believe that she is blindly blind just out of pride or just because the issue of reducing expenses must be brought to a successful conclusion," the SILVA press release also states.
Foresters argue, in this context, that adapting forestry to climate change requires high-quality professional expertise and Romania has a good forestry school and valuable professionals, as demonstrated by the fact that some of the most valuable forests with rich biodiversity are located here.
"The fate of Romania's forests cannot be determined by non-professionals or a handful of politically-approved specialists, all others being ignored. From the very beginning, we asked the new minister to create a working group made up of specialists to get involved in the Romsilva reorganization project. The fact that we are the only country in the EU where forests are assigned to the Ministry of Environment should have been another argument in favor of creating this working group that would involve specialists from several sectors and institutions with responsibilities in forest management. We are referring here to professional foresters from Romsilva, but also to those from the private sector, from wood exploitation and processing associations, from the furniture industry, from unions and from local administrations where communities are dependent on forests," the statement added.
According to the document, signed by the leader of the SILVA Federation, Silviu Geană, Romsilva is interesting because it manages a fabulous heritage, has cantons and cabins in particularly beautiful tourist areas, has trout farms, thoroughbred horse studs, hunting grounds, a 4-star hotel in Bucharest and a museum.
Earlier this month, Environment Minister Diana Buzoianu indicated that the reorganization of Romsilva is linked to the fulfillment of a milestone in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) that must be met urgently, because there is no more time and we risk blocking some money that Romania needs.
"I hope that this opportunity for reorganization is not missed just in the idea of blocking some things that have happened so far, but that we help Romsilva with some perhaps clearer, more measurable performance criteria, which can be tracked and achieved by you," Diana Buzoianu declared on July 4.
Tuesday's protest in front of the Government will take place between 11:00 and 14:00 and is organized by the Silva Federation together with the Federation of Railway Transporters' Unions of Romania and the National Federation of Labor, members of the Meridian National Trade Union Confederation.
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