The National Environmental Guard (GNM) commissioners will be equipped with bodycams and will be able to use drone footage as evidence in enforcing sanctions, announced the Minister of Environment, Waters, and Forests, Diana Buzoianu, on Thursday.
The government adopted on Thursday a resolution initiated by the Ministry of Environment to strengthen the GNM's activity and make operational the drones and bodycams acquired through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
Minister Buzoianu highlighted that the reform provides the legal framework and technical tools enabling commissioners to use bodycams and drone footage as evidence, minimizing the need for extra field visits. It also entails a reduction in management roles while expanding operational staff to promote more efficient and transparent inspections.
Through the NRRP, GNM has upgraded its control capabilities with 709 body-worn cameras, 16 drones, 271 dashcams, eight truck scanning systems, 16 special intervention vehicles, and 43 additional cars.
The reform is anticipated to enable quicker and more effective interventions at border crossings and ecologically high-risk areas, boost the efficiency of sanction enforcement, lower pollution and environmental crime, and reinforce Romania's standing in the OECD accession process. Additionally, it aims to raise recycling rates, decrease illegal waste deposits, and improve overall environmental protection.
Organizational changes within GNM include hiring 150 new field commissioners, reducing management positions from 72 to 64, cutting the number of deputy ministers from 3 to 2, and reorganizing directorates and services through mergers and structural optimization.
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