Search

The circular economy and medical waste management (MWM) are important for protecting the environment and human health. In the healthcare sector, the circular economy can be applied by reusing medical equipment, recycling materials from medical waste and adopting more sustainable practices such as reducing energy consumption and using more environmentally friendly materials. Clearly, reusing medical equipment reduces the amount of medical waste and can reduce costs. The authors intend through this paper to address MWM in Romania within a more sustainable circular system, attempting to identify the pros and cons, as well as the limitations, of a massive shift of MWM to circular economy principles. The structure of this paper includes, following this introductory part (1): Theoretical background (2), Research methodology (3), Circular economy and the healthcare waste management system (4), Approaching healthcare waste management within a more sustainable circular system (5), Limits of the massive shift of MWM to circular economy principles (6) and Conclusions (7). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction, reuse, collection and recovery of recyclable materials are sustainable behaviors and people's awareness of them plays an important role in implementing strategies and policies in this field. The quantitative analysis performed on a group of 816 students of Politehnica University of Timisoara, aimed at finding answers to important environmental concerns and observing the students' behaviors of reuse and selective collection of the waste resulted from plastic containers, paper, aluminum, batteries, iron packaging waste, electronic equipment, used cooking oil and printer toner. The research has shown that 'increased amounts of waste' (63.5%) is among the first three concerns Romania has to deal with, besides 'air pollution' (67.9%) and 'deforestation' (63.7%). Moreover, the study highlights the existence of the behavior toward the selective waste collection among students (plastic – 60.3%, paper – 57.8%, and glass – 55.3%). although there are some areas (e.g., selectively collecting used cooking oil or printer toner, their level of knowledge regarding the color code for the recycling bins, etc.) that students still need to be familiarized with through different campaigns, trainings, courses, etc. The results can be used in the development of institutional strategies or of strategic documents targeting environmental protection and sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Romania can make a huge leap in development in the coming years using EU financial assistance, which is around 80 billion euros over the next 7 years. These funds will come through Cohesion Policy, the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and other European instruments. This paper highlights the funding opportunities for the 2021-2027 programming period, that a city benefits from, the aim of the paper being to create an integrated vision on the type of investments and actions that are needed in order to build a smart future for Romanian cities. The transition to a clean, circular economy and the stimulation of the efficient use of resources in urban areas in the long run can only be achieved through strong cooperation between local public actors and other urban actors, from the private or non-profit environment. Thus, this paper offers a long-term development vision on how to transform the Romanian cities in accordance with the current requirements of society, the intended implication being to raise awareness of all the stakeholders about their potential involvement in developing successful projects for their community so as not to miss any chance of development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the efforts to develop a sustainable, low carbon, resource efficient and competitive economy and ultimately the green economy in the European Union, circular economy is an important conceptual and practical approach with essential contribution. Latest developments in eco-innovation in Romania are those dedicated to implementing the circular economy, as a way to increase the waste recycling and the resource productivity (one of the lowest in the European Union). In this respect, the main objective of the paper is a theoretical and methodological grounding and analysis of some concepts, trends and issues required for the implementation of the green economy in the EU and Romania, as well as for the sustainable regional economic development. The role of creating and developing ecoindustrial parks, namely eco-innovation parks EInvP is not limited on their potential of increasing the resource efficiency but also to implementing and making work the new modern synergic and circular business models. In the paper we shall refer to some successful and pioneering circular economy enterprises or industrial eco-systems working in Romania, as good practices and pilot projects. The conclusions and recommendations refer to the importance of spatial eco-innovation represented by the industrial symbiosis as a high form of circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The imperative conditions for sustainable development both in Europe and around the world, waste collection is a fundamental goal, one way to achieve this is to develop circular economies. In this context, the paper analyzes the evolutions of the recycling rate of packaging waste by type of packaging in Romania compared to the 27 states of the European Union, as well as to other states in Europe. The analysis revealed that, among the 30 states included in the analysis, Romania moved from 28th place in 2006 to 23rd place in 2018, but is still quite far from the European Union average. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper resumes research on the current dimensions and implications of a sustainable development. Taking in consideration some of the latest theoretical insights and strategic approaches of the European Union for progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), a few trends and issues are analysed, also in the particular case of Romania. The close inter-correlation between most of the SDGs is highlighted, since they cannot be all reviewed here. For a more practical purpose, there will be analyses on the required and actual evolution in reducing the Romanian gap of some SDG progress indicators. Monitoring SDG 12 in an EU context focuses on progress made in decoupling environmental impacts from economic growth, in decreasing energy consumption and in tackling waste generation and management. The conclusions refer to conceptual or applied sustainable development insights and policy recommendation for promoting a more sustainable production and consumption pattern in a circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As sustainable development includes environmental protection and that is conditional on sustainable development, an institution's concerns in this regard must be considered as one of the priorities that will set development strategies and programs and will implement them in practice so that environmental protection be permanently taken into account. This paper aimed to highlight the concept of circular economy which refers to the harmonization of sustainable development needs of long-term humanity. It is necessary to optimize resource consumption so as to reduce the consumption of raw materials and energy and reuse them 100% if is possible, and how it is applied in Romania. In conclusion, performing the main principles of sustainable development is a necessity of time, which would result in effective results corresponding to the contemporary ecological provisions, the interests of the human society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting the circular economy (CE) is a fundamental prerequisite of the proposed 'European Green Deal' and the transition to the CE is a strategic objective of the European Union. Cohesion policy and other established public policies are taking a new approach, being adapted to the requirements of sustainable development. This research aims to highlight that green public procurement in combination with circular procurement is an effective tool through which public authorities can stimulate the circular economy transition. The methodology is based on the literature review, outcomes from the own previous research, the processing for analysis of data with tables and graphs, and the analysis and synthesis of recent strategic documents from the EU and Romania. The conclusions and recommendations refer to the premises and prospects of green public procurement for the promotion of the circular economy, also with reference to the agro-industrial field as a priority sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a feature of the green economy, circular economy proposes the re-use of resources used in products whose shelf life has come to an end or which have lost their usefulness to construct new objects, the same quality or even better. The circular economy model may be the ideal solution for relaunching sustainably the European economy which has suffered in recent years (2008-2012). In the circular economy, the value of products, materials and resources is maintained in the economy for as long as possible and the generation of waste minimised. In this paper we shall stress on issues of eco-innovation promoting the circular economy in Romania. One of the most important concepts for the new paradigm of circular economy and resource efficiency improvements is the industrial symbiosis, implemented in eco-innovation parks (EInvP) developed to optimize economic and environmental efficiency of the involved companies and communities. In practice using industrial synergy as an approach to commercial operations - using, recovering and redirecting resources for reuse - means resources remain in productive use in the economy for longer. We analyse here a successful good practice of industrial synergy in the agri-food sector implemented within the ECOREG EInvP of Suceava County. The conclusions point to the important economic, social and environmental benefits to raise awareness for regional eco-innovation and circular economy prospects in Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climatic changes and increasing needs of resources, in many cases incapable to satisfy the demand, have led to rethink the way of achieving economic growth, the concept of sustainable associated with the development trying to capture the concern that the present economic development does not bring any harm to the development opportunities of future generations. Romania, a member state of the European Union, recognizes the need for such an approach, ensuring a sustainable development and the transition to a green economy or circular economy being more and more frequently circulated or even being the object of assumed strategies. The current paper, based on data provided by the National Institute of Statistics, tries to capture Employment in two economic sectors the evolution of which should be in opposition if we consider the 'Green' criterion: Mining and quarrying - where operating, processing and utilization technologies are carbon-intensive, which is why there is a restriction of the dimensions of this sector; Water supply: sewerage, waste management and remediation activities are considered green activity, providing green jobs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the great challenges of humanity today is to manage the consumption of resources and increase their recycling. Current overconsumption constantly aggravates resource insufficiency, by producing an aggressive impact on the environment. The circular economy model is the way to provide the necessary resources and from politicians to companies and consumers the transition to this modern economic system requires responsibility. Worldwide there are concerns in this direction, looking for new ways of financing such sustainable models, both in production and consumption. The functioning of the circular economy model is not easy, it involves transition funds and consistent investments This study aims to analyse the degree to which specific circular economy strategies are known, understood and implemented in Romania. Also, the quantitative research undertaken on the Romanian market analyses the connection between various factors, such as the structure of the social capital, the field of activity, the number of employees, the investments in research-development-innovation, the organizational culture and the stage of the transition to the circular economy in which those companies are. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we aim to highlight the importance of developing the industry of biodegradable and compostable products - an essential component of a sustainable bioeconomy, in terms of reducing the impact of economic activities on the environment, as well as ensuring quality of life. Romania, a country member of the European Union, has adopted all European regulations in the field, whilst supporting the development of regulations, policies, strategies, support and financing designed to help investors in the market. In the first part of the paper, we will make a brief presentation of the current situation of the plastics industry and then present the main aspects of biodegradable and compostable products, for the theoretical understanding of the problems to be analyzed, as well as showcasing a clarification of the basic concepts and the links between them. In the last part, we will highlight the importance and benefits of the development of the market for biodegradable and compostable products (especially packaging), in the context of a sustainable bioeconomy, a renewable segment of the circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scientific article aims to highlight the importance of the transition from the linear economy to the circular economy and the business opportunities that can be developed based on the principles of this new type of economy. At the same time, the paper tries to determine the role of ICT's in developing such innovative and sustainable long-term entrepreneurial initiatives. Based on an empirical analysis, the results of the research showed that the circular economy produces positive effects on the medium and long term both from an economic point of view, as well as for the environment and health. Also, the results showed that Romania is at the beginning in the process of transition to the circular economy and it takes time, financing, regulations and state support for companies that have or want to start businesses based on certain strategies specific to the circular economy. On the other hand, the exhibitions in this scientific paper have shown that digital technologies are one of the main pillars that stands up the development of an innovative and inclusive long-term entrepreneurial initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid waste management has received increasing attention due to the urgent need to fulfill with the principles of the circular economy. Romanian waste generators have the obligation to maintain waste management by type of waste. By the principle of generator pays, a tax of 2% of the value of the waste sold by the generator was imposed on the collecting company. The collection of the tax is done by stopping at the source, so the obligation to pay to the Environmental Fund is the responsibility of the authorized company to take over the waste from the generator. The added value of this paper is the combination of accounting regulations and the role of the Romanian Environmental Protection Agency in this vast area of waste recycling. The purpose of this paper was to detail the accounting records related to the sale of generated waste to the company authorized for collection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular Economy (CE) is now central to debates and interventions that aim to transition systems towards greater environmental sustainability. Circular economy is part of green economy that includes human well-being, ecosystems resilience, efficiently use of resources and waste management. Romania as member of EU-28 make effort to make transition to green economy and this effort is reflected in macroeconomics indices linked and waste management indices. The aim of our paper is to analyses through statistical methods which macroeconomic index is the best predictor for recycling rate of e-waste for Romania in European context. By using the Eurostat and UNPD data we applied Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), multilinear regression, Pearson correlations, and Student t test. The results of SEM emphasis that for Romania, the best predictors for e-waste management are education level (direct effect) and people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (%), HDI, general government expenditure for environment protection (% in GDP) as indirect effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the paper is to make an x-ray of the potential of biological waste collection for the production of biofuels and fertilizers in Romania. It presents the existing legislative framework on bio-waste management as well as recycling technologies. A case study on the evaluation of the potential for selective collection of bio-waste for its anaerobic digestion is described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the issue of waste is a priority both at the level of the European Union and at the level of many countries of the world. It is even more important as a special emphasis is placed on changing the current economic model with a sustainable one, that of the circular economy. In this context, in this paper we addressed the issue of waste in Romania in close connection with the European Union. The paper includes an overview of the waste situation in Romania, while seeking to determine a synthetic waste indicator, named the aggregate waste indicator (AWI). Based on this, a ranking of the member states of the European Union was made, thus identifying the place occupied by Romania in the field of waste. The calculation of the AWI was done by going through four stages: selecting the necessary indicators and establishing the time period, normalizing the statistical data, aggregating the indicators and calculating the AWI. The ranking for the 4 selected years did not include all the state members. The lack of statistical data for certain states led us to exclude them from the calculations. If in the first three years Romania was in the second part of the ranking, in the last year it managed to position itself on the 12th place. The situation is explained by the low recycling rates of waste in Romania. However, Romania recorded good values compared to the European average in terms of waste generated. The ranking highlighted the fact that the first position went to Austria (in the first three years), respectively to Lithuania. Estonia has consistently been in last place. It should also be noted that some states have either risen in the rankings or fallen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public procurement is a mechanism through which the public sector can benefit from the latest technological processes and assistance from the private sector, while retaining its position as the main decision-maker in setting and implementing investment policies. This paper aims to make a quantitative analysis in an attempt to identify, to what extend, the contracting authorities in Romania, given the increased demand for the purchase of IT equipment caused by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the recommendations of the European Commission in this field, have used, in their tender documents, evaluation criteria/factors specific to circular purchasing. In addition, the analysis aims to establish how the recycling and circularity process can be determined from the early stage of the tender documents, when establishing the evaluation factors that will directly impact the contract winner. Using principal component analysis and the Cronbach coefficient alpha combined with "the Varimax" method, the nature and the weight of the evaluation factors have been identified in a circular procurement process, considering the best value for money. The final findings represent a mix of criteria for IT circular procurement to be used to push the suppliers to clean/green production and to pull the market to a circular economy sales and consumption paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the European Integration paradigm, the present paper aims to elaborate a set of prescriptions for the Romanian economic policy that would integrate the principles of circular economy. The hypothesis of this analysis consists of demonstrating the fact that accelerating the catching-up processes, respectively accelerating the convergence in real terms of the Romanian economy with the European average and reducing the socioeconomic disparities present in Romania, can be achieved based on the socioeconomic benefits resulting from integrating the principles of circular economy in the Romanian economic policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

E-waste and end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) are fast-growing waste streams in the EU and beyond that require specific collection and treatment activities to avoid environmental pollution and resource depletion fed by the linear economy model. This paper aims to investigate the links between e-waste and ELVs streams and the circular economy approach of the EU. Romania is examined as a relevant case study for the central and eastern European Region regarding: (i) the current e-waste and ELVs management deficiencies and challenges in line with circular economy principles promoted by EU; (ii) analysis of E-waste and ELVs flows data; and (iii) best circular economy initiatives related to e-waste and ELVs in Romania, including the opportunity to create new jobs in treatment activities that the simple operations from the first stages of e-waste recycling can produce locally and regionally in Romania. This work points out the current knowledge gaps and future research directions for these special waste streams in Romania and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boosting the externalities across the water, energy, food, and waste (WEFW) sectors is challenging, especially considering tightening constraints such as population growth, climate change, resource-intensive lifestyles, increased waste production, sanitary crises and many others. The nexus approach supports the transition to a more sustainable future because intersectoral trade-offs can be reduced and externalities exploited, making imperative for decision makers, entrepreneurs, and civil society to simultaneously engage, with respect to all the components of the nexus. This research addressed intersectoral synergies and trade-offs in the case of the WEFW nexus in Romania, judging from the perspectives of entrepreneurial activity and economic results. The objective of this research was to explore the nexus in-depth by statistically analyzing the financial and economic indicators reported by active enterprises at county-level, based on the Romanian Ministry of Public Finance data. Research results describe the effects of the policies implemented in the fields of WEFW sectors. At the same time, attention was paid to the quality of the entrepreneurial activity, analyzed from the perspective of economic performance. This paper fills a research gap regarding the WEFW nexus by resorting to an economic and entrepreneurial performance assessment in order to find sectoral pathways toward policy cohesion in Romania. Findings suggested the existence of major trade-offs among sectors, owing to the fact that each county has a different development degree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional Romanian food products are an integral part of local culture and spirituality. These food traditions have been formed over the centuries and represent a particularly important part ofthe development of a circular economy in rural areas. In order to contribute to the development of this sector of activity we conducted a study on consumer perception of traditional Romanian food products. The purpose of this work was to identify the structure of the studies and the future directions of research related to the image of traditional food products through the bibliometric study, as well as the identification of consumer trends, of these products through a survey based on the questionnaire. The results obtained indicate that traditional Romanian food products are consumed by the majority of respondents participating in the survey and that this sector ofactivity has continuity in its development and presents a clear interest among citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of the proposed research is to preserve the vernacular urban heritage of Romania by identifying realistic and innovative solutions for the conceptual and applied capitalization of the traditional technologies used in creating living spaces. This can be achieved by using modern methods, techniques, and tools (such as specific design methods and detailing, material mix design, specific material parameters, etc.) to redesign traditional Romanian housing entities, utilising existing construction materials and techniques predominantly of rural origin, empirically validated over the centuries, and reformatting them with modern scientific knowledge to generate a new model that is valid and compatible with current safety, aesthetic, and quality requirements. Earthen buildings, whether vernacular or constructed with qualified personnel such as craftsmen and traditional masons, use different techniques and construction technologies (rammed and poured, load-bearing walls, adobe bricks, mixed wood-earth structures, etc.) and were developed differently across the Romanian territory, depending on the climatic and relief zoning. By optimising these techniques and technologies, identifying their vulnerabilities and corresponding engineering solutions to counter them, and establishing pertinent fields of applicability in direct relation to their physical, mechanical, and durability characteristics and their evaluated bearing capacity, the conservation of the Romanian traditional housing legacy can be achieved. The opportunity of the proposed research is clearly connected to the current context of almost half of the Romanian population leaving for rural areas, including residential buildings made of earth. Supplementary, traditional building materials, like earth, clay, wood, etc., are based on primary natural resources, and they will generate ecologic housing concepts with a high degree of eco-efficiency in terms of use/re-use and recyclability, energy saving, and the health of the living space, in accordance with the general drive for resource savings and Circular Economy implementation in all fields, including the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the concept of circular economy has gained increasing traction around the world to create sustainable economic growth and reduce waste and environmental impact. Romania, like many other countries, has been working to adopt circular economy principles and practices in its own economy, with varying degrees of success. My research consists of a document analysis of the most recent Government Decision, no. 1172/2022 regarding the National Strategy for circular economy. I focused my research on the food and drinks sector, the main research objectives being to identify the problems and the solutions to the problems from the circular economy perspective in the sector mentioned. The main problems consist of low recycling rates, high food waste rates and the main solutions are found in education for a sustainable development to reduce the food waste and reducing the use of plastic in packaging and promoting the use of recycled materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation and treatment of waste is a current issue, an idea reinforced by various policies and documents, such as the environmental policy of the European Union, the Paris Agreement on climate change from 2015, the European Green Deal, but also in the context of sustainable development objectives of the United Nations Organization. The European Union aims to be as efficient as possible in terms of resources and to promote competitiveness in a circular economy. In terms of waste management, the European Union envisaged an order, prevention being preferred first. When the latter is not possible, it will go to reuse, recycling and recovery. The last place is assigned to sending waste to the landfill. Romania, as part of the European Union, will have to follow its provisions related to environmental issues in general and waste, in particular. The present article proposes a statistical analysis of the generation and treatment of waste in Romania during the period 2016-2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The management of packaging and packaging waste, a component of the environmental protection strategy, determined the development of rules at the European Union level since 1975. The diversification of packaging types and the increase in the amount of waste required finding new ways to improve waste management. For this, however, it is necessary to ensure an effective selective collection of packaging waste, and not only that. This article presents the new challenges of the guarantee-return system in Romania from the perspective of the obligations imposed on economic operators in the collection, transport and recycling of packaging subject to this system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of the study was to produce alternative binder materials, obtained with low cost, low energy consumption, and low CO2 production, by regenerating end-of-life (EOL) materials from mineral deposits, to replace ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The materials analyzed were ash and slag from the Turceni thermal power plant deposit, Romania. These were initially examined for morphology, mineralogical composition, elemental composition, degree of crystallinity, and heating behavior, to determine their ability to be used as a potential source of supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) and to establish the activation and transformation temperature in the SCM. The in-situ pozzolanic behavior of commercial cement, as well as cement mixtures with different percentages of ash addition, were further observed. The mechanical resistance, water absorption, sorptivity capacity, resistance to alkali reactions (ASR), corrosion resistance, and resistance to reaction with sulfates were evaluated in this study using low-vacuum scanning electron microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since municipal waste accounts for 7% - 10% of all waste generated in the European Union, this issue drums up major interest at the institutional level, given that increasing the levels of collected waste poses significant challenges to the environment and human health. The European Union adopted a legislative package which promotes the shift towards a more sustainable development model, known as the circular economy. The aim of this article is to analyze the dynamics of municipal waste management in Romania and Bulgaria in the European context, as there are deficiencies in these countries' implementation of the European waste management legislation. Eurostat's data for the 2000-2020 time horizon was used for the undertaken analysis. The results of the study show that both Romania and Bulgaria are facing similar challenges in terms of waste management due to the fact that some of the European directives have not been transposed into the national legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current context, marked by a profound insufficiency of resources with regards to the needs of mankind, the application of principles and efficient models of the circular economy needs to become a constant and sustained concern of every member state of the European Union. Therefore, Romania, a full member of the European Union, needs to align its circular economy objectives with the ones of the Union, transitioning from the linear economy to an economic model which can offer opportunities meant to reduce the pressure put upon the environment, and to confer a growth in competitiveness, innovation, and new jobs. An analysis of the dimensions of the circular economy in Romania, through some specific indicators used at the level of the EU, permits the outlining of a picture associated with the place occupied by our country in relation with the European average or other member states, and the measurement of the completion of desiderata assumed through the national or European plans or strategies regarding the circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]