Democratic Party MP and chairwoman of the Committee on Culture, Tourism and Diaspora, Ina Zhupa, has opposed the government’s initiative to amend the law on Environmental Impact Assessment, saying that the bill cannot serve as an alternative to repealing Law 21/2024 on Protected Areas.
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According to Zhupa, an Environmental Impact Assessment is a mechanism for evaluation and decision-making, but it cannot restore the level of protection that was lost after the change in the legal framework.
She recalled that the European Parliament has called for the annulment of the amendments approved in 2024. Meanwhile, on May 14, 2026, Zhupa submitted to Parliament a bill to repeal Law 21/2024, considering this measure the only genuine solution for guaranteeing the protection of protected areas.
Ina Zhupa’s full statement:
Law 21/2024 cannot be fixed through a bill on Environmental Impact Assessment. It must be repealed.
The government has opened for public consultation a bill providing for additions and amendments to Law No. 10 440, dated 07.07.2011, “On Environmental Impact Assessment,” as amended.
The initiative seeks to intervene in the EIA law itself, including the concept of an “Appropriate Assessment” for projects that may affect Special Areas of Conservation. But this wording highlights the problem precisely: amendments to the EIA law cannot resolve the consequences created by Law 21/2024 on Protected Areas.
Even if the procedure is strengthened, an EIA remains an instrument for assessment and decision-making. It operates within the material legal framework, which defines the interventions permitted and prohibited in a protected area.
Law 21/2024 has changed the protection regime and made possible interventions that were previously restricted or prohibited. For this reason, an EIA procedure cannot restore the protection that has been lost.
The bill itself provides for the “Appropriate Assessment” to be used to determine the impact of projects on Special Areas of Conservation. Under the bill, development may be approved when the assessment concludes that no significant effects will be caused to the integrity of the area.
The main question is who decides what can be developed in that territory. The answer is linked to the substantive law regulating Protected Areas, namely Law 21/2024.
Consequently, a bill concerning EIA cannot be used as a substitute for repealing Law 21/2024.
The European Parliament has called for the repeal of the 2024 amendments to the law on Protected Areas and has linked this issue directly to compliance with European Union standards on nature protection.
On May 14, 2026, I submitted to Parliament a bill to repeal Law 21/2024, and this is the only genuine solution. Any other alternative constitutes an attempt to continue the destruction of protected areas, merely with more acceptable packaging.
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