Companies which generate or possess waste with which they carry out transactions, those that carry out waste management activities, as well as territorial-administrative units (TAU) will have to enforce these new provisions, which include the following:

• The requirement to report income obtained from waste transactions to the Environmental Fund Administration (EFA) and pay a contribution of 2% of this for all types of waste. The related amount is retained at source, but the requirement to report income and pay the funds to the EFA lies with the companies that collect and/or recover the waste. 
• A contribution of 2 RON/kg must be paid by companies that carry out a series of waste management activities on behalf of organizations that implement the extended producer responsibility (OIEPR), involving the following types of waste: packaging, batteries and accumulators, electric and electronic items, and tires. This contribution is paid for the difference between the quantities which the companies report to OIEPR as being managed by them and the quantities they actually manage as identified by the EFA. 
• Changes to the calculation methodology for the contribution of 50 RON/ton for landfilled municipal waste, which is reported and paid by TAU. This provision will mostly affect those TAU which have not yet organized a public waste management system.

Furthermore, the ecotax for plastic carrier bags, except those manufactured in line with the requirements of Standard 13432:2002 from materials that allow recovery through composting or biodegradation, has been increased from 0.1 RON/piece to 0.15 RON/piece. To inform end users, the value of the ecotax must be visibly displayed at the selling point.

New clarifications have also been introduced for hotels and food companies on the management of packaging and the management of waste generated from packages used.

The recycling and recovery targets are presented in detail for the period 2019-2025, and starting 2023 a gradual increase in these targets has been introduced.

The draft law for the approval of the Ordinance had already been registered at the Romanian Senate for debate.

Next steps

Please do not hesitate to contact us to find out more and speak with our experts about how to comply with these new regulatory requirements in relation to environmental protection.