1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Bucureşti
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Reabilitarea Ecologica a Salbei de Lacuri de pe raul Colentina
Short description of the intervention
The major objective of the project is the ecological recovery of five of the most important lakes of Bucharest in order to strengthen its tourist potential and attract new investments and tourists. The following lakes went under construction: Băneasa, Herăstrău, Floreasca, Tei, Pantelimon II. (1)
Address

Bucuresti
Romania

Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Please specify “other type of area” before implementation of the NBS
Blue areas
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
unknown
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2004
End date of the intervention
2007
Present stage of the intervention
Goals of the intervention
1. Protecting the environment by improving the quality of surface water; (1)
2. Eliminating the health risk for the population by achieving the planned greening. (1)
3. Protecting the city from floods (2)
4. Increasing tourism (2)
Quantitative targets
1. Increasing the value of the land in the vicinity of the arranged lakes with approximately 20% of the land price (1)
2. Attracting investment in the area of ​​the five lakes in the amount of 2.5 million EURO within three years from the implementation of the project (1)
3. Creating 500 new jobs within 5 years of the project, generating salary incomes 15% higher than the average income in Romania (1)
4. Protect existing ihtiofauna in lakes and ensure specific habitat; (2)
Monitoring indicators defined
1. Amount of land value increased (1)
2. Amount of jobs created (1)
3. Amount of EU funds attracted (1)
Implementation activities
1. Rehabilitation of dams (2)
2. Cleaning and decoloring of lakes (1)
3. Protection and bank consolidation (1)
4. Restoration of the safety area landscape for integration in the tourist circuit(1)
5. Restoration of existing hatchways and locks;(2)
6. Greening and controlling water by removing deposits that have accumulated since their arrangement until now;(3)
7. Restoration of damaged pines and banks from the perimeter of lakes;(3)
8. Creating the necessary infrastructure for the reintroduction of the lakes in the tourist circuit of Bucharest;(3)
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Blue infrastructure
Lakes/ponds
In-land wetlands, peatlands, swamps, and moors
Amenities offered by the NBS
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Regulating services
Coastal protection
Flood regulation
Habitat and supporting services
Habitats for species
Cultural services
Tourism
Scale
Spatial scale
Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level
Beneficiaries
Governance
Governance arrangements
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
This was an innovation conducted by the Municipality of Bucharest
Key actors - initiating organization
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Local government/municipality
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Yes
Please specify the "Regional Directive/Strategy"
This innovation was connected to the EU Phare 2004-2006 Program for Economic and Social Cohesion, aiming at Improving regional infrastructure to support economic development
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Yes
Please specify the "local regulation/strategy/plan"
The intervention is mentioned and approved as a part of the Municipality's Decision No. 376 from 13.12.2007 (7)
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The directive of Natura 2000, declared the Cernica lake (also a part of the Colentina network but not taken into consideration in the current intervention), special avifauna protection areas as an integral part of the European ecological network (1) The project received funding from the ERDF programme. (7)
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify the general plan with GI/NBS section
The intervention is mentioned in the Development Program for Bucharest Municipality (2005-2008), (6)
If there is a relevant strategy or plan, please specify the theme / type of the plan.
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
There is a project under the directive of Natura 2000, which declared the Cernica lake (also a part of the Colentina network but not taken into consideration in the current intervention), special avifauna protection areas as an integral part of the European ecological network (1)
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The intervention was financed up to 85% of the costs under the Regional Operational Program 2007-2013, Priority 5 - Sustainable development and tourism promotion (7)
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Financing
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
16.000.000 milion euros
Non-financial contribution
No
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Please specify technological innovation
The last time when the lakes were cleaned was in 1970, so they became an infected area for the city's inhabitants (4). The rehabilitation and the ecologization of five of the most important lakes of Bucharest helped to strengthen its tourist potential and attract new investments and tourists. (1)
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
In 2003, the municipality rehabilitated another pond, the Cismigiu Pond, a similar lake with the discussed innovation, also poorly taken care of (5)
Replicability/Transferability
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Description of environmental benefits
Unknown
Economic impacts
Description of economic benefits
Unknown
Social and cultural impacts
Description of social and cultural benefits
Unknown
Type of reported impacts
Indicators
Unknown
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of August 2020
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
List of references
1. Agentia pentru Dezvoltare Regionala (2008), Hotarare, Available at https://www.adrbi.ro/media/1087/95.pdf (Accessed 18-8-2020)
2. Ziua (2005), "CGMB investeste 16 milioane de euro in barajele raului Colentina", Available at https://media.imopedia.ro/stiri-imobiliare/diguri-pentru-bucuresti-2110-print.html (Accessed 18-8-2020)
3. Ministerul Dezvoltarii Regionale, Administratiei Publice si Fondurilor Europene, NOTĂ
privind aprobarea proiectelor de infrastructură pentru finanţarea din mPhare CES 2003 (2005), (Website not available in 2020)
4. HotNews (2012), Cum se degradeaza lacurile Bucurestiului, dupa 20 de ani de nepasare a administratiei locale, Available at http://www.hotnews.ro/stiri-administratie_locala-12810007-video-reportaj-cum-degradeaza-lacurile-bucurestiului-dupa-20-ani-nepasare-adminsitratiei-locale.htm (Accessed 18-8-2020)
5. Municipiul Bucuresti (2008),Strategia de dezvoltare a Municipiului Bucuresti, Protectia Mediului, (Website not available in 2020)
6. Primaria Municipiului Bucuresti (2008), Programul de Dezvoltare al Municipiului (2005-2008), Available at https://issuu.com/alexanderprodan/docs/analiza_asupra_programului_de_investitii_a_pmb_200 (Accessed 18-8-2020)
7. Monitorul Oficial al Municipiului Bucuresti, no.12/2007, Available at http://doc.pmb.ro/monitorul_oficial/2007/dec_2007/volumul_1.pdf (Accessed 18-8-2020)
Interview comments
E-mail sent in order to gain access to monitoring reports.
Comments and notes
Additional insights
In 2007, the General Council of Bucharest approved the economic indicators for a project to rehabilitate the Colentina lake, clean up the adjacent areas and introduce them in a tourist circuit. The project, worth about 33 million euros, should have been financed in proportion of 85 percent of European funds. A year before, in 2006, the Capital City Hall asked the Government to transfer to the patrimony the 3 lakes located at Apele Romane in order to be able to carry out a unitary development project. With the change of mayor in 2008, this project was forgotten, although it was the only one in the last 20 years that treated the Colentina lake chain as a whole. (4)