Currently, in the Republic of Moldova, approximately 1139 landfills are being exploited, covering a total area of 1224.0 ha. Landfills are organized by local public authorities and generally do not comply with environmental standards. According to statistical data, the amount of solid household waste is constantly increasing, from 2172.8 thousand m3 in 2008 to 3043.1 thousand m3 in 2018. About 90% of the amount of municipal waste collected by sanitation services has been disposed of through storage. The selective collection being partially organized in Chisinau municipality and some district centers. The rates of recycling and waste recovery are still very low.

Chemical substances

Most of the substances and chemicals used in the Republic of Moldova are covered by imports. Significant quantities of substances and chemicals are used in all sectors of the national economy and scientific institutions, including also by the population, mainly being used in the agricultural sector, by applying phytosanitary products and fertilizers. From 2007 to 2017, the quantity of these products used in large agricultural and peasant farms has increased by more than 3.2 times, from 20.1 thousand tonnes to 65.6 thousand tonnes, which means 69,1 kg per sown hectare. Reducing the risks associated with the use of chemical substances and plant protection products throughout the life cycle, the process of authorization, classification, labelling, restriction, including their management is imposed to be efficient functioning and at European Union standards.

During its activity, CNM was the initiator and organizer of the riverside sanitation campaigns in the Republic of Moldova. Thus, during the last 3 years, the CNM together with various state and private organizations, as volunteers, initiated the separate collection of waste within the rivers sanitation campaigns. The rule is to collect, first and foremost all types of plastic, as well as the glass separately from other waste, using bags of different colours to distinguish the type of waste. Subsequently, the plastic waste is delivered to ABS Recycling, which is the only company in the country, specialized in separate collection and sorting of waste.

The institutional framework

The state institutions empowered for: i) local waste management are the local public administration authorities; ii) elaboration of the normative framework - Ministry of Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment and Parliament of the Republic of Moldova; iii) the supervision and control of the compliance of the environmental legislation by the local economic agents, including in the process of waste management - Agencies and ecological inspections; iv) ensuring the collection and transportation of solid household waste - sanitation services, which mainly operate in urban areas and only in some rural localities. At the same time, local public authorities play an important role in waste management, given that the results regarding the collection and disposal of waste depend to a large extent on their ability to organize this, on the involvement of economic agents and civil society in the accumulation of financial resources.

The competence and attributions of the central specialized public authorities and of the local public administration in the management of production and household waste are determined by the Law on production and household waste.

Historically, the Republic of Moldova has followed a "pipe end" approach that focused on waste disposal at landfills - the principle of "from the cradle to the grave". The health and environmental risks associated with storage operations, reduced land availability for new landfills, increased transportation costs and associated impact, lost potential for many green jobs, and lost valuable recyclable resources (such as organic matter, glass, metal, paper and some types of plastics) thrown in the garbage dumps made the "pipe end" approach incompatible with the goals of sustainable development.

International and national strategic framework

The specific objectives and priority actions included in the field of intervention waste management of the Strategy for the development of the National Environment Center for the years 2020-2023 are based on the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda (target 3.9, 6.3, 11.3, 11.6, 12.2, 12.3, 12.4 , 12.5, 12.C), National Development Strategy ”Moldova 2030”, Environmental Strategy for the years 2014-2023, Waste Management Strategy in the Republic of Moldova for the years 2013-2027.

Bibliographical references:

1. Anuarul IPM – 2018 “Protectia mediului in Republica Moldova” http://ies.gov.md/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/04.08-ANUARUL-IPM-2018.pdf
2. http://statbank.statistica.md/pxweb/pxweb/ro/10 Mediul inconjurator/10 Mediul inconjurator__MED060/MED060300reg.px/table/tableViewLayout1/?rxid=b2ff27d7-0b96-43c9-934b-42e1a2a9a774
3. http://ies.gov.md/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/04.08-ANUARUL-IPM-2018.pdf
4. http://www.statistica.md/pageview.php?l=ro&idc=315&id=2279
5. HG 301 din 24.04.2014 cu privire la aprobarea Strategiei de mediu pentru anii 2.014-2023 și a Planului de acțiuni pentru implementarea acesteia
6. HG 248 din 10.04.2013 cu privire la aprobarea Strategiei de gestionare a deşeurilor în Republica Moldova pentru anii 2013-2027 http://www.legis.md/cautare/getResults?doc_id=114412⟪=ro#