Superficial inspection by the Cluj Forest Guard in the Someș-Țibleș forest district

Plunder in the Rodna Mountains National Park #4

Bucharest, 4 March 2024 – Today Agent Green publishes the fourth episode of the investigation series “Plunder in the Rodna Mountains National Park”, exposing the substandard performance of the Cluj Forest Guard during an inspection in forests managed by the Someș-Țibleș forest district.

The inspection was led by engineer Ioan Rus, an inspector with the Cluj Forest Guard. After hours in the forest district office, during which Agent Green’s investigators provided the clarifications requested by the Guard, the inspector was discouraged by the rain and suggested postponing the inspection until spring. Before the weather deteriorated, he had said that he would not visit more than 1–2 of the reported locations anyway.

The organization’s representatives insisted on carrying out the inspection on foot, but the inspector and the district representative chose to drive up forest roads built on illegally steep slopes, which had caused soil erosion several metres deep.

“Normally, the Environmental Guard should also have been present to fine the district for these illegal roads, as well as the Forest Guard for driving motor vehicles on them over waterlogged soil,” said Dan-Cătălin Turiga, Agent Green forestry engineer.

Engineer Bodiu Cosmin, responsible for the forest estate at the Someș-Țibleș forest district, admitted that the roads built on extremely steep slopes must be removed and the landscape “must be restored to its original condition”. Engineer Mureșan Mihail, head of the district, maintains that, if necessary, “we will even carry soil in baskets” to repair the wounded mountain.

The surprise came from the Forest Guard inspector. Mr Rus carried out the inspection with his hands in his pockets. He had neither a camera, a tape measure nor a device to measure the slope. “The roads must be kept for future logging,” he declared, to everyone’s surprise.

After they had walked further up the forest road, the almost breathless inspector changed his mind and declared: “as a practitioner I wouldn’t have cut it even if the management plan prescribed it, because it isn’t suitable”. The inspector also confided that “all branches of forestry, starting with education, are on their knees. The Forestry Research and Management Institute is on its knees. The management planning companies. The forest districts, Romsilva is an unmitigated disaster. The private districts have declined.”

All these astonishing statements are available in episode 4 of “Plunder in the Rodna Mountains National Park”, for free use and distribution: https://youtu.be/AwwfDMRw7vo

The next 2 episodes will expose the Forest Guard’s poor performance in the Telciu and Plaiurile Heniului forest districts.

Press contact:
Dan-Cătălin TURIGA, Agent Green forestry engineer, +40 728 273 782