Around 70 trees on the grounds of the former state circus menagerie in the Bucharest Circus Park have been cut down in recent weeks. The owner of the land is the well-known Gheorghe Stelian, who received from the ANRP 350 million lei in compensation for disputed rights bought from the legal owners. According to an extract from the land deed obtained by HotNews.ro, it is possible that the land will be sold in the next period, the land deed is blocked until Friday.

Sector 2 Mayor Radu Mihaju told HotNews.ro that the owner was fined for cutting down the trees, but that was all the agency could do.

• “We are talking about the land near the capital’s circus, the space occupied by the former menagerie. This is a private land plot owned by an individual with an area of ​​9,126 square meters.
• On July 19, 40 trees were cut, and on August 2 – another 30.
• In both cases, we applied fines according to HCGMB 304/2009, respectively 100 lei for each cut tree – 4000 lei on 19 July and 3000 lei on 2 August.
• This fine should be increased because it is inconvenient,” explained Mayor Radu Mihayu.

The mayor says that this land is included in the General Plan as a green zone, and the City Hall of the 2nd sector did not give any permission for construction or a detailed plan on this site. A town planning certificate was also not required.

According to an extract from the land deed requested from the Cadastre and contacted by HotNews.ro, the owner of the land is Gheorghe Stelian. He bought the land in 2007. The land was transferred to the ownership of Sector 2 of the Municipality of Bucharest – title no. 100389/16.08.2006, issued by the District Land Titles Commission – Bucharest Municipality, for Bohdan Tonolla, Christian Tonolla and Daniela Tonolla.

According to the land cadastral extract, the land register was blocked from 07/22/2022 to 08/04/2022. Usually, foreclosure is carried out when the land is sold.

According to the green cadastre of the municipality of Bucharest, the land appears as a green zone.

In accordance with Law 70/2013 on the approval of Emergency Government Order No. 114/2007: “changing the purpose of land designated as green spaces and/or provided for as such by urban planning documents, reducing their area or moving them is prohibited, regardless of their legal regime. Administrative or legal acts issued or concluded in violation of the provisions of 1 is recognized as absolutely invalid.”

How the capital city hall tried to return the land of the former circus housekeeper

The city hall tried to claim the plot of the park, on the territory of which was the former circus menagerie, as well as other lands under the same ownership, but won only partially, because the former menagerie was never returned.

• “Accepts the appeals filed by the appellants-defendants TONOLLA BOGDAN, GEORGE STELIAN and the COMMISSION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF BUCHAREST ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF PRIVATE LAND OWNERSHIP RIGHTS. Amends the contested civil judgment in part in the sense that: Recognizes in part the actions indicated by the plaintiff BUCHAREST MUNICIPALITY THROUGH THE MAYOR GENERAL.
• Recognizes the partial absolute invalidity of title No. 100389/16/08/2006 only with respect to the plot of 8,321.2 square meters (8,321.15 square meters in the title deed) located on Barbu Vaquerescu Street, Sector 2.
• Rejects as unfounded the request for recognition of the absolute invalidity of ownership rights No. 100389/16.08.2006 regarding a plot of land with an area of ​​3,198.20 square meters located on Circului avenue no. 5, sector 2 and a plot of land with an area of ​​9126.1 sq.m (9126.14 sq.m in the title deed), located at Dinu Vintila Street No. 12, sector 2. Rejects as unfounded the claim to establish the absolute nullity of the sales contracts, certified according to No. 371/29.01.2007 and No. 366/29.01.2007″, says the last sentence provided by the Bucharest Court on 12.12.2019.

In 2008, the City Council of Sector 2 approved the construction of a 19-story tower above the circus zoo with a detailed urban planning plan. Approval was granted by the decision of the local council no. 9 of February 2, 2009 with the approval granted by the City Hall on January 20, 2009. According to the documents on the website of the City Hall of Sector 2, on land with an area of ​​9,126 square meters at 12 Dinu Vintila Street, St. respectively, the menagerie of the state circus, a building with 5 basements, a basement floor and 19 floors.

“Severe” fines for cutting down trees

Since the beginning of the year, Bucharest has lost several hectares of green spaces, these are only the cases that we know about and wrote about. It is about a piece of Grozăvesti Park, Prisaca Dornei Park and a piece of green area on Fabrica de Glucoză Street.

The deforestation took place without warning and the perpetrators were fined 100 lei per tree cut, but if they pay within 15 days, they reach 25 lei per tree. They want to develop real estate projects worth millions of euros there.

The fine is ridiculous, so this practice has been common and will probably continue to be used if things don’t change. If it is profitable for investors, then the losses for the city are huge. Whether they are on public or private land, trees are doing their job and reducing pollution, and this great loss of vegetation is only making the situation we are in worse, more and more polluted air (we have pollution violations), everything more and more sick people, children with asthma and all kinds of allergies.

A fine of 100 lei was established by a decision of the General Council from 2009. It is about HCGMB 304/2009 regarding the rules for the protection of green spaces in the territory of the municipality of Bucharest, which provides for fines between:

• 50 lei and 100 lei for individuals;
• From 1,000 to 5,000 lei for legal entities.

In the case of protected trees, fines range from 300 to 1,000 lei for individuals and from 2,500 to 5,000 lei for legal entities.

The updated Law 24/2007 on the Regulation and Administration of Urban Green Spaces provides for significantly higher fines, but this applies to green spaces that are publicly accessible, local police say.

For example, for arbitrary felling or damage to trees and bushes, the fine is from 200 to 1,000 lei for individuals and from 1,000 to 5,000 lei for legal entities.

For reducing the area of ​​green spaces, fines range from 10,000 to 20,000 lei for each square meter of affected green area.

Another problem is that even the fines established by the decision of the General Council from 2009, which are ridiculously small, are not paid in full, because Law no. 203/2018 on measures to regulate the payment of fines for offenses provides that half of the minimum fine can be paid within 15 days. So it is half of 50 lei, which means 25 lei/cut tree.

Dan Trifoux, president of the Ecocivica association, says that three years ago it was a crime to cut down trees without a permit, but that provision has been removed.

• “Until 3 years ago, the vegetation in urban green areas was provided by the Forest Code as vegetation outside the forest fund, but which was covered by the provisions of the Forest Code in terms of sanctions. Thus, if at that time, if more than 3 m was cut, this act was criminal and you could receive a criminal fine or prison sentence.
• But this article was removed, and only the violation remained, based on the decision of the General Council of the Municipality of Bucharest and some sanctions.
• That’s why we’ve had a flurry of illegal logging lately because these owners of heavily vegetated land who want to build something on the land know it’s not a crime anymore and then they cut down and get a pretty small fine,” he explained to Dan Triff.

He says that the phenomenon can be stopped by increasing the fines and prescribing the act as a crime in the law. “Otherwise everything will be cut down,” says Dan Trifu.

Read also: Since the beginning of the year, Bucharest has lost several hectares of green spaces