The transition towards climate neutrality that the European Union is undergoing may face challenges concerning the social acceptance of decarbonisation policies, due to a lack of effective public engagement and insufficient consideration given to the socio-economic impact of the transition. As climate policies evolve and start becoming more encompassing, potential regressive effects could directly impact consumers and households, especially those most vulnerable.
Tackling energy poverty and pursuing a just transition are among the most relevant methods for addressing the socio-economic impact. However, this report highlights the limitation of the current approach to dealing with energy poverty and just transition.
Romania’s efforts to mitigate energy poverty and ensure a just transition lack key governance features and leave substantial implementation gaps. Financing mechanisms, institutional responsibilities or targets and clear timelines for implementing policies and measures are sparse or not mentioned at all in Romania’s main strategic climate planning documents, the National Energy and Climate Plan and Long-Term Strategy, or the draft Romanian Energy Strategy 2022-2030, with a 2050 perspective.
This is particularly evident for the current approach to dealing with energy poverty and just transition. Energy poverty has long been treated as an isolated phenomenon, being insufficiently integrated in broader strategic documents. While there is some variation among strategies, none manages to address the issue in a compelling manner and the planned interventions are largely inadequate.
The contribution of national strategies to ensuring a fair transition is similarly uncompelling. The national framework for just transition lacks a definition for it and the concept is oftentimes coupled with measures to tackle energy poverty or addressing the coal phaseout, leaving other carbon intensive areas unaddressed. While the significant focus given to education and green jobs is important, Romanian strategies fall short on other just transition topics such as economic diversification, gender-based effects and policies, redevelopment of the affected areas.
The engagement and implication of the public in the design of Romanian climate policy have also proven insufficient, as it seems likely that not even the requirements for public participation of the Governance Regulation have been properly implemented. The analysis and survey that EPG conducted for this report highlight the lack of transparency and the informational gaps in the process of drafting climate policy, as authorities showed deficiencies in communicating with the public.
To anticipate and cushion an upcoming greenlash against climate policies that can emerge as a result of the current policymaking shortcomings, the current planning process should consider the following recommendations.
Energy poverty:
- Integrate energy poverty as a cross-cutting topic across legislation in order to have a comprehensive and coherent framework.
- Define targets for energy poverty, clear up institutional responsibilities and set up a data collection and monitoring system.
- Develop and implement an integrated energy poverty action plan which should include clear and targeted social assistance measures, going beyond financial handouts and focuses on addressing the systemic causes of poverty.
- Establish an energy poverty action group at the government level to integrate and coordinate the governance efforts.
- Set-up one-stop-shops at the local level.
Just transition:
- Offer a just transition definition and set objectives in national climate strategies.
- Provide a plan or framework for economic and educational transformation, by offering targeted financial support and tailoring the plan to the local particularities.
- Address other social consequences of the transition, such as the impact on women, loss of cultural identity and address the risk of school dropout for children in just transition regions.
Public participation:
- Allocate additional resources (both human and financial) to the implementation of the public participation process.
- Set clear and detailed procedures for public participation.
- Ensure early engagement, at the incipient stages of drafting documents and define in legislation what is considered as reasonable timeframes for consultations.
- Enhance transparency and access to information by making information publicly available through different channels in the early stages of the consultation process.
- Enable different formats and create avenues for public participation to foster more input from stakeholders/citizens.
- Enshrine in legislation a permanent stakeholder engagement platform on climate policy with representatives of industries, unions, NGOs, academia, research institutes, and local authorities.
- Ensure that the input of the public and stakeholders is effectively incorporated in the final documents and facilitate feedback loops.
Ana-Maria Niculicea, EPG Researcher
Ana-Maria Niculicea is a Researcher at Energy Policy Group focusing on aspects relating to climate governance and the social acceptance of the transition. She holds a MSc in Politics, Economics and Philosophy from University of Hamburg and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from National University of Political Studies and Public Administration.
Contact: ana.niculicea@enpg.ro