- In southern Transylvania, the ADEPT Foundation helps conserve High Nature Value farmland, where some grasslands host more than 50 plant species within relatively small areas, while also supporting small-scale farmers and local community economies.
- The Milvus Group protects biodiversity by monitoring species and migration routes, restoring habitat connectivity and developing wildlife crossings; more than 3,000 animals have been rescued and rehabilitated through the organisation’s programmes.
- At the Arcuda Drinking Water Treatment Plant, a critical infrastructure facility serving Bucharest, 385 plant species, 49 bird species and three protected habitats of Community interest have been identified.
The “Romania Unfolds” platform, initiated by Veolia Romania, continues its series of sustainability stories from local communities with a new episode dedicated to SDG 15 – Life on Land. This time, the documentary miniseries approaches biodiversity from a different perspective: people are not always merely a source of pressure on nature; they can also become part of the solution.
From communities that have shaped some of Europe’s most valuable agricultural landscapes over generations, to projects that restore connections between habitats, and a haven for hundreds of species that has developed around infrastructure essential to Bucharest, the three stories featured in the episode illustrate different ways in which nature and human activity can coexist.
“Biodiversity is not a decorative feature of development, but the natural infrastructure on which the water we drink, the resources we use, and the resilience of our communities depend. The challenge is no longer simply to limit our impact on nature, but to integrate the protection and regeneration of ecosystems into the way we operate and develop our activities every day. Arcuda demonstrates very clearly that this is possible: infrastructure serving millions of people can, at the same time, provide a refuge for biodiversity. This is the kind of progress we need – one in which development and nature do not compete for the same space, but evolve together,” said Mădălin Mihailovici, CEO of Veolia Romania.
Biodiversity as a community legacy
The first story takes us to southern Transylvania, where the exceptional biodiversity of the grasslands has been preserved not in the absence of people, but also partly thanks to the way local communities have lived in and worked these landscapes for generations.
Approximately 50% of Romania’s 4 million hectares of pastures and hay meadows are part of High Nature Value farmland, compared with around 30% of agricultural land at European level, while some of these grasslands contain more than 50 plant species within relatively small areas.
Since 2004, the ADEPT Transylvania Foundation has been working alongside rural communities to conserve these landscapes and ensure their responsible use. The Târnava Mare area has become the largest agricultural Natura 2000 site in Romania, while initiatives developed together with local farmers support both grassland management and local products, as well as the rural economy.
Nature needs routes without borders
A species cannot be protected without the habitat on which it depends. Across Europe, 19% of bird species are threatened or near threatened with extinction, while in Romania the figure rises to 27% among assessed breeding bird species.
Since 1991, the Milvus Group has contributed to protecting the country´s natural heritage through species monitoring, habitat management, educational programmes, and rescue and rehabilitation activities, through which more than 3,000 animals have been rescued to date.
The organisation also runs projects focused on brown bears and other large mammals, including the development of wildlife crossings, which allow animals to safely cross roads and railway lines and help preserve connectivity between habitats.
Arcuda: when critical infrastructure becomes a haven for biodiversity
On the outskirts of Bucharest, another model of coexistence between human activity and nature has emerged in a less expected setting. The Arcuda Drinking Water Treatment Plant, Bucharest’s first facility of its kind and one of the first in Romania, treats approximately 500,000 m³ of water drawn from the Dâmbovița River every day.
Across the site’s 136 hectares, however, 385 plant species, 49 bird species and three protected habitats of Community interest have also been identified, turning Arcuda into a genuine haven for biodiversity.
Through habitat management, invasive species control and its “zero pesticides” policy, Apa Nova București helps maintain the site’s ecological balance, demonstrating that critical infrastructure and nature can coexist.
The three stories begin from different realities but convey the same message: biodiversity does not exist separately from people. From rural community practices and habitat connectivity to the way we manage a city’s infrastructure, protecting nature also means protecting the relationships that allow species, habitats and communities to coexist.
With its seventh episode, Romania Unfolds continues to highlight local initiatives that turn the principles of sustainable development into concrete action and show how caring for nature can become part of the way communities grow and manage their resources.
ABOUT VEOLIA
Veolia, a global leader in environmental services, works every day to build ecological security for the benefit of public health and the competitiveness of industries and regions. With 215,000 employees across five continents, working closely with local communities, and thanks to its cutting-edge technologies, the group cleans up pollution, reduces carbon emissions, and regenerates resources through concrete solutions that combine its expertise in water and water technologies, waste - including hazardous waste management, and local energy. In 2025, the Veolia group served 110 million people with drinking water and 97 million with sanitation, produced 45 million megawatt hours of energy, and treated 64 million tons of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE, Fortune 500, SBF 120) generated consolidated revenue of €44.4 billion in 2025. www.veolia.com
In Romania, Veolia provides water and energy management solutions. With more than 3,600 employees, the company acts strategically at local level to deliver essential services to the highest quality standards and support the development of smart cities, serving over 2.1 million consumers. Over more than 25 years of activity, Veolia Romania has generated a direct economic impact of more than €2.31 billion.
At global level, Veolia integrates biodiversity protection into its operations through dedicated ecosystem conservation and regeneration plans. In 2025, the Group implemented 80% of its biodiversity action plans across the 154 sites identified as sensitive, with the objective of reaching 85% by the end of 2027.