The Danube delta: between environmental challenges, growing tourism, and communities on the brink / Romania / Areas / Homepage

“The Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Authority was established by a parliamentary law in 1990,” explains Georgeta Ivanov, an ecological inspector and advisor to the agency, in her office overlooking the Danube in Tulcea. “Today we face complex challenges, where environmental and social factors are intertwined.”

Among the most sensitive issues is the relationship with local activities, particularly fishing, which remains not only a tradition but an essential source of income for many villages. “Fishermen demand compensation, for example, because they cannot catch more profitable species like the sturgeon,” Ivanov continues. But the measures established by the government are often insufficient. On the Chilia branch, bordering Ukraine, the war has exacerbated the situation, with border controls and travel restrictions.

Climate change further complicates the situation. “The water level fluctuations are increasingly sudden. Last year, after the summer, the river dropped sharply, making it difficult for fishermen to reach their quotas.” Under these conditions, illegal fishing and poaching continue to thrive.

Agriculture, introduced on a large scale during communism, also creates tension: often unprofitable, it contributes to pollution. But there are also positive experiences: in some areas, wetlands have replaced fields, thanks to restoration efforts supported by the local population. Waterfowl have returned here, followed by nature tourism and birdwatching.

Tourism, until recently marginal, is now booming. But not always sustainably. “There’s a lack of awareness,” Ivanov observes. “Many want everything, immediately, without considering biodiversity.”

The delta’s natural transformations are made more critical by human intervention. Canals built in the last century for navigation have altered the distribution of sediment, which accumulates in some areas. Several lakes have subsided, encouraging eutrophication. Meanwhile, along the coast, depleted of sediment by dams, erosion is rampant.

“To address all this, we would need more resources,” Ivanov continues. “We have some autonomy: a scientific committee approves the management plan, and an advisory council includes local representatives. But our budget depends on the Ministry, and state funds are not enough.” European support is therefore essential. “Many of our projects rely on EU funding, especially from the LIFE program, but also from the NRRP and cohesion funds.”

The latter, included in the 2021–2027 Sustainable Development Program, finance interventions worth over €18 million.

The most substantial project (€9.16 million) concerns territorial control. Nicknamed “Balize” (marker buoys), it aims to protect habitats and species in the most sensitive areas. “The goal is to create unequivocal boundaries for these areas, stopping both tourist and local boats. This is essential,” says Ivanov. “With fewer than 50 rangers on 580,000 hectares, it’s difficult to monitor the territory.”

Other important projects concern the conservation of vulnerable species. One, worth €4.8 million, focuses on migratory fish, particularly sturgeon and Danube shad. Launched in 2020 and running until the end of 2025, the project is coordinated with others related to the conservation of the fish, which can reach several meters in length and whose caviar has made the fortune of many fishermen. Over 15,000 fry are currently being raised at the Tulcea floating station, which will replenish the fragile, recovering population.

Securing a future for the Delta communities is not only a matter of social justice, but a necessary condition for the very survival of the Reserve. The inhabitants have preserved traditional lifestyles and practices – from fishing to semi-wild farming – that exist only here, in a fragile balance with the environment.

Such wealth is accompanied by cultural and anthropological heritage, with the presence of ethnic and religious minorities such as the Lipovans, descendants of Old Believers who fled Russia in the 17th century, whose colorful houses and golden-domed churches dot the Delta’s flat horizon.

With an €8.7 million project – partly funded by European funds – the Reserve is developing a new management plan, which will update the one in place for the past ten years. The goal, Ivanov explains, is to better integrate environmental protection and human activities, centering the needs of local populations.

“Tourism represents an increasingly important opportunity,” she states, “but we need solutions that make it truly sustainable.” For this reason, the Reserve is focusing on formulas that allow residents to reap economic benefits without sacrificing traditional activities.

Among the planned initiatives are “gastronomic hubs”: places where fishermen can cook and serve local seafood dishes, increasing their earnings and reducing pressure on intensive fishing. The development of “fishing tourism” is also planned, allowing visitors to join the fishermen in their daily activities.

All this, she adds, without neglecting already established forms of slow tourism: from nature tourism to itinerant tourism, both along the waterways and along the trails, to rural tourism, which includes staying in the homes of the Delta’s inhabitants.

Not everyone is confident in the new management plan, which began public consultations in spring 2025. Criticisms concern not only the content, but also the process. In a lengthy letter sent to the Ministry of the Environment, the “La Porțile Deltei” foundation and the delta fishermen’s association denounced the difficulty for civil society to actively participate, partly due to the enormous size of the draft – over seven thousand pages.

According to the fishermen, the measures envisaged to combat poaching are insufficient, while recreational fishing, also practiced by residents, is excessively penalized. The real threats, they write, lie elsewhere: “in the pollution caused by hit-and-run tourism, with hundreds of speedboats, and in the presence of accommodation facilities fueled by poached fish.”

Whoever is right, the future of the Delta cannot ignore the active involvement of its communities. Beyond plans and funding, real participation is needed. Europe could – and perhaps already partly does – encourage it.