Oltenia, a historical region in southern Romania, is facing a catastrophic environmental crisis. Effects of climate change have lead to sandstorms that are now reaching all the way to Bucharest, the country’s capital, over 200 kilometers away. What was once green meadows and forests facing the banks of the Danube river is now a “sand sea,” with more than 800 square kilometers engulfed in it. The crisis is the result of a combination of global warming and agricultural policies implemented in the 1970s and 1980s.
A new documentary by Octavian Berceanu, a Bucharest lawmaker, and environmental activist, titled “Desert in Romania: When sand swallows history.” It shows how the effects of climate change are threatening parts of Europe and is a reminder of what can happen when you ignore environmental sustainability for too long. Watch this film to get an understanding of the environmental warning and know that Europe and the world need to act now.
