Three in four citizens consider climate change in Romania to have been significant in the last 30 years. Perception of extreme weather events

Climate change seems to be one of the biggest challenges facing humanity in the coming decades. The main goal of European policies, and not only, in this segment, is to keep the increase in the average annual temperature under control. Major investments from public and private funds seem to be moving in these directions, which will have an impact on overall society. In coping with this challenge, the perception of the citizens whose involvement in this approach is particularly important is of paramount importance.

From an objective point of view, according to Eurostat data, globally, after 2000, we have a significant increase in the near-surface temperature deviation, the values ​​recorded varying annually between 0.8 - 1.2 degrees Celsius [1] compared to the post-industrial period. (The average temperature deviation is an indicator that is calculated by relating the average annual temperature to the levels of the pre-industrial period (1850-1899). The situation is very similar for Europe, noting that here the variation is even more significant: between 1.5 and 2 degrees Celsius post-2000. An increase in the near-surface temperature deviation means more unpredictability and several extreme weather events, with major negative effects on people. Eurostat also provides data on climate-related economic losses. If in 1980, total losses amounted to 3.47 billion euros at the European level, in 2019 they were 13.01 billion euros, therefore, in almost four decades, these losses have increased 3.75 times.

Another aspect to consider is the average annual temperatures, depending on the weather station. The data are provided by the INS and, for 18 weather stations, allow us to compare the year 2018 with the average temperature of the period 1901 - 2000. There is an average increase of 1.8 degrees Celsius between the two dates. Temperatures are not only rising globally but also in Romania.

As can be seen in Figure 1, 86 percent of Romanians believe that, globally, significant climate changes occurred, which corresponds to the reality of objective data. We note, however, that the number of Romanians who believe we experienced significant climate change in the last 30 years is substantially lower (74 percent). This means that one in four Romanians believes that, in the last 30 years, we either experienced minor changes in climate or that they have not existed at all. Despite the increase in average temperature (as we discussed above), there is not a small number of Romanians who must be persuaded of the climate urgency.

We also note that 82 percent of Romanians believe that climate change has a significant economic impact, which is consistent with data provided by Eurostat on the consequences of climate-related economic losses. What is worrying is that only 64 percent of Romanians say that climate change is man-made, caused by economic activity, which makes it more difficult to convince more than a third of Romanians who see the cause of environmental degradation beyond human activity. Just over half of Romanians believe that climate change has negative effects, which highlights the need for climate change education.

Regarding the evaluation of state action, only 23 percent of Romanians are satisfied with the activity of public institutions to combat the effects of climate change. What is encouraging, in this context, is that only 3 percent of Romanians say that the state spends too much on the effort to reduce the impact of climate change. As for the most affected areas by climate change, 35 percent of Romanians identify agriculture, which is indeed one of the most vulnerable sectors whereas 22 percent identify health, 12 percent identify forests, 8 percent education and only 3 percent identify the industry.

These general assessments may, however, be too abstract for ordinary Romanians, so it is relevant to see what Romanians think about climate change-related events that they are constantly experiencing. As can be seen in Figure 2, 72 percent of Romanians believe that temperatures have increased in the last 30 years in Romania, which is validated by INS data. Likewise, 72 percent say that today, there is more drought than 30 years ago. In addition, 52 percent state we experience more floods than three decades ago, and 46 percent think that there are more fires. Only 22 percent of citizens are of the opinion it has been raining more than in the last 30 years and only 1 percent say it is snowing more. In addition, when asked which extreme weather event currently produces the most negative effects in Romania, 30 percent of respondents indicate drought, 18 percent - the floods, 16 percent of citizens indicate storms and 13 percent, the heatwave.

Data on Romanians' perception of climate change were collected as part of the project "Sustainable Romania", co-financed by the European Social Fund through the Operational Programme Administrative Capacity 2014-2020, implemented by the Department for Sustainable Development. Barometer results are available here.