Cleaning the past: landfill rehabilitation in Romania
Around 6 million tons of waste is generated annually in Romania, with nearly 79% ending up in landfills.
Geocycle is helping shift the country from a traditional linear economy to a circular one.
Geocycle is working on a special project with the local authorities in Cluj to reclaim their landfill and transform the waste into valuable resources, supporting a more sustainable future.
Impacts of landfills on communities
Landfilling remains one of the most widely used methods of waste management in the world.
These sites are used to dispose of non-recyclable waste generated by both industries and municipalities alike. However, while landfills are designed to dispose of waste, they can result in a wide range of negative environmental and health impacts on the ecosystem and local communities.
For instance, landfills are a significant source of greenhouse gases, emitting an estimated 1.6 billion tons of CO2e each year. They directly contribute to rising temperatures and climate change.
Health impacts are caused by air and groundwater pollution and often exacerbated by the odor released as waste decomposes.
Geocycle’s waste management solutions minimize landfill use. They effectively limit greenhouse gas emissions and pollution and support the environmental goals of our partners and their communities.
Advancing environmental remediation in Cluj
Geocycle Romania launched a special project in January 2025, partnering with the municipality of Cluj to remediate a local temporary landfill and restore the site to its original natural state.
With an urban population of around 300,000, Cluj is the country’s second-largest municipality. It is strongly committed to protecting the environment and developing modern waste management solutions.
Over the next five years, a volume of waste equivalent to 30 Olympic-sized swimming pools will be removed annually from the landfill. This waste will be safely processed at Geocycle’s state-of-the-art facilities in Alesd and converted into valuable resources for local cement plants.
Once the project is complete, the site will be fully restored to its natural condition prior to the establishment of the landfill . This restoration will significantly reduce pollution and mitigate the environmental impacts on the communities in the surrounding area.
This collaboration marks a major milestone in Geocycle’s waste management efforts, showcasing our expertise and unwavering commitment to building a greener, cleaner future.
