Emanuela-Adina COCIȘ
Mountain Economy Centre “ CE-MONT”, 1National Institute for Economic Research “Costin C. Kiriţesu”, Romanian Academy, Petreni St., No. 49, 725700,Vatra Dornei, Romania.
E-mail: adinaemanuelacocis@gmail.com
DOI: https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.10397229
Abstract
Mountainous environmental systems have a heightened sensibility to the effects of the SARSCoV-2 crisis, which requires the application of recalibrated operational management in order to overcome disfunctions and prevent discordant states. This paper focuses on the recent problem of “a new category of waste”, named used PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) such as masks, gloves, visors, protection goggles, disinfectant bottles etc., that lead to imbalances in natural ecosystems in general and mountain ecosystems in particular, in the context of an improper personal and institutional management. The research methodology comprised perusing scientific literature and mass-media reports regarding the topic at hand. The results confirm the main hypothesis that waste management remains a crucial issue even in crisis situations. Generally, the structure of the paper reflects the increasing incidence of a new type of waste (PPE) which might contaminate the population and the environment as well. The management scenario for PPE was applied to the city of Vatra Dornei. The current study discusses a present day theme – the management of potentially contaminated waste, probable hotspots of epidemiological recurrence and constitutes a starting point for future research into environmental protection under the the principles of the European Green Deal.
Keywords: management, PPE, SARS-CoV-2, waste, mountain, European Green Deal