ACTRIS-Romania participates to the construction of ACTRIS-ERIC

Romanian Government approved on 4th October 2021 the participation of Romania in the ACTRIS-ERIC. Through this action, Romania commits to provide long-term support to ACTRIS, by operating the unit of the Centre for Aerosol Remote Sensing, and the 6 National Facilities distributed in 4 cities (Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, and Galați). In order to build up ACTRIS facilities, ACTRIS-RO partners in Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, and Galati are currently implementing three independent projects co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund through the Competitiveness Operational Programme 2014–2020.

The „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi implements currently the project RECENT AIR (Research center with integrated techniques for investigating atmospheric aerosols in Romania). In this project a series of laboratories will be upgraded, one of which will be devoted to monitoring and testing the urban air quality, one to the study of secondary organic aerosols, and one to applied meteorology and climatology. 

The Babeș-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca’s project aims to create a brand-new research infrastructure - CARO (Cluj Atmospheric Remote Sensing Observatory). CARO will be equipped with state-of-the-art instruments that enable the continuous and long-term observations of aerosols and cloud properties and will be an active participant in the European environmental research infrastructure ACTRIS. The project will also include the study of the effects of air pollution on biodiversity, oxidative capacity of particles (PM10, PM2.5 and PM1) to generate reactive oxygen species and associated health risks, investigation of factors that determine indoor air quality, determining the route of pollutants through the environment.  

“Dunărea de Jos” University of Galati is implementing REXDAN (“An Integrated System for the Complex Environmental Research and Monitoring in the Danube River Area). REXDAN will create opportunities for a unique experimental base on inland waters in Europe, in synergy with Danubius-RI and ACTRIS. The new infrastructure consists of two components: a research ship and a fixed system of laboratories complementary to those on the research ship. One of the fixed systems will be the Climate Change Observation Laboratory. This laboratory includes a cloud radar, a radiometer, and a ceilometer, whose characteristics have been selected to fulfill the standards imposed by the ACTRIS community.