Revival of the Rice Crops in the South of Romania: Pros and Cons

In Europe, the rice is presently cultivated on small areas. The south of Romania is one of the regions with tradition in rice agriculture, as the paddies are located at the northern rim of its European belt. The aim of the study is to bring arguments for the benefits of reviving the rice paddies in the Danube and its major tributaries floodplains, which are suitable for such kind of farming. The research methodology was based on direct field survey, map interpretation, diachronic analysis (1950-2014) and survey (semi-structured interview). Results have shown that a decay period in rice farming had occurred during 1990 to 2006 because of the misapplication of the agrarian policies in the rice-based agricultural societies. After 2006, a slight revival of the rice paddies has occurred in the south of Romania, with the help brought by foreign investors on the Romanian of the rice market. At the same time, a conflicting perception of the target groups on both the advantages and disadvantages of this process has been found: 75% pros and 25% cons. Economic and environmental advantages - new jobs, increasing income by collecting additional taxes, protecting biodiversity, and connection with Natura 2000 network - were argued by the local authorities, engineers and partially by farmers. On the other hand, the remaining farmers are against the revival of rice crops, alleging the reduction of grazing land. Among the environmental disadvantages, the high water demand for irrigations, use of herbicides, and methane release in the atmosphere are the most destructive.