News
Natura 2000 in Bulgaria and the EU
European Commission (EC) officials have recommended thorough changes to Bulgaria’s laws to guarantee the preservation of zones protected by the Natura 2000 European ecological conservation network. This was announced after a meeting in Sofia on April 26 between EC officials and Bulgaria’s Environment Minister Djevdet Chakurov.Ladislav Miko, the chief of environmental protection at the EC directorate on the environment, said that current Bulgarian legislation does not secure the full protection of the network zones in the implementation of investment intentions.The officials also recommended that environmental impact assessments be done not only of projects in approved Natura 2000 zones, but also in potential zones. Chakurov said that he had ordered regional structures of the Environment and Water Affairs Ministry (MOEW) to monitor investment projects in zones officially proposed for inclusion in Natura 2000, and in zones the inclusion of which had been deferred.He said that he was studying the cases of the Zemenski and Skrino gorges, which had been proposed for declaration as protected areas. Chakurov said that it was possible that he would ban some activities in these areas.The EC representatives, MOEW officials and representatives of non-government organisations who worked on defining the Natura 2000 sites visited Pirin National Park on April 26. They discussed protected areas management and the ecological network establishment in Bulgaria.Meanwhile, civic organisations sent a letter to numerous institutions to call for the borders of Vitosha Park not to be changed. Chakurov told Parliament that requests had been submitted to decrease the size of the park area by 570 decares, Bulgarian-language Dnevnik reported on April 27.May 3 saw Natura 2000 supporters in Bulgaria turning out in front of the Cabinet offices for the latest in a series of demonstrations, this time on the theme of water. On arrival for their weekly meetings, ministers are being confronted with a series of demonstrations, each of the theme of one of the four traditional “elements”.The environmentalists labelled their action “NATURal water – for cleansing and beginning to see”. “According to Bulgarian folklore, with (live) water one can wash his eyes to start seeing again and dispel delusions – if we are brave enough to make this choice,” pro-Natura 2000 activists said. They said that they were inviting Bulgaria’s Cabinet ministers to make choice – to wash their eyes to be able to see the results of their decisions, or to wash their hands as Pilate did 2000 years ago. The demonstrators gave journalists pots of water symbolising the truth of “doing the Government’s job” in informing society about Natura 2000 and about the views of civil society. They said that they were also conserving water for themselves, for the future when it will be scarce or too polluted to be drinkable. 09:00 Mon 07 May 2007 - Elitsa Grancharova http://www.sofiaecho.com/