Progress in Natura 2000

in Bulgaria,

2012

Responsible institutions

• Ministry of Environment and Waters and its regional

branches – Regional Inspectorates for Environment and

Waters are responsible for declaration on Natura 2000 in

Bulgaria and for the assessments of plans and activities

which can affect it.

• There is a National Nature Protected Service at MoEW

and there is Department “Natura 2000” at NNPS

• There are Natura 2000 experts on RIEW level who are

responsible mainly for AA

• There is no management bodies on site level

Bulgarian legislation

• The requirements of the Habitat and Bird

Directives are transposed in the Bulgarian

Biodiversity Act

• There is a Ordinance for the conditions

and the order for appropriate assessments

of plans, programs and investment

proposals in Natura 2000 sites

Process of designation

• MoEW entrusted the process of

identification on sites to a few NGOs

• The initial list was prepared by NGOs

• There was no state support for public

awareness

• MoEW was too late with the whole

process and there was no time and

capacity to modify the final proposal

Process of designation – first

victory • Final proposal by the scientifical teams - SPA - 23,6 %

and pSCI 28,6%.

• First official list of sites proposed to EU – SPA -11,3%,

pSCI 13,4%

First list of proposed sites

First list of sites adopted by CM

Process of designation – first

victory – December 2007 • After request from EU and pressure from

citizen society, the state submitted to EU

114 SPA, which cover 20,3% from

Bulgaria and 228 pSCI which cover 29,5%

from Bulgaria.

• Total 332 (or 342 because 10 of them fully

overlapping ) Natura 2000 sites covering

33,89 % from Bulgaria.

Natura 2000, December 2007

Process of designation -

continuation • The government rejected some SPAs and reduced

between 60 and 90% the surfaces of other SPAs

(BG0002055 Rila, BG0002056 Pirin, BG0002011 Central

Balkan, BG0002051 Kaliakra, BG0002025 Lomovete

and BG0002063 Western Rhodopes) . BirdLife Bulgaria

sent complaints against this and EU started an

infringement procedure.

• The Biogeographical seminars concluded that the

network is not complete for a few species and there is a

need of additional sites.

• A working group on marine sites was established at

MoEW

2011 Round • Declaration of 4 new SPAs

• Enlargement of the borders of 2 SPAs

Total number of 118 SPAs covering 22,6% of

Bulgaria

• Declaration of 3 pSCI

Total number of 231 SCI covering almost 30% of

Bulgaria

Total coverage of SPA ad SCI – 34,3% of

Bulgaria

Continuation follows

• It is clear that Bulgaria has to propose a

few additional pSCI (the most important is

Rila buffer) and to enlarge some SPA

(near Kaliakra)

• There a few proposals to declare a few

SCIs as SPAs

Process of designation

• Orders for declaring of 114 SPA published till

02.10.2012.

• No publication of the orders for SAC.

• According to the Bulgarian Biodiversity Act the orders

for SAC has to be declared in 4 years after their

approval – it means 13.02.2013 for the first 224 SCI.

• According to the BA the orders for the last four SPAs

has to be declared in one year after their declaration

by CoM – it means 31 May 2012 ???!!!!

The orders

• They consist – name of the site, the bird

species, the goals of its declaration –

conservation of habitats of these species,

the list of the cadastral items which are

included in the site, the surface of the stie,

the regimes of the site.

• Diferences between the borders and the

surfaces of the submitted to EU and

declared SPAs

34,3% of Bulgaria is still a Big

Paper Park • The regimes of the SPAs are highly inadequate

and not connected with the main treats

• There is no management bodies or somebody

responsible for the management of the sites

• There is regulation for preparation of

management plans for Natura 2000 sites, but

there is no political will to do them

• The total procedure of EIA and AA is false

The big imitations

• The procedures of EIA and AA are not

relevant because:

- The investor pay the experts;

- High level of corruption of the politicians;

- High level of corruption of the justice;

Some progress

• Guidelines for management of the forest

habitats prepared and partially

implemented;

• FCS guidelines prepared but not officially

enforced;

• A few project on capacity building of the

state authorities for implementation of

Natura 2000;

• Big project on habitat mapping

Some progress

• AA are uploaded to the web sites of the

Regional Inspectorates for Environment

and Waters;

• Flooded with money for nature

conservation which is not possible to use

because of bureaucratic obstacles;

• National information strategy for Natura

2000 under preparation;

Some progress

• The river basin management plans do not

allow new reservoirs in Natura 2000 sites;

• The ecological assessment of the

Bulgarian renewable energy plan do not

allow building of new wind mills in SPAs

• 6 Management plans for SPAs in process

of preparation – till the end of 2013

The future • NGOs are tired from long-term fights with the

Government!

• We are expecting the new Biogegraphical seminar in

Sofia in October and declaration of a few new pSCI

and enlargement of SPAs

• We expect that EC will react more hard on the present

situation and our past complaints

• We will continue to lobby for effective management of

Natura 2000 on national level

• The situation is improving but the progress is very

slow and we continue to loose biodiversity.

Thank you for your attention

Stefan Avramov

Protected Areas and Species Conservation Coordinator

Bulgarian Biodiversity Foundation

email: stefan.avramov@biodiversity.bg sga@escom.bg

skype name: stefanavramov

www.bbf.biodiversity.bg

mobile: ++359 897 865818, ++359 886 605410