The overall incompetence of three successive governments to deal with one of the key sectors in Bulgaria – ecology, has clearly been preserved in the new edition of the Operational Programme Environment for the period 2014-2020. The previous four priority axes are now six and what is provided for allocating under them totals 1.758 billion euros, judging by the latest version released by authorities for consultations before being sent to Brussels.
The largest part of this amount – 1.216 billion euros, or over 69%, again is intended to go to improvement the water and sanitation in the country. The Axis 1 will be aimed at achieving sustainable development of the water sector in Bulgaria to build on the results achieved in the period 2007-2013 – investing in the building and completing of 55 treatment plants for waste water (of which 53 are in agglomerations with more than 10 000 inhabitants), the preparation of other 26 projects for improving and developing water and wastewater infrastructure in agglomerations over 10 000 inhabitants, to support the development of management plans for the river basins, as well as reforming the water sector projects implemented by the Ministry of Regional Development, reads the optimistic draft of the officials who prepared this version of the programme.
The only positive thing that one can take into account here is that having paid attention to the recommendations from Brussels,
the statesmen lowered their expectations a bit
and first aimed efforts at projects in major cities. The start of the previous edition of the operational programme, the then minister Chakarov opted for the big basket and persistently assured the media that by the end of 2010, all cities with a population over 10,000 people will have sewerage and treatment plants, and by the end of 2014 the European standards will enter also in the villages with a population of over two thousand people. But regardless of ambitious declarations for building at least 25 water treatment plants a year, the environmental minister failed miserably, and then was followed by his successors at the time of GERB, and finally by those in the cabinet of PM Oresharski.
On this issue, however, the new OP shyly notes that the country should ensure the collection, disposal and treatment of waste water in 364 agglomerations. Of these, 256 are between two thousand and 10 thousand inhabitants and 108 are of more than 10,000 inhabitants. Completion will be needed in total of 351 agglomerations. Half-heartedly officials have acknowledged that: „In the performance of OPE 2007-2013, there was a substantial delay in implementation of projects due to a change of approach for prioritizing investment, lengthy procedures for expropriation of land, a long period of evaluation of the project proposals due to their poor quality, a longer period for the conclusion of commercial contracts, because of court appeals of public procurement procedures and poor quality of cadastral maps, which slowed down the performance of construction activities.“
As a double-edged sword
one can determine the change allowing EU funds for water projects to go not only to municipalities, but also to water associations and the companies who effectively manage and build new facilities and ask the State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission to determine the cost of their services. But for this to happen, it is necessary to finally end the tormenting reform in the sector, including the separation between the companies engaged in water and sewer services from the owner of the facilities, who, according to the requirements of Brussels, should be a public property unit. Adopted at the end of last year, the amendments to the Water Act provide for this separation to be completed no later than 2016 and, otherwise there is a danger of
stagnation in the new OP, as well.
A problem might also be the poor financial situation of the majority of Bulgarian Water Companies.
The BANKER
