This is written in an open letter to Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, Chief Prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva sent by 11 NGOs. We publish the letter without editorial intervention:
\"Now the target of the Swiss and their partners in the Coalition\" Let nature remain in Bulgaria\" is the amendments to the Biological Diversity Act proposed by the Ministry of Environment and Waters. The goals of the\" greens\"are to fail the bill because it will be able to prove that Natura 2000 in Bulgaria is not made according to EU rules. These rules are based on actual distribution of plant and animal species confirmed by field research data, photos, GPS-points, filled-in forms, and track records (where teams passed). That is, documents which undeniably prove the presence of the species in the area concerned.Unlike the European practice, the Natura 2000 areas were defined by the \"green\" NGOs in the period 2005-2007. For this activity they received BGN 9 million. In spite of the enormous amount of money received, environmentalists have replaced the European methodology by failing to comply with a basic requirement that cultural, social and economic factors should be taken into account in addition to environmental ones. The mandatory public information campaign has not been made.
The “greens” have worked on estimates, that is to say, wherever the plant or animal species might be present. Due to the changed methodology, Natura 2000 in Bulgaria reached 34% of the country\'s territory. According to official European Commission data, Natura 2000 in the UK is 8.6%, Denmark -8.4%, Latvia -11.5%, Lithuania-12.4%, Belgium-12.7%, France-12.9%, Sweden-13.4%, the Netherlands-13.3%, Malta-13.3%, the Czech Republic-14.1%, Austria-15.4%, Germany-15.5%, Estonia-17.7, and Italy-19%.
Protected areas in our country are so inflated because everything is done from offices and from a desk without any reliable information backed by scientific evidence about the presence of the different species in Natura 2000 areas. The stories, assumptions and theoretical models used by the \"greens\" are not scientific facts. Because of this fraud and manipulation of data, there will always be criminal procedures against our country. Because Natura 2000 is not made on the basis of scientific data but through forgery.
The opposition of the \"environmentalists\" to the amendments in the Biological Diversity Act is to hide the fact that there are no official protocols proving on-field surveys for any Natura 2000 area.The reason for the confusion of the “greens” from adopting the amendments to the Biological Diversity Act is that they will have to submit data for their field studies, and they do not have any data - they have taken the money, falsified the results and have not done the job. It turns out that Natura 2000 in Bulgaria is a huge crime.
At the same time, the amendments are supported by a large part of the scientific community, indisputable authorities in the field of biodiversity such as Prof. Dimitar Peev, Prof. Alexander Alexandrov, branch organizations, NGOs and trade unions. With the amendments to the Biological Diversity Act, the MOEW wants to bring order and to be seen on the basis of what scientific data valuable plant or animal species are mentioned in a given area. And this information should be publicly available online so that it can be used by all - state, municipalities, businesses, citizens, and not to be hidden in the drawers of the “greens” so they can trade with it and to lead endless judicial racketeering cases.
We urge the Council of Ministers to comply with the proposed amendments to the Biological Diversity Act proposed by the MOEW - with their adoption they will stop the criminal schemes by which the Swiss offshore WWF and \"environmentalists\" suck money from the national and European budget. At the same time, we insist that the Chief Public Prosecutor\'s Office initiate an investigation into the WWF branch in Bulgaria and all related persons and organizations. We also call on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to initiate legislative changes to regulate the financing and activities of foreign NGOs working in the Republic of Bulgaria and those Bulgarian ones funded from abroad and by donor programs of foreign organizations operating on the territory of the country. So far, the management of Natura 2000 has been only prohibitions, restrictions, and the transformation of over 34% of the country into a wasteland. This leads to the depopulation of enormous territories and settlements with whole villages and towns and over 400 000 Bulgarians having left the country only in recent years. These are mostly young and active people.
We trust that finally the institutions in Bulgaria, headed by the Council of Ministers, will do their job and will end the racketeering of the \"green\" non-governmental organizations on the state, the municipalities, the business and the people.
With respect:
Association \"Green Kresna\"
- Union “Intelligent Bulgaria“
- Union of Hunters and Anglers in Bulgaria
- Association \"Future for Man and Nature in the Kresna Gorge\"
- Balkan Center for Sustainability and Ecoengineering
- Association \"Cluster Green Transport\"
- National Association \"Bulgarian Black Sea Coast\"
- National Civil Association \"Nature for People\"
- National Civil Coalition \"Nature for People and Regions\"
- Coalition \"Let nature remain in Bulgaria\"
- “Green Alliance\".
Source: novini.bg