site.btaParliament Adopts Committee's Report on Water Shortages, Obliges Cabinet to Present Action Plan

On Thursday, Parliament adopted the report on the work of the Ad Hoc Committee for establishing all facts and circumstances concerning the problems with water shortages and obliged the Council of Ministers to prepare an expert, financial, and administrative analysis of the effectiveness of the proposals and recommendations contained therein, as well as an action plan. The conclusions of the analysis and the action plan should be submitted to the National Assembly within three months.

The decision was adopted with 167 votes in favour and three against. A proposal tabled by Ivan Belchev (Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria) for the action plan to be presented within one month was rejected.

Among the proposals in the report of the ad-hoc committee were the creation of a single water management body, measures to build new alternative water sources, the adoption of a new Water Supply and Sewerage Act, and the prioritization of water supply projects in the investment programmes of municipalities. The report also proposed the effective use of resources in the Danube lowlands, which are hydraulically connected to the Danube River, and the rehabilitation and construction of new monitoring stations for the purposes of the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology.

Among the recommendations was the creation of a National Fund for the improvement of the water supply and sewerage network infrastructure, based on the model of the National Energy Efficiency Programme for multi-family residential buildings.

Another proposal is for legislative changes to restrict logging in sanitary and food zones and to create a National Register of all drinking water sources, including wells and catchments, built with public funds, as well as to introduce stricter monitoring of the activities of hydroelectric power plants, including ensuring the minimum permissible discharge, in accordance with the Water Act.

The recommendations also include equipping all water sources with measuring devices, taking steps to ensure qualified personnel in the water supply and sanitation sector, and easing the regime for access to water for irrigation for agricultural producers.