site.btaUPDATED PM Urges Measures to Reduce Water Losses in Pleven

On Monday, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov visited the city of Pleven to assess the current situation surrounding the ongoing water crisis in the regional centre, the official Facebook page of the Council of Ministers reported.

Zhelyazkov urged measures to reduce water losses, noting that even when water is delivered and distributed, the losses remain the same. In the Druzhba residential district in the city, losses in the water supply system reach as high as 80%, he stressed.

“Next year, there must be no water restrictions in Pleven. This is our responsibility, and we are placing the government’s authority behind the commitment that this issue must be resolved,” Zhelyazkov told journalists after participating in an extraordinary sitting of the regional water shortage taskforce in Pleven. The meeting was also attended by Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov and Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Ivan Ivanov.

“It is very important to coordinate with local authorities, the mayor, and the Water and Sewerage holding. As you can see, the water issue is fragmented across many institutions – the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, and the Ministry of Environment and Water,” Zhelyazkov said.

“Many issues in legislation need to be addressed – from photovoltaics to forestry, as well as problems related to lost time in investing European funds over past years. And solutions must be coordinated, because it is not normal that in municipal projects worth 50 million BGN, only one was allocated to Pleven’s biggest problem. This needs to change, and it will be changed as soon as next week,” he added.

Zhelyazkov was briefed that the water output from the Dolna Mitropoliya shaft well group had doubled as a result of urgent measures taken by the state. A month ago, the extraction rate was 120 litres per second, and it has now risen to 240 litres per second. As a result of joint efforts by the Irrigation Systems company and the Water and Sewerage utility, including channel cleaning and additional irrigation of the trenches, the water output from the Dolna Mitropoliya shaft wells is expected to reach 320 litres per second within two weeks.

Pleven’s Regional Governor Martin Machev said that rainfall is expected in the coming days, with between 40 and 60 litres per square metre forecast in higher areas around Troyan, which should help provide an additional amount of water.

On Sunday, Pleven residents once again staged a protest against the prolonged water shortages in the city.