site.btaVelichie: Draining of Dams for Power Generation Should Be Stopped Until Necessary Volumes of Water Are Collected

Velichie MP Krasimira Katincharova told Parliament on Thursday that the draining of dams for power generation should be immediately stopped until the necessary volumes are collected in them, which will have to meet the needs of farmers' requested areas by crops. Velichie's declaration raises the question of who is killing Bulgarian agriculture and argued that Bulgaria is on the verge of an agricultural catastrophe.

Katincharova noted that the situation is critical due to expected failure of the 2025 irrigation season because of irresponsible and inconsistent with agricultural needs large-scale draining of water for electricity production in private dams Belmeken, Batak, Koprinka, Gorni Dabnik, Pyasachnik, Topolnitsa and Zhrebchevo. 

Food security is part of national security, and incompetent and corrupt management is systematically killing traditional Bulgarian agriculture and Bulgarian agriculture in general, Katincharova said.

"Like every national resource in this governance, water, instead of being a source of life, is a source of plunder. After two years of drought and irresponsible management of water resources, Bulgarian farmers are brought to their knees. Bulgarian livestock farmers, who depend on them, are in a similar position. Severe weather conditions in recent years and prolonged droughts have exposed the inept management of our water resources and caused a decline in production and yields of vegetables, fruit, silage and cereals," said Katincharova.

"Bulgaria is poor in surface water - it ranks second to last in Europe. Skillful management is vital and this has been lacking for a decade," the MP argued.

The declaration also said that the infrastructure of the state-owned company Irrigation Systems was destroyed in 2011-2013. Today Irrigation Systems EAD is a symbol of corruption, waste and schemes with EU funds. The company has become another money-draining tool, the MP added.