UN gives last chance to Bulgaria to ensure access to justice in town and country planning

The decision of the Committee from 2013 is based on tens of cases, in which local authorities permit construction in protected areas in violation of environmental law, taking advantage of the highly limited judicial control on the issued by them acts as per the SPA. In comparison, all acts by the Prime Minister of Bulgaria are subject to judicial control.

Lately, such examples are:
- the lack of reaction on the part of the State regarding illegal construction of a six-seat lift in Pirin National Park, licensed by Bansko Municipality to an offshore company without property rights in the Park and in violation of the Management Plan of the National Park and
- illegal construction of two fire towers in Vitosha National Park, licenses by Sofia Municipality in violation of Management Plan of the Park.

In the same time, the SPA disallows the public to apply judicial control on construction licenses for these illegal sites.

The State has already for nearly 3 years refused to amend the SPA as a response to Bulgaria’s obligations to the Aarhus Convention. In the same time this law is amended every year on account of various motives.

The reaction of the Committee on account of the implementation of the Aarhus Convention comes in in the heat of the local elections, when all parties promise quick economic development and growth. The experience from the over-construction of the Black Sea Coast and the mountain resorts shows that such a development will necessarily be at the expense of the environment and our protected areas. Our civil society, however, does not have a strong instrument for control over administrative actions of local authorities.

Environmentalists remind that up to this moment Bulgaria has upheld the thesis that the problem with access to justice on issues related to the environment in Bulgarian SPA does not exist, since such an access has been envisaged by national nature legislature (Protected Areas Act, Environment Protection Act, Biological Diversity Act).

In spite of that, environmental organizations have presented sufficient proof that at the presence of political or corruption protection, the State often covers violations by local authorities and refuses to stop construction, which has been licensed in violation of nature protection law.

In order to answer the requirements of UN on the application of Aarhus Convention, experts from Green Laws Association and the coalition Let Nature Remain in Bulgaria have expressed before the Ministry of Environment and Waters and the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works readiness for discussing of proposals for legal changes in the SPA.

The State would win from an active participation in the Convention and amendments in the SPA in accordance with its requirements. When citizens have a greater participation in regional and local development, really useful for the society investment projects will be realized without compromise with the basic principles for sustainable development on local, national and international level.

Additional information:
- Report by the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee at the UN to the Government