According to the Regional Inspectorate of the Ministry of Environment and Waters, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, on 25 November 2008 the amount of lead in the River Chepelarska was 0.48mg/l, which is 9.6 times higher than the allowed amount (0.05mg/l). Even dead fish have started to appear along the river bed. The main dangers to human health after such disasters are related to soil pollution in fertile territories that may be flooded or irrigated with poisonous water and the pollution of underground waters used for drinking.
The cause for the pollution was a break in the tailing pond of the mining company Gorubso-Luky. The catastrophe was caused by a lack of sufficient measures for ensuring the safety of the working facilities. Pollution went through Chepelarska River to Maritza River and trans-border pollution might result, affecting also Turkey and Greece.
What measures does the Commission consider to take in order to ensure the compliance of the Bulgarian Government with the Community Legislation (notably Directive 2006/21 on the management of waste from the extractive industries and the Water Framework Directive 2000/60), especially regarding the prevention of pollution of the Cheplarska and Maritza rivers that flow to the Thracian lowland in Bulgaria and then to Turkey and Greece?
20/01/2010
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