Crime without punishment: new report of destructive Bulgarian ski development

The Bansko Ski Zone - a Crime without Punishment Report – contains an assessment of the legal violations, loss of biodiversity and landscape, as well as the social and economic consequences associated with the construction of the Bansko Ski Zone in south-west Bulgaria.

Download the the report in PDF (7MB)
Read the full text of the report in HTML

The construction of the Bankso ski zone in Pirin National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was initiated in 2000 and led to wide-scale environmental disruption in one of the wildest and most strictly preserved areas in the world. Currently all newly constructed ski facilities are operational.

The findings from this new biodiversity and landscape assessment show that the Bankso Ski Zone development in Pirin National Park, has made a major and irreversible impact on a large number of species in the park. Significant erosion damage is ongoing, necessitating an urgent terrain re-cultivation plan. According to Alexander Alexandrov, Director of the Forest Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Science, the constructed ski slopes pose a major threat to nature in the Pirin National Park.

The construction of the Bansko Ski Zone is a legal contradiction, claims a representative of the Sofia-based Za Zemiata Environmental Association: “All environmental permissions and contracts granted for the Bansko Ski Zone construction contradict Bulgarian and European law. Yet, the investor, a mixed venture between Bansko Municipality, Alpenwald Tourist – Bulgaria, Ski Engineering and Pirin Tourist, has breached nearly every requirement of the environmental permissions. The permissions should simply be cancelled by the Ministry of Environment and Waters.”

“All violations have been well documented and brought to the attention of public prosecutors in Bulgaria. The environmental approvals for the ski zone construction were appealed against in the Bulgarian supreme courts. However all was in vain. Environmental legislation is simply not taken seriously by the Bulgarian authorities. Citizens’ and civil society’s rights to court justice is severely obstructed in the country,” added the environmentalists.

The reported is the joint effort of the following environmental organisations:

 Za Zemiata Environmental Association - CEE Bankwatch Network
 CEIE – CEE Bankwatch Network
 Balkani Wildlife Society
 Green Balkans Federation of Nature Conservation NGOs
 Time Foundation
 BSPB – Bird Life Bulgaria
 Mountains and People Associotaion
 Ekoforum
 Tetida
 Eko Rila

For more information:

Save Pirin Campaign Cveta Hristova, Za Zemiata
Filka Sekulova, A Seed