MP Kosta Stoyanov took a sharp stance against the Renewable Energy Law adopted at first reading, defining it as "extremely lobbyist" during a briefing in the National Assembly. According to the MP from "Vazrazhdane", the legislative changes primarily serve private interests at the expense of protecting Bulgarian agricultural lands.
"This is a law that introduces faster procedures for the destruction of Bulgarian agricultural land in favor of private investors, who will be able to build photovoltaic and wind parks not only in our fertile agricultural territories, but also at sea", Stoyanov told journalists.
One of Stoyanov's main criticisms is related to the new obligations that the law imposes on all 265 Bulgarian municipalities. The MP emphasized that local authorities will be forced to appoint specialists in energy, spatial planning and correspondence to process the documentation for RES projects.
"These experts must move the entire procedure - from collecting the documentation, through coordination and permits, to commissioning. This is an additional administrative burden that will make it difficult for small municipalities and make them dependent," explained the MP.
A particularly worrying aspect of the law, according to Stoyanov, is the introduction of the principle of "tacit consent" in administrative procedures, which effectively removes responsibility for potential problems.
"If an administrative body does not make a decision within the deadline - the project is automatically considered approved. This means that there will be no administrative responsibility, but the photovoltaic park will already be legalized. In the event of a potential problem in the future, there will be no one to bear responsibility", Stoyanov warned.
He also expressed concern about the easing of procedures under the Environmental Protection Act, including those for environmental impact assessment (EIA), which creates a serious risk of long-term environmental consequences.
Kosta Stoyanov also emphasized the changes in the judicial procedure, which, according to him, significantly hinder citizens from protecting their constitutional right to property.
"Even if you file a lawsuit as an interested party, the construction of the park continues. You may win the case in 2-3 years, but by then the project will already be a fact and it will be too late – no one will demolish an investment worth millions," he stressed.
In his statement, Stoyanov did not spare the political formations that supported the bill, pointing out an obvious contradiction in their positions.
"An interesting fact is that despite the resistance of the BSP, DPS and ITN, yesterday they all voted "for". Today, the deadline for proposals between the first and second reading was even reduced to just 5 days," the MP noted.
According to him, this is a clear indicator that "all these political formations are hooked on the scheme to absorb billions of levs through the construction of photovoltaic parks in fertile Bulgarian agricultural land."
"This is not green politics. This is a politics of destruction – of agriculture, of ecology, of local government and of property rights", concluded Kosta Stoyanov.