"Lies have short legs! These are the same piles that were discovered behind an earthen embankment in a terrain near the Sofia Waste Treatment Plant (SPTO), but outside its boundaries, during an inspection by municipal councilors from different political groups last Monday. This was commented by the deputy chairwoman of the Local Coalition BSP for Bulgaria group in the SOS Vanya Grigorova regarding a video filmed on April 5, Saturday, near the SPTO., reports the press center of BSP-Sofia
The exact location of the mountains of garbage was revealed based on information from workers at the plant near the village of Yana, submitted to the municipal councilors from the Local Coalition "BSP for Bulgaria" group; Vanya Grigorova and Enyo Savov. The fact was also documented by a number of media outlets, after journalists attended the event.
We recall that this happened despite the reluctance of the management of the Municipal Waste Management Authority and municipal councilors to enter the area in question, which was also shown in television reports. After the find "came to light" in front of the municipal councilors and in front of the cameras, the management justified itself by saying that the waste was only temporarily stored there before being sent for recovery, including as fuel for cement plants "Even if we accept this as true, it still constitutes a violation of the law", explained Vanya Grigorova. Even then, the municipal councilors warned that the waste in question would ultimately be illegally deposited. Denials followed from the management, which was even outraged by the suspicions that the waste would be buried.
A video filmed on Saturday, April 5, was uploaded to Grigorova's Facebook page, showing how garbage from the illegal landfill, organized by the director of the Municipal Waste Management Office Nikolay Savov, is being loaded onto trucks, but not to be taken to the cement plants, but to be dumped at the "Sadinata" landfill in the neighborhood. Which, as can be seen again from the footage, is already reaching its capacity.
According to the promises repeatedly made by the mayor of the Sofia Municipality, Vasil Terziev, up to 10% of Sofia's waste should already be deposited in the landfill in question, and the remaining 90% should be utilized either as biomass, as fuel for industry (cement plants) or as raw materials for recycling.
"Carried out under the deafening silence of environmental organizations, such waste treatment is not only antediluvian and polluting to nature. It directly touches the pockets of taxpayers, the residents of Sofia Municipality. And this is not just about the fuel for the trucks that run from "empty to empty", moving garbage from one terrain to another, commented Vanya Grigorova. - For placing the waste in the landfill and covering it with soil, the SPTO should pay an environmental fee to the state budget in the amount of 95 leva per ton. As long as, of course, the deposited quantities are reported correctly and the institutions do not turn a blind eye. Because, along with all the other irregularities committed, the SPTO did not report the deposited waste from April to December last year, which was also noted by the Regional Inspectorate for Environmental Protection and Water".
According to her, the situation with the waste of the capital is becoming pre-crisis, because it is increasingly obvious that the enterprise is not operating in accordance with the complex permit issued to it, is not fully fulfilling the functions assigned to it by the Sofia Municipality, and its landfill is about to fill up. "The responsibility for this can no longer be solely with the director Nikolay Savov. It leads to the leadership of the Sofia City Council in the person of Deputy Mayor Nadezhda Bobcheva and Mayor Vasil Terziev, who ignored all our signals regarding the actions of the director of the SPTO appointed by them, "added Vanya Grigorova.
The problems with the capital's waste and the clogged garbage plant will also be discussed at an extraordinary session of the Sofia City Council on Friday, April 11. "We call on the leadership of the Sofia City Council, instead of clumsily trying to erase traces, to prepare for an open debate, including taking responsibility and searching for long-term, sustainable solutions. Sweeping the garbage "under the carpet" doesn't solve the problem - even there, it still smells," she concluded.