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Establishment of Waste Network for Sustainable Solid Waste Management Planning and Promotion of Integrated Decision Tools in the Balkan Region

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Establishment of Waste Network for Sustainable Solid Waste Management Planning and Promotion of Integrated Decision Tools in the Balkan Region Establishment of Waste Network for Sustainable Solid Waste Management Planning and Promotion of Integrated Decision Tools in the Balkan Region (BALKWASTE) LIFE07/ENV/RO/686 Action 3: Evaluation of waste infrastructure in the Bulgarian target region – Razlog Municipality Sofia, December 2010 2nd Revision Main authors: Lucia Ilieva, Margarita Hristova, Iskra Kuncheva, Velika Chimeva (CSDCS) Contributors: Kyriakos Elaiopoulos, Tudor Dau (EFCon), George Katsanos, Eleni Feleki, Christos Venetis (Euroconsultants), Fotis Kourmousis, Dimitra Poulia (NTUA) ABREVIATIONS MOEW Ministry of Environment and Water MSW Municipal Solid waste NSI National Statistical Institute RIOSW Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Water PUDOS Programme for Actions related to environment OP Operational programme MW Municipal waste WM Waste management TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................... 3 1. CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 5 1.1. DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS 6 1.2. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 8 1.3. TOURISM 9 1.4. TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE 10 2. DETAILED DATA FOR MUNICIPALITIES INCLUDED IN THE WM PROJECT 13 2.1. DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS 13 2.2. ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS 17 3. WASTE MANAGEMENT STAKEHOLDERS 20 4. WASTE QUANTITIES 21 5. WASTE COLLECTION 24 6. SEPARATION AT SOURCE SCHEMES 26 7. WASTE TREATMENT 29 8. COSTS 35 9. CONCLUSIONS 37 10. REFERENCES 44 11. ANNEX I – RAZLOG REGIONAL LANDFILL PROJECT 46 CSDCS - Club “Sustainable Development of Civil Society” 2 Executive Summary The report provides a detailed picture of the waste infrastructure in the target region of Razlog and the proposed construction of regional landfill. This landfill will be a modern in regard to technology installation corresponding to the undertaken engagements of the country towards the European community. The common vision is for considerable improvement and preservation of the environment especially in the situation of fast developing tourism and sport in the region. Detailed data about the municipalities and WM stakeholders, which will use the new regional landfill, is provided. Waste quantities for each settlement are defined. The collected data shows, that the average quantity of collected waste (kg/per inhabitant) differs strongly from the average for Bulgaria in three of four municipalities (Bansko, Yakoruda and Belitsa). The places concerned (four municipalities) are enumerated with data about the number of inhabitants in each settlement and corresponding waste quantities generated per year. The quantity of the generated waste shows lasting and steady growth of about 4 % annually. The capacity of waste collection is larger that the average per country because of the touristic character of the region. Generally the information shows that the separate collection is being applied in the large settlements and not in small villages. In the reporting data also the percentage of the assimilation of the materials – mainly paper and glass – from the separate collection is shown. Still the resource of recycled waste is not being used fully. The regional targets for Razlog region are much lower than the national ones. MEW estimated that the construction of waste pre-treatment facilities was not economically viable and would lead to excessively high investment and operational costs for the population in regions generating less than 22 000 t/yr (or less than 20 000 t/yr waste for separation). Therefore in Razlog it was not envisaged to construct separation installations for the incoming waste in the regional landfill. In determination of the waste composition the following several particularities in the region should be considered: There are typical for the rural regions waste from CSDCS - Club “Sustainable Development of Civil Society” 3 animal products; In the region mainly wooden material is being used as energy source, which generates specific waste ; No attempts have been made, nor have projects been developed for further treatment of waste as composting, separation etc.; The separate collection of waste has being partially developed and gradually has being introduced in big settlements only. Still the percentage of packaging waste let for further recycling is low. The served area coverage is at 100% and is described in Chapter IV. In Bansko and Razlog municipalities 1100 liter vessels Bever type and 110 liter barrels Meva type are being used. In Belitsa and Yakoruda municipalities 4 м³ containers and 110 liter barrels Meva type are being used. The served area coverage Organized collection for all places in the municipality is offered, but with insufficient frequency. The service is carried by municipal companies or by selected private company in accordance with Public Procurement Act. The carried out studies show that the organic component in the waste, generated in the small municipalities in Razlog region, is predominant. In this application in order to find a solution to the European legislation and for the purposes of decreasing of biologically degraded waste to depot, the composting should be considered as a variant for usage of the deposited waste. The strong side of the existing waste management system in the Razlog region is the existence of structured organization and experts interested in the results in the field of waste management. The weak sides are illustrated by a number of problems that are enumerated and analyzed in details. By means of the proposed Project for Razlog regional landfill (presented in Annex I) and all accompanying activities the overcoming to a great extend of the existing problems is possible. After the fact that the Razlog project for regional landfill was recognized to be the best WM practice in Bulgaria, the project team decided to incorporate installation for pre-treatment of the waste despite the fact that the total waste quantity is 13480 t/y. The last version of the project foresees such installation for mechanical pre-treatment. CSDCS - Club “Sustainable Development of Civil Society” 4 1. CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION A. THE MUNICIPALITY OF RAZLOG Territory - 375.77 sq. km Number of population centers - 8 Population -23,018 Administrative center - Razlog town The Municipality of Razlog is one of the most dynamically developing municipalities in Bulgaria, holding the sixth place according its territory and fifth regarding its population within the region of Blagoevgrad. It occupies an area of 440.314 square km, with total population of 21 652 people, which represent 6.4 % of the whole population in the region. The unique location of the Razlog Hollow in the midst of the three most impressive mountains of the Balkan Peninsula Rila, Pirin and the Rhodopes gives the region an exceptional and extraordinary atmosphere. The region can be reached by automobile transport only - from Sofia via Blagoevgrad (150 km), from Plovdiv via Velingrad (120 km) and from Drama via Exochi – Ylinden (120 km). The gorgeous valley of the Mesta-Nestos River that runs though the region is a natural link with the Drama region to the south in Greece. The area is rich in curative mineral water. The nearby National Parks of Rila and Pirin are a true paradise of unspoiled nature - a mix of century old fir woods, sunny meadows and impressive rock formations. Over 127 endemic species and 130 kinds of herbs and wild flowers are only part of the great biodiversity of the area. Pirin’s landmarks are the Imperial Eagle, the Wild Goat and the Edelweiss. Rila is the realm of the red deer, the wood- CSDCS - Club “Sustainable Development of Civil Society” 5 grouse and a habitat of endemics like the Rila cowslip and pine-spruce. Rivers are abundant in mountain chub, Rainbow and Balkan trout. The Municipality of Razlog and all local and regional authorities from the region have active contacts and/or signed agreements for cooperation with partners from the two neighboring border regions. Regardless of the put efforts, the cooperation and good neighborhood between the Blagoevgrad region and the border region from the FYROM suffer a number of problems. To a large extent, these problems are connected to the region’s characteristics. On the other hand, these characteristics are an important factor for the identification of the spheres for cooperation that represent both sides’ interests. Some of the general characteristics may be defines as the following: • A clearly expressed difference in the living standards and economic structure and development in the region. An extremely large contrast can be seen in the Macedonian side; • Different employment levels for each of the border regions, yet the situation in Bulgaria is more positive in this relation; • Extensive illegal immigration through the border line; • Undervalued, unused efficiently, neglected education and cultural heritage in both countries. The main strategic goal for an equal development of the Southwest planning region is the achievement of a regional economic growth, which will provide more and more quality work places, will improve the quality of life, will keep the natural and cultural- historical heritage, and will keep and restore the environment. - It is typical for the municipalities from the region to redirect sharply their priorities and development objectives, as well as the reconsideration of the resources. Unfortunately, the educational system responds hard and slowly to this re- orientation. 1.1. DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS Razlog Municipality comprises of 8 settlements – the town of Razlog, which is the CSDCS - Club “Sustainable
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