Republic of Bulgaria Advisory Services on a National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan Appendix 6: Assessment of the Tourism Sector August 17, 2018 Climate Change Adaptation – Assessment of the Tourism Sector (Project number P160511) Country Manager: Antony Thompson Practice Manager: Ruxandra Maria Floroiu (Co-)Task Team Leaders: Philippe Ambrosi, Eolina Petrova Milova Project Coordinator: Robert Bakx This report was produced by Maria Vodenska (local expert) and Stefan Gössling (international expert) under the supervision of Louise Twining-Ward (the World Bank) and managed by the project’s core team led by Philippe Ambrosi (Senior Environmental Economist, Task Team Leader) and Eolina Petrova Milova (Senior Operations Officer, Co-Task Team Leader), and Robert Bakx (Climate Change Adaptation Expert and Resident Project Coordinator), supported by Dimitar Nachev and Adelina Dotzinska (Team Assistants), Svetlana Aleksandrova (Economist), and Yeni Katsarska (Institutional Expert). The peer review of the report by Shaun Mann and Stephen Ling was managed by Ruxandra Maria Floroiu (all from the World Bank) DISCLAIMERS This report was produced by the World Bank team to provide advisory support to the Ministry of Environment and Water (MoEW) in Bulgaria. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or of the Government of Bulgaria or its MoEW. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The team would also like to thank the Government of Bulgaria, in particular Ms. Atanaska Nikolova (Deputy Minister of Environment and Water), Ms. Boriana Kamenova (Director of the MoEW’s Climate Change Policy Directorate) and Ms. Veronika Dacheva (Expert in the MoEW’s Climate Change Policy Directorate), and other experts in government institutions; as well as the members of the National Expert Council and the National Coordination Council on Climate Change, and furthermore the participants of the Inception Workshop, the Stakeholders Consultation Meetings, the Sector Consultation Sessions, the National Stakeholders Consultation Workshop, and the Sector Prioritization Sessions, for their excellent cooperation and support in spoken and written form; and express appreciation for the comments and suggestions as well as the open exchange of ideas. The contribution of Antony Thompson (Country Manager) in the preparation and negotiation of the Advisory Program is also acknowledged here. --------------------------------------- www.eufunds.bg --------------------------------------- i Climate Change Adaptation – Assessment of the Tourism Sector Table of Contents Abbreviations and Acronyms ................................................................................................................ vii Glossary ......................................................................................................................................... x Executive Summary................................................................................................................................. 1 Introduction – Climate change in Bulgaria .............................................................................................. 6 Chapter 1. Risk and Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis.................................................................. 9 1.1. Tourism Sector Characteristics and Trends ............................................................................. 9 1.1.1. Context ............................................................................................................................. 9 1.1.2. Economic overview .......................................................................................................... 9 1.1.3. Tourism Demand ............................................................................................................ 10 1.1.4. Tourism Supply .............................................................................................................. 13 1.1.5. Access............................................................................................................................. 15 1.1.6. Organization ................................................................................................................... 15 1.2. Past and Present Weather Events and their Consequences and Response Actions in the Tourism Sector in Bulgaria................................................................................................................... 16 1.3. Tourism-related Climate Change Risks and Vulnerabilities .................................................. 19 1.3.1. Summer tourism ............................................................................................................. 22 1.3.2. Winter tourism ................................................................................................................ 24 1.3.3. Water shortage in Bulgarian resorts ............................................................................... 25 1.3.4. Power cuts ...................................................................................................................... 26 1.3.5. General findings and conclusions ................................................................................... 26 1.4. Conclusions ............................................................................................................................ 27 Chapter 2. Baseline – Policy Context .............................................................................................. 28 2.1. State of Awareness and Understanding of Future Consequences of Climate Change, and Knowledge Gaps in the Tourism Sector ................................................................................ 28 2.1.1. Academic research ......................................................................................................... 28 2.1.2. State of awareness and understanding ............................................................................ 29 2.1.3. Knowledge gaps ............................................................................................................. 29 2.2. Experience with CCA and Tourism in Other (EU) Countries ............................................... 30 2.2.1. Summer tourism destinations ......................................................................................... 31 2.2.2. Winter tourism destinations ............................................................................................ 33 2.3. EU CCA Legal Framework and Policies in the Sector .......................................................... 35 2.3.1. Global policies in brief ................................................................................................... 35 2.3.2. EU policies ..................................................................................................................... 36 2.3.3. National and transnational adaptation policies in Europe .............................................. 38 2.4. Bulgarian CCA legal framework and policies in the sector ................................................... 38 2.5. Institutional Framework and Stakeholder Community in Bulgaria ....................................... 41 2.5.1. Governmental institutions .............................................................................................. 41 --------------------------------------- www.eufunds.bg --------------------------------------- ii Climate Change Adaptation – Assessment of the Tourism Sector 2.5.2. Non-governmental organizations ................................................................................... 42 2.6. Financial and Human Resources in Bulgaria ......................................................................... 44 2.6.1. Budget financial resources ............................................................................................. 44 2.6.2. Other financial resources ................................................................................................ 45 2.6.3. Human resources ............................................................................................................ 47 2.7. Sector Participation in CCA Specific International Cooperation or Information Exchange.. 47 2.7.1. The development of the European Union Strategy for the Danube Region (2011) ....... 47 2.7.2. 2017 - International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development ............................. 48 2.8. Bulgarian Sector Specific Ongoing and Foreseen CCA-related Actions ............................... 48 2.9. Gaps and Barriers Hindering Adequate Response to CCA Action; Interface with Climate Change Mitigation.................................................................................................................. 49 2.9.1. General issues ................................................................................................................. 49 2.9.2. Gaps and barriers in Bulgaria ......................................................................................... 51 2.10. Conclusions ........................................................................................................................... 52 Chapter 3. Adaptation Options .............................................................................................................. 54 3.1. Identified Adaptation Options ................................................................................................ 54 3.1.1. Development