Bulgaria’s Cabinet should ask EU for a delay in presenting the list of territories to be included in the European environmental network Natura 2000, municipalities said.

The lack of consensus on the territories for inclusion was among the municipalities’ arguments to ask for the delay, mediapool.bg said.

Natura 2000 is an environmental network which preserves territories in all EU member states. Inclusion in the network is a pre-condition for EU accession. Bulgaria failed to present a list of territories to be included in Natura 2000 as the network led to disagreements between ecologist and businesses.

The municipalities’ organisation was worried that if the Cabinet approved the list of areas suggested by eco-organisations and received money for preservation of species that do not exist, EU would sanction the mayors for giving incorrect information.

Katerina Rakovska representative of the eco-formation WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme told mediapool.bg that in case of presenting incorrect information EU would sanction the country, instead of local authorities.

EU approves the list of territories to be included in Natura 2000 after seminars with European biological diversity experts, ecological organisations and representatives of the country which suggested the list, Rakovska said.

Bulgaria’s list of territories will be discussed together with Romania’s one.

Rakovska also said that the list would probably be approved by the end of 2007.