Illegal Black Sea coast buildings make up no more than five per cent of current structures, and about 10 to 15 per cent of them have already been destroyed. Such was Deputy Regional Development and Public Works Minister Savin Kovachev’s news to Parliament on November 10.

The average length of court procedures against illegal construction varied between four and five years and most of the illegal constructions were still on first or second court instance, Kovachev said.

While Kovachev was talking to journalists in Parliament’s corridors, the MPs adopted the second reading of the Black Sea Coast Development Bill. Preservation, sustainable integrated development and planning of the Black Sea coast were noted as the main goals of the draft bill. MPs included clauses providing free public access to the coast, and preservation, storage and reasonable use of natural resources, as well as prevention of and a decrease in pollution of the seaside. The protection of the sea coast from erosion, abrasion and landslides, rehabilitation and protection of natural landscape and cultural and historical heritage were added as well.

The act settles relations regarding the conditions and procedure for determining the territorial range of the Black Sea coast and of the strip of recreational shore along it, as well as the requirements, rules and norms for its organisation, use, building and preservation. The act settles relations in regards to the authorities and co-ordination of the activity of the central and territorial executive authorities and self-governing bodies, as well as their relations with the individuals and legal entities in carrying out state policy on Black Sea coast development.

For the past 15 years the Bulgarian Black Sea coast has witnessed vast and uncontrolled construction. The result is hundreds of hotels and holiday villages often built without any co-ordination of regional development plans.

Today, the mess seems obvious, especially when it comes to water and electricity supply and sewers. The problem comes from the fact that, for example, the water supply network along the Black Sea coast was planned and constructed 15 years ago, when the properties were different and saw less demand. The newly built hotels, however, have led to the situation when demand vastly exceeds supply and very often the water pressure in three- or four-star luxury hotels is not sufficient.

As for sewers, the picture is even worse. Guests who pay sufficient sums to stay at one or another luxury hotel on the Black Sea often have “the pleasure” of watching the local teams emptying the septic pits. The lack of water purification facilities is another problem for the tourism development along the sea coast.

In a November 11 interview with Bulgarian-language news agency Focus, Vladimir Filipov, acting director of the Fishery and Aquaculture Executive Agency with the Ministry of Environment and Water Affairs, said that aquaculture growth at Black Sea coast was impeded by lack of purification facilities. “The truth is that recently the large industrial pollution sources have disappeared and the water quality is significantly better. However, now the problem is related to the development of tourism and the lack of purification facilites. It is not secret that waste water flows into the sea,” Filipov said.

Indeed, when there is no sewer system, the easiest and fast solution for hotel owners is to drain their waste water directly into the sea. Probably this is one of the reason for the downtrend of Black Sea property deals, reported on November 7 by registry offices across the country. The Bourgas registry office, which also covers Sozopol and Kameno, reported a 32 per cent year-on-year drop in the property deals to 2399, from January to June. The Varna registry office reported a 10 per cent year-on-year drop in the property deals in the first six months of the year. Only two Black Sea areas – Nessebar (covering resorts Slunchev Bryag and Sveti Vlas) and Pomorie – registered an uptrend in the first half of 2006.