Controversial cable car to Rila Lakes in operation, eco activists say
The new cable car from Pionerska lodge up to Rilski Ezera lodge in the Rila National Park has opened for business, allege eco activists who have reported the matter to prosecutors and called for an immediate halt to operations, Dnevnik daily said.
The environmentalist movement To Sustain Nature in Bulgaria alleges that the facility is illegal and highly dangerous. The movement says that the lift is illegal because it was constructed in a protected national park. And it is dangerous because its lower station was erected on ground prone to landslides, the environmentalist group says.
The new facilities are owned by the municipality of Sapareva Banya and Rila Sport. They are considering setting up a small ski resort near the village of Panichishte.
Currently the procedure is underway to formally and legally approve the newly completed facility. For the task, a special state acceptance commission was set up within which a major role is played by the directive of national construction control.
"In spite of the fact that the procedure for the new cable car is not yet approved, the lift is already ferrying people, amongst them children. The facility has not even passed technical checks yet," the eco activists say.
European institutions will be alerted of the events. Letters have been submitted by the environmentalists to France Rila and the citizens' group, Citizens for Rila.
The environmentalist movement To Sustain Nature in Bulgaria alleges that the facility is illegal and highly dangerous. The movement says that the lift is illegal because it was constructed in a protected national park. And it is dangerous because its lower station was erected on ground prone to landslides, the environmentalist group says.
The new facilities are owned by the municipality of Sapareva Banya and Rila Sport. They are considering setting up a small ski resort near the village of Panichishte.
Currently the procedure is underway to formally and legally approve the newly completed facility. For the task, a special state acceptance commission was set up within which a major role is played by the directive of national construction control.
"In spite of the fact that the procedure for the new cable car is not yet approved, the lift is already ferrying people, amongst them children. The facility has not even passed technical checks yet," the eco activists say.
European institutions will be alerted of the events. Letters have been submitted by the environmentalists to France Rila and the citizens' group, Citizens for Rila.