Eng. R. Radev: The protective belts need to be restored.
2,000 acres of new forests will be established in Northeastern Bulgaria
Plantations of invasive tree species on a total area of 1053 acres will be eradicated on the territory of the Northeastern State Enterprise and will be replaced with mixed deciduous forests typical for the region. The large-scale work for the replacement of forest stands of species non-typical for Bulgaria, as well as restoration of protection forest belts in unfavorable status will be carried out on a total area of nearly 2000 acres all of which falling within the boundaries of Natura 2000 protected sites.
This large-scale reforestation will be possible thanks to the nature conservation project of the Northeastern State Enterprise named „Eradication of invasive alien species, recreation and conservation of priority forest habitats within the Natura 2000 network in Northeastern Bulgaria“ LIFE19 NAT / BG / 001133 – LIFE IASHAB. The project budget amounts at 1,386,763 EUR, 74.40% of which are provided as co-financing by the EC LIFE Nature 2019 Programme.
The project envisages eradication of invasive alien species, collection of seeds, production of saplings and the reforestation of all targeted areas. The Southwestern State Enterprise – Blagoevgrad participates in project implementation as associated beneficiary and will provide 50,000 containerized saplings for pilot afforestation at project target sites. Project actions will be implemented within ten Natura 2000 protected sites on the territory of Northeastern State Enterprise: BG0000104, BG0000106, BG0000107, BG0000116, BG0000130, BG0000133, BG0000173, BG0000421, BG0000432 and BG0000572.
The project is important not only at national but also at European level, as the eradication of invasive alien species and the restoration of natural forest ecosystems are among the key measures for climate change adaptation and biodiversity conservation at EU level. The restoration of the field protection forest belts, as well as the establishment of new ones is also a priority for Bulgaria and the region, and in this work would also be involved experts from Romania, for whom the dry winds in Dobrudja, the loss of soil moisture and the wind erosion are also a serious problem. Most of the project conservation actions would be carried out by local hired workers which is expected to provide employment for people from smaller settlements in the region.
In addition to the Southwestern State Enterprise, the Executive Forest Agency, Romsilva, the North Central State Enterprise, the Association on Bulgarian Agriculture Producers – 2006 and WWF have expressed their interest in participating as partners in project implementation.
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