BSP's Eastern Europe Program
National Biological Diversity Conservation Strategy for Bulgaria
Working with local scientists, NGOs, and government
officials to develop a national-level strategy for biodiversity conservation in Bulgaria.
During the past several years, Bulgaria has experienced
profound social, economic, and political changes. These changes have
had, and will continue to have, far-reaching implications for the protection
and sustainable use of biological diversity.
The National Biological Diversity Conservation Strategy for
Bulgaria was the culmination of a three-year process funded by the Bureau
for Europe and the Newly Independent States of the U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID/ENI). The process was carried out as technical assistance
to Bulgaria’s Ministry of Environment (MOE). BSP coordinated
development of the strategy in accordance with the requirement for national-level
conservation planning outlined in the 1992 Convention on Biological
Diversity, to which Bulgaria is a signatory. The strategy also reflects
recommendations contained in the World Bank’s 1992 Bulgaria Environment
Strategy Study and represents the first national-level strategic
plan developed in Central and Eastern Europe to conserve biological
diversity.
The centerpiece of the planning process was the National Biological
Diversity Conservation Strategy Workshop, held at Sveti Vrach, outside
Sandanski, Bulgaria, in March 1993. The workshop and the documents prepared
for it were designed to develop consensus for the national strategy
and provide a framework for future foreign assistance on conservation
and development projects.
The workshop’s objectives were:
- Assemble and evaluate available information leading to an understanding
of the biological basis for conservation planning in Bulgaria.
- Identify goals for the conservation of biological resources and
biological diversity in Bulgaria, including the identification of
biologically important areas and priorities for conservation action.
- Clarify the legal and social framework for conserving biological
resources and for generating revenues to support conservation.
- Identify and rank mechanism(s) for attaining conservation goals.
- Draft recommendations.
- Recommend further steps to resolve outstanding issues.
Key Project Activities
In mid-1992, the following five teams developed
background reports and recommendations in preparation for the workshop.
- A biological diversity team, composed of specialists in
the biological sciences, prepared reports on Bulgaria’s vertebrates,
invertebrates, vascular and nonvascular plants, fungi, forests and
other plant communities, and freshwater and Black Sea biota. Using
geographic information system (GIS) technology, this team prepared
maps to synthesize information on the distribution and status of biological
diversity.
- An applied biological diversity team provided information
on applied aspects of resource use and conservation, focusing on traditional
and modern uses of medicinal plants and fungi, plant and animal genetic
resources, soils, forests, and other biological resources.
- A social science team, composed of foreign and Bulgarian
specialists, provided expertise on legal aspects of biodiversity conservation,
protected area planning and management, natural resource economics,
and regional planning.
- An NGO team worked to identify the key social, economic,
and political issues related to conservation in Bulgaria. The five
participating NGOs held discussions among their members and prepared
reports based on analyses of their meetings and specially commissioned
surveys of landowners and other interested citizens.
- An information team, composed of geographic information
specialists from Bulgarian institutions and the U.S.-based Environmental
Systems Research Institute, worked with the other teams to
prepare maps for the workshop and for the national strategy documents.
These maps played a critical role in developing the national strategy
by providing new tools for land-use planning and for sustainable management
of biological diversity, both within and outside Bulgaria’s protected
areas. The GIS component of the strategy process has been supported
by USAID, the Environmental Protection Agency, the European Community, and
the Poland and Hungary Action for Reconstructing the Economy (PHARE) program.
In March 1993, the workshop brought together the five preparation
teams, along with a broad range of Bulgarian scientists, NGO
representatives, non-Bulgarian advisers, and government officials.
In attendance were the deputy minister of the environment and the environmental
adviser to the president, as well as representatives of the Commission on the Environment
of the Bulgarian Parliament; MOE’s Office of Biodiversity,
Protected Areas, and Forests; Bulgarian Academy of Sciences; Ministry of
Agriculture; Ministry of Regional Development and Construction; Committee
of Forests; and Committee on Tourism.
During the course of the eight-day workshop, participants listened to
one another’s reports, engaged in extensive discussions of the findings,
and debated conservation recommendations and priorities. With the aid
of the newly generated maps, participants were able to display, compare,
and synthesize data in support of their discussions and recommendations.
The report that resulted from the findings and recommendations was subsequently
recognized as the official national biodiversity conservation strategy of Bulgaria.
Two volumes of scientific papers were prepared as a foundation for this document
through the joint efforts of the government and the people of the
Republic of Bulgaria, USAID, and BSP.
From the BSP Library
Conserving Biological Diversity in Bulgaria: The National Biological
Diversity Conservation Strategy. (pub no. 17) Washington, D.C.: Biodiversity Support Program. 1994.
Bulgaria's Biological Diversity: Conservation Status and
Needs Assessment Volumes I and II. Biodiversity Support Program.
1998.
Web site Resources
U.S. Agency for International Development
Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe
World Resources Institute
Africa
