If  realized, the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline project may cause more harm than good to Bulgaria. Yesterday, The Standart explained how the pipeline would put an oil stopper to our tourism industry.

All tour operators rose against the project with the argument that Bourgas-Alexandroupolis will put at stake annual revenues of billions of euro, because of some 30 or 35 million US dollars a year from transit fees. However, the economic risk is not the only one that Bulgaria takes with the realization of the pipeline project.

Last year, environmentalists warned that the pipeline was meant to pass through some of our natural parks and reserves. Then, Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Assen Gagauzov said that the project would not damage the seaside environment.

However, if the pipeline spills crude oil, it will ruin the environment at our southern seaside and in the Strandzha-Sakar Mountains region for decades to come. Perhaps many of you still remember the heart-tearing pictures of agonizing seabirds, wallowing in dirty oil in the Kerchen Gulf. This environmental catastrophe was caused by a tanker, which spilled tons crude oil into the sea following a breakdown.

Such a dreadful scenario can also unfold in Bulgaria, if we let our politicians implement the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis project, which presents a great risk to the environment at the southern seaside. If the pipeline starts operating, Bulgaria (and Europe as well) will irretrievably lose some unique flora and fauna.

"If the pipeline spills oil, it will destroy the environment at Bulgaria's Southern Seaside, and the sea currents may even take the spilled oil to the coast of Turkey," says Evgeni Chachev, MP from the PG of the Democrats for Strong Bulgaria Party, former minister of regional development and public works.

To his Words, the pipeline project threatens the environment in protected areas, included in the territory of NATURA 2000 environment protection program. When the layout of the project was mapped out, nobody took into consideration our national interests. It is still unclear how EU will regard the pipeline project, because it was under Brussels' explicit recommendation that the coastal areas were included in the NATURA 2000 networking program.

If the pipeline is constructed, this will greatly increase the traffic of tankers in the Black Sea zone with which the raw materials will be transported from Russia. This will inevitably lead to great risk of spills, says Petko Petkov from the Green Policy Institute.

There are technological spills now, but the risk of ecological catastrophes will grow immensely. It's highly important where the pipeline's end will reach the coast. The survey data show that zones included in NATURA 2000 will be affected. The Changeskele locality is among the most endangered regions, along with another ten zones among which the Bourgas Lake, the Tundzha gorge, the Fakiyska river and Sakar mountain.

"The pipeline will interfere with the normal life of many areals of endangered bird and animal species and this will lead to breach of the European directives, which protect them," Petkov summarized. The benefits from the pipeline are not economically grounded. First of all, the petrol deliveries haven't been negotiated up to 100% which means that even if the pipeline is constructed, it's capacity won't be optimally used.

"As a matter of fact, we'll profit some 15 million US dollars a year from transit fees," explained Evgeni Chachev. "But even if the capacity is exploited 100%, the state's annual profit won't exceed $35 million. This is next to nothing in comparison with the up-to-now investments in tourism which amount to billions of euro along the South Black Sea coast," Chachev explained.

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