On July 8, the European Commission sent a reasoned opinion to Bulgaria regarding its failure to meet the targets for preparing municipal waste - such as paper, metal, plastic, and glass – for reuse and recycling.

The target of preparing 50% of household waste for reuse and recycling was supposed to have been met as early as 2020. Years later, Bulgaria has not only failed to catch up, but reported recycling rates have actually declined. This indicates that the country is facing not a temporary problem, but a systemic problem that has accumulated over the years; overcoming it is a huge challenge and will be among the Ministry of Environment and Water’s top priorities going forward.

The infringement procedure is in the final stage of the pre-litigation phase, and the next step is to refer the matter to the Court of Justice of the European Union. Bulgaria has two months to submit its response to the reasoned opinion.

In the very first days of her term, even before the European Commission had sent these findings, Minister of Environment and Water Rositsa Karamfilova ordered a comprehensive analysis of the policy implemented to date in the area of municipal waste management. The unequivocal conclusion of the analysis is that the failure to meet waste recycling targets is the result of systematic policy non-compliance that has accumulated over the years.

It has been established that the infrastructure for the pre-treatment and recycling of waste has not been built to the necessary extent, separate collection systems have not been developed to a degree that would allow for the fulfillment of European targets, and the implementation of the “polluter pays” principle has been repeatedly postponed.

Today, the Ministry of Environment and Water (MEW) faces the daunting task of overcoming the consequences of these accumulated problems in the waste management sector. The focus is on transitioning from waste management to resource management.

The Ministry has already intensified its dialogue with municipalities to accelerate the necessary investments, increase the capacity of separate collection systems, and address the shortcomings identified over the years that led to the infringement proceedings.

Under the “Waste” priority of the “Environment” Program 2021–2027, over 261 million euros have been allocated for the development of municipal waste management systems and the transition to a circular economy. Of this amount, 172.5 million euros have been allocated to all 236 municipalities in the country for the construction and upgrading of systems for the separate collection and composting of biodegradable waste, while nearly 45 million euros are earmarked for the reclamation of closed landfills and landfill cells to reduce environmental risk and ease the strain on local budgets. A new investment of approximately 44 million euros is currently being prepared to provide the necessary equipment and technologies for the practical implementation of the “polluter pays” principle. Funds have also been allocated for the construction of centers for the reuse and repair of items.

At the same time, efforts are underway to assist municipalities in creating the conditions and infrastructure needed to implement the “polluter pays” principle, as well as legislation to establish a deposit-return system for packaging and to develop infrastructure for the separate collection, pre-treatment, and recycling of waste.

The infringement procedure is the result of years of neglect, of decisions and actions that cannot be remedied by one-off measures, especially within a short timeframe. What is needed is a consistent policy, a change in the waste management model, and an accelerated transition to a circular economy.