EPP North held the first seminar on the project “Safe Sky for Birds in North-East Bulgaria”
The project is part of the LIFE program of the European Union (EU) and will be implemented jointly with the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB)
Today in Varna, the electricity distribution company serving Northeastern Bulgaria, ERP North, together with its partner BSPB, presented to the interested parties the project that won EU funding at the end of last year — LIFE21-NAT-BG-LIFE NE BG Safe Sky. Its main objective is to prevent mortality among globally endangered bird species caused by electric shock and collision with overhead power lines by applying best practices among modern solutions for their protection.
During the workshop, the activities of EPP North related to environmental protection were reported. Caring for the environment and protecting protected species is a priority in the company's work. For the last 18 months, nearly 18,000 bird protection devices worth BGN 957 thousand have been installed. The facilities are located in North-Eastern Bulgaria, where the migratory routes of birds pass. In recent years, an important focus in the activities of the electricity distribution company is the installation of bird protection devices and protective platforms.
The project, which will be implemented over the next 5 years, targets 16 bird species that are priority for LIFE funding — 15 of them are included in Annex I of the Birds Directive, 10 species are included in the IUCN Red List and 14 species are protected in Europe. The European Union's LIFE Programme, which was established in 1992, has already provided funding to more than 5,600 projects in the EU and more than 6,000 Natura 2000 habitats have been supported. Projects under the Nature and Biodiversity component aim to improve the conservation of endangered species and habitats. This supports the implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives and the establishment of the Natura 2000 network of protected areas.
Several ambitious goals were set by the EP North during the implementation of the project. More than 10,000 electric ladders are planned to be secured to prevent unnatural bird mortality. Electrical interflights will also be secured by marking overhead wires with 2,000 diverters in 28 Natura 2000 zones and key corridors between them. A system for future monitoring of bird mortality will be established along all power lines in North-Eastern Bulgaria and 100 safe nesting sites will be provided for two of the target species on power poles by installing birdhouses.
The implementation of the planned activities under the project “Safe Sky for Birds in North-East Bulgaria” will give a number of positive results, such as improvement of the general ecological situation, development of tourism and local economy, greater biodiversity, opportunities for implementation of ornithological tourism.
