site.btaFisheries Agency Seeks EU Funding for Better Equipment

The Executive Agency for Fisheries and Aquaculture (EAFA) will apply for European funding during the current programming period in order to get better equipment for its inspectors, EAFA Director Nikolay Georgiev told to BTA on Wednesday. 

The agency will be seeking EU funding to purchase drones for monitoring of water bodies, as well as for high-terrain vehicles and boats to be used in the sea and in the Danube.

Having such equipment will make it much easier for inspectors to fight poachers, Georgiev said. Also, the Agency wants to acquire video cameras to set as photo traps near dams, rivers and the sea to detect offenders in real time.

Georgiev said that there has been an increase in violence against inspectors in recent years. That is why EAFA will seek to secure body cameras for its inspectors in order to increase their security. This will enable those on duty at the Monitoring Center to see and hear in real time what is happening.