site.btaWater Pollution in Maritsa Tributary 360 Times Over Allowable Levels

Haskovo, southern Bulgaria, July 29, (BTA) - The samples taken
from the canal flowing into the Maritsa River on Tuesday were
found to contain large quantities of nitrates, nitrites and
ammonium nitrogen, announced Health Minister Kostadin Angelov at
 a briefing in Haskovo on Wednesday morning. Minister of
Environment and Water Emil Dimitrov added that the pollutant
concentration in the waste collector of the local chemical plant
 exceeds the allowable levels 350 to 360 times.

The two ministers conducted an inspection in the region, after a
 case of alleged poisoning that led to the death of 28 cows,
watered by their owner at a canal flowing into the Maritsa near
the southern town of Dimitrovgrad on Monday.
   
If the test results are good, water supply will be gradually
restored in all of the 51 settlements irrigated by the Maritsa
basin downstream from Dimitrovgrad by Wednesday night. The water
 will not be declared potable until the Regional Health
Inspectorate has conducted all the necessary tests, Prof.
Angelov explained.
   
He also informed that Red Cross vehicles are taking 80,000
litres of potable water to the affected settlements, and another
 80,000 litres will be purchased with funds from GERB's party
subsidy and handed out to the local residents. The donation was
approved in a conversation between GERB leader and Prime
Minister Boyko Borissov and local chapter coordinator Delyan
Dobrev.

According to Dimitrov, the canal is no longer spewing so much
chemicals into the Maritsa, and the Ministry is redirecting
water from four of the dams around the city of Plovdiv. The
chemical plant that is the potential culprit is under
investigation to determine how some of the fertilizers it
produces have found their way into the water.
  
NV/MT