site.btaUPDATED Krasno Selo and Lyulin Waste Cleanup to Hit 100% Next Week, Says Sofia Mayor

In an interview aired on Nova TV on Friday morning, Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev reported that 60 to 70% of the waste in the affected Krasno Selo and Lyulin boroughs is being removed, while next week that share is expected to reach 100%.

At present, there are half a dozen trucks working in the field, and in a few days, there will be ten, the Mayor said. He added that by next Saturday, he hopes to have the necessary organization in place for normal waste collection.

Terziev said that many things will change after Thursday's decision by the Sofia Municipal Council to approve a loan of up to BGN 9 million for Sofecostroy, a company that offers waste collection and street cleaning services and operates landfills, to purchase equipment to combat the waste crisis. The Mayor shared his hope that Sofecostroy will take over the Krasno Selo and Lyulin boroughs, which could take place within months.

Terziev called on the people of Sofia to use the blue, yellow, and green recycling containers present in the capital. He added: "The colour containers are our best friend, and the more trash goes there, the less we will have to pay for garbage collection in the coming years." The Mayor stated that there are no crises in the companies servicing these bins and added: "As a municipality, we will strive to install more of these colour containers."

Terziev said that the municipality has control over several things—the kind of waste collection equipment that is used, the kind of contract protecting the municipality's interests, and the penalties for non-compliance. It is the municipality's responsibility to have a competitive procedure.

Terziev was adamant that he will not renew a contract with a waste collecting company that would have Sofia pay BGN 420 per one tonne of transported waste. He added: "All signs point to us signing a contract with a Turkish waste collection company because it meets our estimated price of BGN 166 per tonne." He specified that the company's license had been temporarily revoked due to formal omissions on the part of the Ministry of Environment and Water.

The government and the Sofia Municipality continue to seek a solution to the waste crisis in Sofia. On Thursday, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov invited Terziev to the Cabinet meeting to discuss the situation after a new temporary waste collection system came into force in the Lyulin and Krasno Selo boroughs on October 4 after the municipality refused to sign a contract with the only remaining participant in the public procurement for waste collection.