site.btaOver 90% of Bulgaria's Rivers Flow through Urban or Rural Areas, Most Are Strongly Affected by Human Activity

Over 90% of rivers in Bulgaria flow through urban or rural areas, and most of them are strongly affected by human activity, shows a report presented at the Ministry of Environment and Water here on Monday. The report on approaches to the restoration of urban rivers, elaborated by Dr Radoslava Bekova of the Institute of Oceanology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, was elaborated within an initiative of outgoing Environment and Water Minister Yulian Popov to restore the good condition of urban rivers, the Ministry said in a press release.

The urbanization's effects on river ecosystems are known as urban stream syndrome, the report reads. The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) notes that river floods are one of the most common results of climate change. In 2009, the European Environment Agency established that only 15% of freshwater habitats are in a favourable state, 30% are in a bad state, and 35% are strongly affected and practically "dead".

Beli Lom is one of the rivers for which the state bodies had to take action, the report reads further. Sofia's Perlovska River is another example of a strongly affected and modified river system, and its main function at the moment is to serve as a canal for heavily polluted water. The process of restoring its natural look could contribute to a lower risk of possible floods and for the creation of climate islands, which will become ever more important in light of climate change and climate-related adaptation plans. 

The report offers a structure of a pilot project for the restoration of urban rivers. It is important for society to change its attitude to this type of rivers by reviewing them as river ecosystems, the document reads.