For the last four years there has been an installation in Albena which produces gas and electricity from agricultural waste. It provides 7 million kilowatt-hours of energy, or 1/5 of the annual amount required for the resort. "We are ready to produce gas from biodegradable waste, but our kitchens produce 2000 tons which is significantly less than its capacity, which is 7 – 8 thousand tons. We contacted different food chains and offered them to use their waste, but they did not show interest, so the installation, in which we have invested about 2 million Euros is not working at its full capacity". This was stated by Albena’s Executive Director – Krassimir Stanev during the discussion "For Cleaner Sea Tourism", organized by the Ministry of Tourism, the Portal of Bulgarian Municipalities – Kmeta.bg and the Confederation of Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria (KRIB). He proposed that a pilot project should be launched in Albena and Balchik Municipality to make sure that kitchen waste from industry restaurants can be harnessed by producing gas, electricity and bio energy.
The methodology for calculating the fee for waste collection and transport is not working and therefore the hoteliers lose interest in all initiatives related to the utilization, said Stanev. In his words, under the market conditions, the tax should be paid according to the amount of waste produced. This is how the businesses will also have the incentive to look for ways to make use of the waste.
The Ministry of Finance has been developing such a methodology for a while, Neno Dimov, Minister of Environment and Water, said.
