Environmentalists Block an Intersection in Defense of Pirin

Environmentalists blocked an intersection in Sofia as a way of protesting the plans to build new cabin lifts on the territory of Pirin National Park. The environmentalists, who had gathered near Vasil Levski National Stadium put traffic to a stop along Evlogi and Hristo Georgievi Boulevard.

The formal cause of the protest is the speculations after the Development Council meeting yesterday, which examined the issue regarding speeding up the process of building a second cabin lift in Bansko, even though the positions of the partners in the ruling coalition are not yet known.

Protesters, who identified themselves as protectors of Pirin, announced that if the decision is revised and construction of a second cabin lift is permitted, this will be the end of the current government.

This is one of a series of protests calling for the preservation of Pirin, despite the fact that hours earlier the Minister of Environment and Water, Ivelina Vassileva, made a statement saying that no investment plan has yet been proposed for building a 2nd cabin lift in the winter resort Bansko.