[12/03/2024 07:23]

SOFIA-SABA
Bulgaria's water resources are expected to decline as a result of climate change.

This could exacerbate the risk of water scarcity in vulnerable areas and, in years with particularly adverse conditions, elsewhere, said Assoc. Prof. Emil Gachev during an event titled "Is it a myth that Bulgaria is rich in water resources?" which was held in Sofia on Tuesday.

The forum was organized by the Climateka platform on the occasion of World Water Day, March 22, Bulgarian News Agency (BTA), reported.

According to data for the period 1990-2018, Bulgaria's freshwater resource is about 100 billion cubic metres per year.

"This is a bit deceptive, because three-quarters are transit waters of the Danube. The internal runoff on the territory of the country is about 25% of the total amount," Gachev said, adding that there is unevenness of the runoff - it varies from 10 to 30 billion cubic metres per year depending on rainfall.

The main use of water in the past in Bulgaria was in industry and irrigated agriculture, but after the crisis in these two sectors, the use of water resources has decreased from over 14 to 5-6 billion cubic meters.

To date, most of Bulgaria's water use goes to industry, with much smaller shares going to agriculture, forestry and drinking water.

According to Assoc. Prof. Gachev's data, about 100 litres per day is the water consumption per person in households in Bulgaria.

He added that the determination of water losses is usually difficult, but 55-60% of water in Bulgaria is lost in the process of delivery to consumers, with some estimates as high as 70%. In Germany, these losses are estimated at 3 to 5%, according to BTA

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