Bulgaria's Scrapped Project for FMD Fence Absorbed BGN 570 000

The abandoned project for an anti-FMD fence on the Bulgarian-Turkish border has already used up BGN 570 000. Photo by BGNES

Although Bulgaria gave up on the idea to build a fence along its border with Turkey to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, the project has already absorbed some BGN 570 000.

The project was cancelled last week as it emerged that it would be too costly and that it would cross nine protected areas.

The 181-km border fence was eventually estimated to cost a total of BGN 28 M (almost EUR 14 M).

"This sum is four times the sum originally approved by the Bulgarian government. What is more, there additional funding will be necessary to compensate land owners and to maintain and control the new facility," the Bulgarian government press service said last Tuesday.

Bulgaria has so far paid BGN 171 000 for the designing of the fence, the preparation of the investment project and other activities.

Another BGN 399 000 were allocated for these activities during Tuesday's government session.

The Bulgarian government decided to go for restoring the Cold War-era fence on the border with Turkey in 2011, after an outbreak of FMD in Southeastern Bulgaria was blamed on the infiltration of infected wild animals coming from Turkey.

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