Bulgaria joins the fight against oil spills in the Black Sea

”The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) will deploy a specialised ship for fighting against oil spills in the Bulgarian part of the Black Sea,” posted the Press office of the Ministry of Transport. This was possible after Bulgaria’s membership in the EMSA, stated the report of the Executive Agency Maritime Administration (EAMA) for 2011. So far, the only ship in charge of this type of operations was based near the Romanian Black Sea coast. A tender procurement procedure was called for the deployment of a second ship, and Bulgarian companies and firms from the EU participated in it. After the tender, a contract was signed for the launching of a ship with specialised oil spill response equipment, based in Bulgaria.

The Enterprise vessel, operated by the BM GUST company, will be part of the  EMSA network of specialised Stand-by Oil Spill Response Vessels operating in the marine  – areas of the EU member states.

Last year, a computer based program was developed for test examinations, showed the report of the Executive Agency as well. Rooms for computer examinations, equipped with specialised tools including CCTV systems, were set up in the central office in Sofia and in all regional directorates of the EAMA.

Bulgaria became a full member of Aquapol - the European partnership of water police forces and internal navigation inspectorates stated the report. The organisation's activities are focused on domestic and maritime navigation, transport security on inland waterways and in the region of ports, and on the fight against crime. The EAMA and DG Border Police will meet the obligations arising from our membership in Aquapol.

The Executive Agency Maritime Administration signed a contract with the EMSA, on thw part of the Bulgarian Government, under which it will be able to use the CleanSeaNet European system for satellite monitoring of oil pollution and for identifying of polluting vessels.