For the population of the pine processionary (a type of caterpillar) in the Stara Zagora park “Metropolitan Methodius Kusev,” more commonly known as Ayazmoto, has been increasing, posing a serious threat to coniferous trees along with bark beetles. Adding to this are parasitic vegetation and the drought experienced in recent years, which has destroyed much of the young plantings left to survive without irrigation. The future of the historical part of the park, declared a National Monument of Immovable Cultural Heritage, looks grim.
At the beginning of his fourth term, Mayor Zhivko Todorov announced that the municipality would adopt a new approach toward green spaces, but shortly thereafter, he permitted the felling of approximately 100 trees on a private property that had previously been part of a specially created park associated with the former BKP Party School in the city. This irresponsible behavior was also exhibited by the municipal councilors, who voted for an absolutely illegal proposal to amend the city’s Urban Development Plan (UDP), allowing a former officer of the State Security, now a businessman, to construct a villa settlement in the territory of the village of Sulitsa.
To, an entire forest will need to be cut down, which is indicated as a green area in the overall urban development plan.
As part of this “new” approach to green spaces, today the deputy mayor of the city, Radostin Tanev, announced to journalists that by the end of this management term, that is, by the end of 2027, there will be 123,000 trees in Stara Zagora, meaning that there will be one tree for every resident.
This promise sounds appealing, but what is the reality?
In the project for the reconstruction of Ayazmoto Park, funded by the Operational Program “Regions in Growth” with 7 million BGN, 480,000 BGN are allocated for the clearing of vegetation and reforestation. Of this amount, 200,000 BGN is for turfing 150 decares of land, 30,000 BGN for clearing, while only 250,000 BGN is earmarked for the most important activity – planting new trees and restoring the valuable species that have disappeared, which is approximately 4% of the total project funding, excluding VAT.
As early as 2017, during the presentation of the project, landscape architect Cornelia Matarova stated that the condition of the park had been neglected and serious for years, with no sanitary cutting or clearing of parasitic vegetation conducted. Her words indicated that if infected trees were to be cut down, there would be nothing left of the park.
At that time, there was also a discrepancy between the over 70 new species of trees planned for reforestation in the project and the 110 species mentioned by Matarova. Her colleagues in the city commented that no one had sought their opinion on which tree species should be renewed, especially as the valuable species had been gradually disappearing for years. These species were the very basis for the historical part of Ayazmoto to be protected by the National Institute for Cultural Monuments.
During today’s press conference at the Stara Zagora municipality, neither Deputy Mayor Radostin Tanev nor Nikolai Stoev, head of the “Greening” department, could specify how many of those valuable tree species in the park had survived and what care was being provided for them.
However, they announced that 10 of these special species had completely disappeared, without being able to specify which ones.
According to Stoev, over 10,000 trees had been planted in the last two years, mainly in areas devastated by fires in the northwestern part of Stara Zagora, such as the “Zaycheva Polyana” area, which is located on the outskirts of illegally constructed municipal land by the Roma population. Efforts were also ongoing regarding the tree passporting in the city, which was supposed to have been completed long ago.
In the fall, the municipality plans to form a committee of specialists to conduct a complete inspection of Ayazmoto Park. Following this, the park will be divided into quadrants, and the removal of dead and fallen trees will begin.
The measures to limit the population of the pine processionary will be comprehensive. Chemical insecticides will not be used, as they could destroy the entire forest ecosystem along with the pest. Instead, biological methods will be implemented to interrupt the migration of the processionary, along with the mechanical removal of the caterpillars, which will be collected and destroyed in incinerators.
At the beginning of spring, the irrigation system in the park will be activated, and it will become clear how much of it is actually functional. According to Deputy Mayor Radostin Tanev, it was repaired last year before the reforestation began, but a large part of it has reportedly been intentionally damaged by irresponsible citizens.
Six years after the implementation of the project for the reconstruction of Ayazmoto Park, the municipal authorities have not provided a public report to the public regarding the effect of the utilized seven million BGN. Perhaps Mayor Todorov’s administration does not find this necessary, but the citizens expect it. They have many questions to which they are seeking adequate answers.
