1. Mariana Assenova Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” Pro Mountain: Environment – Tourism – Sustainable development Busteni, Romania, 7-9 September 2012

2. Geographical situation

4. Introduction The largest protected area in Bulgaria (1,161 km² - 1% of the territory of ​​ the country), established in 1995.  Boundaries – comprises 2 municipalities – Malko Turnovo – 100 % and Tsarevo – 74,2 %  Resources: 0-200 m – 38 %, 200-600 m – 60 %, above 600 m – 2 %; 7 beaches – 355 760 m²; forests – about 80 % (Fagus orientalis)  Protected areas and biodiversity:  encompasses 5 natural reserves, 14 protected sites and 8 landmarks;  with the highest species diversity in all biological groups in Bulgaria;  one of five priority areas for conservation in Central and Eastern Europe.  NATURA 2000  Settlements – 21 (19 villages and 2 towns)  Population – 6324 people Ruscus aculeatus Daphne pontica Rhododendron ponticum Ilex aquifolium

5. Tourism Supply  Total number of beds in the two municipalities – 4896 (NSI, 2010) vs. 10206 (National Register of categorized facilities – NRCF, 2011);  Number of beds in the park – 3504 (NRCF, 2011);  Categorized accommodation is available in 10 settlements;  92 % of the beds are in 4 settlements at the coast; Occupancy rate Malko Turnovo5,4% Tsarevo22,2% Total21,6%

6. Regional mark: 29 accommodation facilities; 2 restaurants; 3 tourist attractions’; 2 service providers (riding and boat trips)

7. Types of tourism EcotourismSeaside recreation HuntingCultural and rural tourism

8. Tourism Demand

9. Carrying capacity  Control of visits to the reserves : "Vitanovo" Reserve (1112.4 ha) – entry only with special permission from the Ministry to conduct research or for specialized tourism under strict rules and routes; "Sredoka" Reserve (607.8 ha) – only research is permitted and tourist visits following 3 strictly regulated and marked tourist routes; "Silkosia" Reserve (396 ha) - the first in Bulgaria, announced in 1933, tourist visits are allowed only along the marked trail under the supervision of a park ranger.  Cultural sites – at certain events 2000-3000 people are present at the same time (e.g. Bulgari village - fire dancing)  Beaches: capacity – 28540 tourists, current disposable beach area - 110 m² per tourist; utilization – 11 %.

10. Resource efficiency SettlementFacility Use of electricity per year (kWh/m²) Use of electricity per guest-night (kWh) Energy performance Brashlyan Sarmashik Hotel181,01294,13Exellent A Guest House Zhechka Kaloyanova281,41313,57Average C Guest House Nanka Chaikova232,33424,00Above average B Guest House Veska Stamatova30,0024,00Exellent A Guest House Maria Kichukova372,4190,76Below average D Guest House Syika Yankova376,83257,5Below average D Guest House Stanka Buhleva224,00186,67Above average B  Water efficiency Average water consumption - 289 l per guest-night (“Average” performance – 250- 300 l); in the family hotels – 30-50 l  Energy efficiency – at the seaside – between 10 and 50 kWh per guest-night

11. Problems of STD (1)  Uneven distribution of the accommodation facilities and tourism infrastructure, high concentration at the coast, along with the depopulation of villages from the interior of the park;  Intensive construction and the risk of destruction of the last undeveloped bays in an attempt to catch up with other seaside municipalities;  Existence of conflicts of interest in the utilization of the territory in relation to business constraints imposed in Strandzha Natural Park;

12. Problems of STD (2)  Spatial planning – new plans development intending to exclude territories from the park;  Strandzha Nature Park management plan – developed in 2003 and submitted to the Ministry in 2005 the plan is waiting for approval seven years and meanwhile underwent two corrections (due to economic interests and political lobbying);  Nomination for biosphere park – difficulties with the management structure of this new category that is not covered by the Protected Areas Act and the need of integrated management approach;  Governance responsibilities of many bodies at local, regional and national level;  Urbanization of territories under protection – along the river valleys and the sea shore.

13. Thank you for your kind attention!