Balgarianovinite.com Road transport companies from across Bulgaria are calling for an urgent meeting with Manol Genov, the Environment and Water Minister in the outgoing government, over fines imposed for the transborder transport of plastic waste. They argue that these sanctions are contrary to EU law. Representatives of the sector stated their position during a press conference at the BTA press club in Razgrad on Saturday. Their statement was prompted by information from the Environment and Water Ministry that carriers bear responsibility for knowing what waste they transport.
Ekaterina Pamukova of the Razgrad-based transport company NLM said that around 40 Bulgarian transport operators were sanctioned after carrying loads declared as ordinary commercial cargo. She said that in 2025 her company, as well as other transport firms, had carried shipments from Romania to Pleven in Bulgaria consisting of plastic bottles presented by the consignors as ordinary goods. Pamukova noted that these were plastic packaging materials which were not declared as waste in the documents.
“About 40 companies are affected, which shows that the problem is systemic rather than an isolated case,” she said. She added that penal sanctions are imposed only on Bulgarian transport companies. “Foreign carriers, including Romanian firms, carry out the same transports with the same documents, but they are not checked and no fines are issued to them,” Pamukova stressed. She added that about one or two months after the transports were carried out, the companies received notices from the regional environment and water inspectorates in Ruse and Pleven inviting them to appear for the drawing up of administrative offence reports. The penalty decrees issued range from BGN 7,000 (EUR 3,580) to BGN 20 000 (EUR 10,230). “These are amounts that small transport companies cannot afford and they put their very existence at risk,” said Ekaterina Pamukova.
She added that the plastic bottles for which the sanctions were imposed are recyclable material and fall within the European Union’s green list. According to her, these are plastic packaging materials with code 15 01 02, which are not hazardous waste and are used to produce new items. Under Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 their transport is carried out under a simplified procedure, without notification and without a permit from the Environment and Water Ministry. Pamukova stressed that the carriers acted on the basis of correctly submitted information from the consignors and called for equal application of EU rules.
According to the representatives of the transport companies, Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 permits the transport of green list waste under a simplified procedure, without notification and without authorization from national authorities. They stressed that the regulation is directly applicable and takes precedence over national legislation.
The carriers voiced dissatisfaction that only Bulgarian companies were sanctioned, while Romanian and other foreign carriers performing identical runs with the same documents were neither inspected nor penalized. They said this resulted in inequality and breached the principles of the European single market.
Some companies have already appealed the penalty decrees before the courts in Pleven and Ruse, with hearings scheduled at short notice. Sector representatives warned that if the sanctions are upheld, many small transport firms will face bankruptcy.
Speakers at the press conference said they were not calling for changes to legislation but for equal and lawful application of EU rules. The carriers want an urgent meeting with the Environment and Water Minister. If there is no dialogue, they are considering referring the matter to the European Commission. Carriers Say Fines for Transborder Plastic Cargo Breach EU Rules 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-02-07 17:58:29 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
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