South Eastern Europe's extremely dry summer of 2000 meant sun-burnt fields and lost crops in Romania and forest fires and water shortages in Bulgaria and Albania. For many in the region, these phenomenon were the clearest indication of climate change. Bulgarian environmental journalist Ruslan Jetchkov looks at public and media perceptions of these issues in his own country. By Ruslan Jetchkov People in Bulgaria have always felt cosily protected from ravaging natural phenomena like earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, devastating fires and severe droughts. All these things mostly happened to other people on the TV screen in some faraway lands. The terrible earthquake in neighbouring Turkey a year and a half ago rang the first bell that disaster could happen next door and Bulgarians should be prepared for it. Extensive fires all over the country in the year 2000 proved that nature can be harsh on Bulgaria, and that the country is unprepared for such disasters. While the local media seem to suggest that all these problems are due to climate change, and indeed global warming may have had some kind of impact in many of these areas, it would be an oversimplification to say the only possible solution is a worldwide reduction of greenhouse gases. The country must address climate change, but it must also do more to protect its forests and manage its water, so that one dry season does not bring chaos. Why there were forest fires Driving through some parts of Bulgaria in summer 2000, you might cross huge areas where the forests were burned down, and only the black remnants of the trees were sticking out of the ground. Often the wind-blown smoke from fires completely obscured the sky behind. These fires did not spare the territories of the Rila, Pirin and Central Balkan national parks. According to Environment Ministry data, some 4,000 decares of forests were destroyed within natural parks alone. In total, some 400,000 decares of land, including forests, were burned by more than 1,000 fires throughout the country. The forests apparently burned easily because of the high summer temperatures and the droughts that followed. According to meteorologists, the region came under a strong influence from the Sahara desert air, which crosses the Mediterranean Sea quickly, without being able to absorb enough moisture. These changing winds could be part of a climate change process brought about by air pollution, and indeed the Bulgarian media portrayed the droughts and fires as the results of typical climate change. But it is also entirely possible that the weather changes impacting South Eastern Europe are just part of a natural climate cycle. In fact, many of the fires in the region were caused by other identifiable factors, such as farmers illegally burning their fields. About 25 fires were caused intentionally, because of individual economic interests. According to environmental activists, a devastating forest fire in the Maljovitsa region in Rila was caused by people who were interested in clearing new ski slopes on a mountain. This accusation is currently under police investigation. Environmentalists also say that part of the local population tolerates, or even causes forest fires, as it gives them an excuse to cut the burned trees and sell them for a good price. To eliminate this incentive for fires, Greece and Spain have moratoria on any kind of usage of burned trees, and Bulgaria might consider a similar approach. Drought a lingering problem However the forest fires started, the arid weather makes them more likely to spread. And the drought has impacted more than just forests. After a dry summer and a rainless autumn, more than 1,000 towns in Bulgaria had to introduce water restrictions. Droughts in May, June and July reduced the volumes of the rivers between 30 and 90 percent, as compared to 1999 levels. While it is difficult to influence climate in the short run, droughts are not the only culprit behind Bulgaria's water crisis. Bad water management and outdated infrastructure throughout the country mean that 65-90 percent of the water is lost on the way from the dams to the taps. Replacing the pipelines requires huge investments that municipal water supply companies cannot afford. Perhaps the best solution is to encourage private investment in these companies, through different forms of government concessions. The government's reaction to the critical situation includes measures for better water management, and construction of new dams. But environmental NGOs like Green Balkans and Ecosouthwest say that a new system of dams is not enough. The environmentalists worry that government's big infrastructure development projects are designed to bring in jobs first and solve the water problem second. Nature protection experts insist that environmentally friendly and relatively cheap measures should be taken first, including: reduction of water losses, restriction of usage of potable water by industry, decentralisation of water management into regional basin directorates and upgrading of old dams.

Soldiers turn firefighters to battle a blaze in Mount Vitosha, a protected wilderness near Sofia. A parched riverbed in the Bulgarian countryside.