Last year 15 municipalities in Bulgaria laid the groundwork for the new household waste fee based on the "polluter pays" principle, Blagoevgrad mayor Metodi Baykushev said at the opening of a forum in Albena. See our earlier report: The annual NAMRB meeting begins in Albena and runs until 13 October.

The forum, "Sustainable municipal systems and the move to the new household waste fee: first lessons and possible solutions", is part of the meeting. The municipalities that already charge the fee have used different methods.

Baykushev said the issue stirs strong public feeling and directly affects people's quality of life. The first results show that municipalities had to build a full investment system and a justified split of costs.

There is no ready-made solution that fits every municipality, the mayor said. The change must happen without any break in services to residents.

A municipality cannot stop collecting rubbish while it runs public procurement and builds new systems, Baykushev explained. The process takes time.