Bulgarian environmentalists are going to table Thursday a petition to the European Commission and to other EU institutions to stop the illegal resort construction in the Bulgarian Rila Mountain.

The petition is signed by 145 000 Bulgarians, and is supported by international eco-organizations, and by Members of the European Parliament from the Greens/EFA group, the "For the Nature" environmental coalition announced.

The petition insists that the Bulgarian state stop the illegal construction at the Panichishte mountain resort on the territory of the Rila National Park and the planned protected zone "Rula-Buffer".

The Bulgarian environmentalists are warning that the current construction of a road, a lift, and three ski tracks were only the beginning of a massive construction project of a ski resort in the "Panichishte-the Lakes-Kabul" area.

According to their announcement, the environmental organizations are seeking support from Brussels because of the lack of any reaction to the issue by the Bulgarian institutions, and their unwillingness to put an end to the drastic violations taking place in the Rila Mountain.

The eco-activist remind that the MEPs Margarete Auken and David Hammerstein had visited Rila in the last two months and had submitted eight questions to the European Parliament regarding the ski resort projects in the Bulgarian mountain.

The petition also declares that the Bulgarian state must take action to preserve the nature of Rila, which is unique for Europe and the world.

It will be tabled at 1 p.m. on Thursday, and a demonstration in support of its cause will take place before the building of the EC before that.

"No other cause except for the campaign to free the Bulgarian nurses from the Libyan jail has mobilized such a strong public support in Bulgaria in the recent years. Since August 2007 thousands of citizens have participated in over 50 events to save Rila", Vera Petkanchin from "For the Nature" said.

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