We now have a machine that we can use to move trees so we don’t cut them down
– Mr. Georgiev, is sanitary cleaning carried out on “Lauta” and in the park on the Grebnia Canal? According to the survey made by the Municipal Enterprise “Gardens and Parks”, a large part of the trees in this park are sick. There are also many dead trees in the “Recreation and Culture” park.
– Not even a month has passed since the fourth consecutive large-scale action to clear the forest park of “Lauta” of broken, dry and diseased dangerous trees. “Mission Lauta” started on the initiative of Kostadin Dimitrov during his third term as mayor of the Trakia region and continues now. During all the years, Mr. Dimitrov did a lot for the ennoblement of the forest park and its expansion with over 80 acres and 2000 new trees in the southern direction. “Lauta” was revived as one of the favorite places of Plovdiv residents. I am sure that as mayor of Plovdiv Kostadin Dimitrov will do even more. Hundreds of volunteers took part in the last action. However, we worked in the field for more than three weeks. We pre-prepared the vegetation for easier <210> removal to the driveways, then continued the <210> transport to the composting plant.
Sanitary cleaning of fallen and dried trees is also regularly done at Grebna base. Once we are done with the mowing, we are also going to direct a lot of people and equipment there.
– What are your intentions for these green areas to make them more attractive?
– The state of part of the vegetation in “Lauta” is alarming. This is confirmed by a phytosanitary survey of the trees made with the assistance of the Forest Protection Station. For both “Lauta” Park and “Recreation and Culture” projects are needed, tailored to the opinion of experts and citizens, with whom to apply for funding from European funds.
The task of “Gardens and Parks” is to maintain the green system of the city. We have ideas on how to do it better. That’s why we’re changing the company’s policy.
– What changes do you foresee? In the previous mandate, an inspection was made of the so-called muddy spaces, mainly between the blocks.
– In addition to the daily care of the central parks and gardens, we will also focus on the restoration of old and neglected park spaces. This means complete rehabilitation and construction of automated irrigation systems, new grassing and modeling of the terrain, introduction of more attractive decorative vegetation with predominant evergreen species. We will completely change the appearance of the green spaces intended for wide public use.
Our idea is to improve the quality of life in the neighborhoods, regardless of where they are located in Plovdiv. We have already started designing and remodeling these old park spaces to give them a true European look.
– Have you started surveying trees in the city with special equipment and approximately what percentage need replacement?
– Together with the regional ecologists, we constantly conduct inspections for potentially dangerous trees, including on reports from citizens. Whenever we suspect that a species may cause a problem, we also check with the specialized resistograph device, which we own. In Plovdiv there are hundreds of thousands of trees with different qualities and longevity. Where we had to remove a tree, we compensate with another that has better ecological qualities.
– Some time ago, during the mandate of Slavcho Atanasov, there was a competition for the best maintained kindergarten. Such a competition was also organized by the mayor Kostadin Dimitrov in Trakia. Do you intend to follow his example?
– At this stage, we do not plan to organize competitions. We leave the initiative to the regional mayors. But I guarantee that we will assist any citizen who approaches us with the desire to provide decorative vegetation and flowers to ennoble an inter-block space. Our only condition is that the provided plants are then taken care of.
– How will you improve the maintenance of the hills?
– The condition of the vegetation on the hills is similar to that of “Lauta” and Grebna base. The main problem is invasive species, the most persistent of which are ailant and acacia. We strive to remove them so as not to disturb the eco-equilibrium in these protected areas. On Mladezhki hill, for example, there are several endemic herbaceous species, among which are found only here and nowhere else in the world the podutochashka sedge and the Rumelian yellowtail. Some trees die because their root systems develop on restrictions on the rock soil horizon. The municipality has a hill management program. There are also ambitious projects that are gradually being implemented.
– What budget does the enterprise have, is this money enough and what area is supported by how many staff?
– The budget of “Gardens and Parks” adopted by the Municipal Council for 2024 is about BGN 11 million, and the staff is 560 people. We are looking to integrate more machinery into the facility to make it easier and more efficient to maintain the approximately 8,000 acres of green space we care for. In the last two months alone we have purchased two very useful new machines. One is for moving and transplanting trees. Instead of cutting down a tree to build new infrastructure, we can move it to another location without wasting the vegetation. Just in time, the Municipality granted us funds and we purchased for only 30,000 BGN a new mower that replaces 10 workers.
The effect is already there. We treat huge lawns literally in hours, and during this time our employees with trimmers and rotary mowers remove the grass in the small inter-block spaces. We expect to have one such machine in each district next year. All this leads to a more rational use of the funds allocated according to the possibilities of the budget.
– Will there be enough flowers in Plovdiv this summer as well?
– Let’s still enjoy the autumn-spring flowers. From the beginning of June, we will replace them with hundreds of thousands of stems of summer species. Even before Palm Sunday, we will beautify the central pedestrian area with baskets of flowers hanging from electric poles. We will also take out the spiral pots in which we are already planting petunias and geraniums. The roses have already bloomed. Since the beginning of the year, more than 5,000 rose bushes have been planted.
Anton Georgiev was born on March 22, 1986. He completed his secondary education at the Construction Technical College, majoring in Park Construction and Landscaping. He continued his higher education at the Agricultural University, where he graduated first as a bachelor in ecology and environmental protection, and then as a master in ornamental plants and landscape design. He started working in his specialty in “Gardens and Parks” as an assistant technician, technical manager of an area, chief expert. He then worked in a private landscaping company. Headed the Municipal Enterprise “Gardens and Parks” in November of this year.
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