Dicon Group has many years of experience in coordinating and managing the full range of consulting services in the field of project management and business development in the following areas: biodiversity and Natura 2000, implementation of the Water Framework Directive, environment assessments and analyses and capacity building.
We build teams of experts for each individual project, providing the necessary competencies and experience. We perceive our clients as partners and follow steadfastly high standards of work in the respective field. We rely on wide international expertise to ensure the implementation of the best European practices. All this allows us to inplement complex and large-scale projects, the results of which are highly appreciated by our clients.
Among the projects, implemented by the company are:
Natura 2000 is a Pan-European network of sites for protection (protected areas) in Europe, aiming to provide the long-term conservation of the most valuable and threatened species and natural habitat types. The Natura 2000 sites falling into the ecological network are designated in accordance with the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive.
As a member state of the EU, Bulgaria is obligated to ensure the management of the Natura 2000 sites, by determining and implementing the needed measures for the protection of the species and natural habitat types. This requires effective and efficient management of the Natura 2000 network.
In 2016 the Ministry of environment and water assigned to Dicon Group Ltd., in partnership with the Federal Environment Agency of Austria, to develop a management approach for Natura 2000 network in Bulgaria, by building and developing management models at the national level and for the Natura 2000 sites.
The development of the management model has been realized by an active communication with the stakeholders – different ministries and their regional structures, non-profit organizations, professional and business associations, scientific organizations.
The introduction of the management models is related to changes in the Bulgarian legislation, which the MoEW proposed to the Bulgarian National Assembly.
Annex V of the Water Framework Directive 2000/60/ЕС (WFD) introduced unified system for assessing the status of surface waters. In order to ensure comparability between the results of the ecological status assessments, which are carried out according to nationally developed and approved methodologies, each of the EU Member States participates in the so-called "intercalibration" process. The successful participation of the Member States in this process is a guarantee that the assessments of the ecological status of the water bodies according to the biological quality elements (BQE) have the necessary credibility and are comparable to the assessments carried out in the other Member States. Therefore, each EU Member State is obliged to intercalibrate the nationally developed BQE analysis methods.
The intercalibration (IC) process is conducted for all surface water types identified as common by two or more countries implementing WFD. For this purpose, in 2004 the European Commission (EC) launched the so-called "intercalibration exercise".
In 2013, the Ministry of the Environment and Water (MoEW) assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with Umweltbundesamt GmbH (Federal Environment Agency of Austria), to intercalibrate the methods for the analysis of biological quality elements (BQE) for surface water types on the territory of Bulgaria corresponding to certain common European types in the geographical groups for intercalibration.
All the results of the IC process were presented by our team to the European structures (JRC, WGA ECOSTAT), and the developed methods were included in the EC Decision as follows:
Developed methods for analysis of the following BQE:
Adapted methods for analysis of the following BQE:
A successful intercalibration of methods for analysis of BQE has been achieved within common types in categories “river”, “lake” and “coastal water”.
In April 2012, the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria took a decision "in principle" to build a new nuclear power plant at the Kozloduy NPP site. The technology that will be used to produce electricity from a nuclear source will be a Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR). The project of the new nuclear power corresponds to the European requirements described in the Requirements of the European operating organizations for NPPs with light water reactors and also to the Bulgarian regulatory framework in the field of the safe use of nuclear energy.
In 2012 “Kozloduy NPP – New Builds” PLC assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with Acciona Ingenieria (Spain) to carry out an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) of the investment proposal for construction of a new nuclear power plant at the Kozloduy NPP site, taking into account the cumulative effect of the joint operation of all facilities located on it. In the scope of the EIA Report is also included an assessment for potential transboundary impact, as well as an assessment of the degree of the impact of the investment proposal on the subject and objectives of the Natura 2000 sites, located in adjacence.
On the base of the reports prepared, the Ministry of Environment and Water (MoEW) took a positive Decision on EIA, which was the condition for taking the decision by the Ministries of Council (MC) for building a new nuclear power, as well as for submission of a request for the issuance of an order approving the selected site by the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NRA).
Austria and Romania participated in the procedure for EIA in a transboundary context (according to the ESPOO Convention). In 2019, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) published “Recommendations for good practice”, which describe existing good practices regarding the applying of cross-border environment impact assessment procedures in the field of nuclear energy. According to the cited document of the UN Commission, Bulgaria is indicated as an example for applying good practices in three main areas:
The effective implementation of the responsibilities and powers in the field of fire safety and the protection of the population in the event of disasters, fires and emergency situations on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria puts/sets as the main priority in the work of the responsible bodies the care for the continuous development and upgrading of skills, abilities and capacities of the engaged employees and experts at all levels – both the experts with management functions, responsible for decision-making, and the employees with executive and operational functions.
To continue the process of improvement and achieve greater efficiency in the overall training activity on protection in the event of disasters and crises on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria, the General Directorate "Fire Safety and Civil Protection" (GD FSCP) in the administration of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) implements a complex of activities directly aimed at developing the knowledge and skills of the employees of GD FSCP-MoI, including representatives of the teaching staff of its International Centre for Professional Training of Rescuers in Disasters, Accidents and Catastrophes in Montana, and on the other hand - to the representatives of the regional administrations, as well as the municipal managing bodies and administrations, performing functions and activities in the management of crises, natural disasters and accidents.
In 2014, the GD FSCP assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with Danish Emergency Management Agency (DEMA), to organize and conduct a series of trainings aimed at:
60 employees of the GD FSCP developed their capacity as trainers and more than 4000 employees central, regional and municipal administration have been prepared in the field of management, coordination and control for conducting operational activities for dealing with natural disasters, fires and accidents.
According to Art. 8 of the Habitats Directive, the EU introduced a common standard for strategic planning of “Natura 2000” activities, obliging Member States to develop a National Prioritized Action Framework for Natura 2000 (NPAF).
The purpose of the NPAF is to better define the funding needs and the priorities for Natura 2000 sites at national and regional level and thereby facilitate their integration into the future funding programs from the various European financing instruments.
The set in the programs funding for the Natura 2000 sites must be in accordance with the measures of the NPAF and the funding sources for these measures, indicated in the Framework.
The preparation of quality NPAF is of great importance to ensure a better integration of the investments in the Natura 2000 into the relevant policies and funding instruments. This process of integration implies that the financing of the NPAF has a horizontal character, with each of the possible financial instruments of the EU having an optimal level of use for the needs of "Natura 2000" and, respectively, a contribution to the achievement of the goals of biological diversity conservation.
In 2013 the Ministry of Environment and Water assigned to Dicon Group Ltd., in partnership with Agreco GEIE (Belgium), the elaboration of NPAF 2014-2020.
NPAF of Bulgaria for the period 2014-2020 includes 113 measures for the implementation of 5 priorities. For the purpose of monitoring, assessment and the Framework update a system with 78 indicators has been elaborated, which reporting is distributed on programs for funding.
In order to study the experience and good practices in the management of “Natura 2000”, five working visits have been held, in which employees from various Bulgarian institutions participated. The themes of the individual visits and their locations are as follows:
Our team also has built a capacity for implementation of the Framework by delivering trainings for more than 400 employees of:
Compendium of good practices in “Natura 2000” has been elaborated.
NPAF 2014-2020 can be found here.
The Compendium of good practices in “Natura 2000” can be found here.
The management of the “Natura 2000” network is based on quality scientific data and information. They are needed in order to be taken management decisions about what measures to be implemented so as to ensure the favourable status of species and natural habitat types.
In 2011, the Ministry of Environment and Water assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with Agriconsulting S.p.A (Italy), mapping and determining the nature conservation status of natural habitat types and species on the overall territory of the ecological network. This was implemented within six contracts:
Our team of more than 500 national and international experts achieved the following results:
Preparatory phase:
Mapping the habitats and distribution of the species population/natural habitats:
Creation of a structure of a geo-database for distribution of species/natural habitats and mapping the results.
The results of the contract can be found here.
Part of the commitments of Bulgaria to the EU are completed also through the planning and subsequent implementation of the National information and communication strategy for “Natura 2000” (NICS).
The implementation of communication objectives, formulated through NICS, is a tool for more effective management of the processes related to development, approval and functioning of the "Natura 2000" network in Bulgaria. These processes require broad public support and a high degree of public awareness of all participants in them. This implies that they have the opportunity to make informed decisions, to be invited and to have access to platforms or mechanisms through which to share their views. Information management and relationships are of a key importance for the success of these processes. This brings to the fore the need for a unified communication policy to gather, structure and channel the available information to achieve a good understanding by all stakeholders of the significant aspects related to the ecological network. In order to satisfy the informational needs of a wide range of representatives of different groups of participants in the management of the network, a balanced planning of communication on the topic is necessary, which will guarantee the choice of effective approaches, through which the topic "Natura 2000 in Bulgaria" will be credible and transparent positioned on the public agenda. Only in this way can the necessary communication support be provided.
In 2012 the Ministry of Environment and Water assigned to Dicon Group the elaboration of the NICS – a strategy that should be implemented on a national scale during the period 2014-2023. The overall objective of the document is to support the whole process of communication of Natura 2000 in the next ten years.
The specific goals that the development of the NICS set, can be formulated as follows:
NICS can be found here.
For the better utilization of the funds from the Structural and Cohesion Funds (SCF), it is necessary to strengthen the capacity of the regional and local authorities (RLA) in the fields of:
In 2010, the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria assigned to Dicon Group, in a partnership with Idein Ltd., Foundation “Law and Internet” and “Ciela Soft and Publishing” JSC., to organize and conduct trainings on the above indicated topics for the representatives of the regional and local authorities throughout the country.
Our team has built the capacity of 36 trainers, representatives of regional and local authorities. The trainers have been selected using a specific procedure, designed to ensure an adequate selection of local experts covering the fields of the individual topics. They were included in the conduction of the subsequent trainings.
Total of 144 trainings for 2 880 representatives of the regional and local authorities have been conducted.
Training sessions of Activity 2 have been organized in three seasons – spring 2011, autumn 2011 and winter 2012.
The objective of the technical assistance (TA) is to strengthen the cross-border cooperation between Bulgaria and Greece by supporting the programming process and increasing the capacity for Structural funds absorption. This includes:
In 2008, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with Ecorys SEE and BIM Consulting, the development of the project ideas of potential beneficiaries on the CBC program between Bulgaria and Greece into ready-to-launch projects.
Within the technical assistance 59 ready-to-launch projects are developed, as more than 30 of them are investment. 30 project proposals are submitted for funding on the first open procedure of the CBC Bulgaria-Greece Program.
In the course of implementation of the contract, a capacity of the representatives of the local authorities is built to ensure the necessary continuity and sustainability of the results achieved.
Actual implementation phase:
The technical assistance aims to support the wise use of natural resources in the cross-border areas and to ensure their sustainable development, by promoting synergy between the existing nature policies, land use planning and rural and urban regions development.
In 2006, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, through the European Commission in Bulgaria, assigned to Dicon Group, in partnership with AGRECO G.E.I.E. and the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe (REC CEE), the designation of four eco-networks in the cross-border region Bulgaria-Greece and development of a program for sustainable development of this territory. In the scope of the four ecological networks “Struma”, “Mesta”, “Western Rodopi” and “Eastern Rodopi” includes the territories of 27 Bulgarian municipalities from Haskovo, Kardzali, Smolian and Blagoevgrad regions and the municipalities of Kavala, Evros, Xanthi, Rodopi, Drama, Saloniki and Sérres from the Greek side. The networks connect territories from both sides of the boundary rich in biodiversity and valuable landscapes.
On the creation of the eco-networks and the Program for sustainable development have worked more than 400 persons from the cross-border region, supported by our expert team. The program for sustainable development envisages support for activities such as tourism and agriculture, sustainable use of the natural resources, waste management and improvement of infrastructure and services are among the main activities that the local population will be able to develop without endangering natural resources and biodiversity. The implementation of more than 40 projects for tourist attractions, conversion of authentic country houses into guest houses, as well as creation of an integrated network of tourist attractions in the specified territories is planned.
