The EU has approved 17 million euro in funding for improving air quality in Bulgaria. The clean air project includes Sofia, Bourgas, Veliko Turnovo and other towns, in which one third of the country’s population lives.

The project aims to reduce air pollution by replacing household heating installations and drafting national recommendations on applying the transition scheme to alternative forms of household heating.

Air pollution generated by domestic heating and transport are a serious problem for Bulgaria. Nearly 90 percent of people in cities are exposed to excessive levels of particulate matter, a considerably higher percentage than the average for the EU.