Coastal zones bill submitted to Parliament

The Finance Ministry’s draft law on the use of public property in coastal areas was submitted to Parliament on Saturday. 

It includes regulations for the public’s free access to beaches, transparency in the commercial use of public property, environmental protection, the upgrading of the tourist product, the intensity of inspections and the imposition of strict penalties on offenders. 

The bill is being introduced in Parliament in time for new leases to be signed for the summer months, with new rules governing, among other things, the minimum distances between concessions, the maximum area of beach that can be granted for exploitation, and the safeguarding of beaches where commercial exploitation is not allowed. 

The public consultation on the bill concluded last Thursday with the participation of hundreds of professional, sports and social organizations, municipalities, environmental organizations and individual citizens. 

From the comments submitted, it appeared that a significant part of the public would prefer a new framework, which not only concerns how the seashores and beaches are leased, but upgrades the conditions for the protection of the coastline, prioritizing its preservation from economic exploitation. 

This sentiment was also echoed in the joint text of observations submitted by eight environmental organizations.