Bansko
Bansko, which is currently staging a leg of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup has announced plans to nearly triple the size of its ski area with a €100m investment adding 200km of piste to the area's existing 130km.
The plans involve bringing in the adjoining villages of Razlog and Dobrinishte which currently have small rudimentary ski areas to create by far the largest ski area East of the Alps.
Green campaigners loosely formed in a n umbrella group called the "For the Nature" coalition say the development will impact on the Pirin National Park that all three villages sit on the edge of. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which already has some ski area development on it which green campaigners say is illegal as it is.
Previous proposals to develop in the UNESCO World Heritage sites and other sensitive areas in Bulgaria, often by companies not based in Bulgaria, have led to clashes with UNESCO, the WWF and EC.
Bulgarian ministers have not rejected the proposals outright but suggest Bansko could do more to diversify its business model in to more of a year round operation.