Bulgaria faces a "garbage mafia": a multi-billion dollar business

Friday, Feb 20, 2026

Mediapool

Illegal waste trafficking in the EU costs billions, with Bulgaria serving as both a destination and transit point for hazardous waste disguised as recyclables.

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[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

Illegal waste trafficking within the EU generates 9.5 billion euros annually, ranking third only to drug trafficking and VAT fraud. Bulgaria serves as both a final destination for illegal waste and a transit country along its routes, with hazardous or heavily polluted streams being falsely labeled as non-hazardous materials, secondary raw materials, or second-hand products.

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