Archived Articles

Simeon Mitropolitski is a Canadian analyst, of Bulgarian origin, and a former syndicated columnist with the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA). He is the author of several hundred articles dealing with hot political and economic topics, both national and international.

He was part of the first group of Bulgarian intellectuals and students that began the opposition movement that finally put an end to the communist regime in this country in 1989, and in 1996-1997 participated in international observation teams during the elections in several Balkan countries - Romania, Albania and Bulgaria.

In 2002 Simeon and his family moved from Bulgaria to Canada where they live now in Montreal, province of Quebec. Simeon is a Master of Political Science from McGill University and a B.A. of Political Science and History.

Global Real Estate Project
News Index

Directories
  Int'l Realty
  US Realty

Less than 6 months after the Biblical floods in Europe in August 2002 and exactly 24 months after the hurricane winds that ravaged parts of the continent, the enraged nature again reminded the people of its force. Fierce winds and rain crossed the continent this January, flooding parts of Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Austria. The storms claimed many lives and many others are still missing. The hurricane winds knocked down thousands of trees from Britain to Austria, causing chaos and power cuts.

Third natural disaster of this magnitude in such a short period shows the people and the governments in Europe that climate changes aren't only scientists' fiction and black forecasts. Is the continent, very well protected in the past against the natural extremities, going to experience annually the same bad fortune as many other places in the earth? Are these disasters going to become normal picture of the European landscape?

There are at least two groups of options the concerned European governments have to choose between. The first group, as we mentioned earlier, consists of putting the blame on the other countries for the greenhouse effect that makes the climate so unpredictable. Such approach is easy but it would hardly protect any European country and the general population against new natural disasters. The second approach is to consider the climate as something that inevitably changes, and to try becoming accustomed to it. The real solution then will be an attempt to find out as many as possible ways to protect people and their material welfare.

The figures are very frightening. Tens of millions of people in Europe live in areas that could become within days lakes and rivers. Some cities and governments have already decided to put in place fresh urban plans, facing the new situation. The aim is to restrict as much as possible the new developments in the areas endangered by deluges.

The Paris city authorities, for example, have counted the residential areas, which would go under water if a new deluge copies the biggest ever city disaster of 1910. The new construction works in almost 20% of the city surface will be limited and subjected to additional restraints. The existing buildings where live and work more than 250,000 people will have to be renovated following the new standards, giving priority to easy evacuation plans. Any new economic activity, which may cause pollution, will be forbidden in these areas of high risk. When an exemption to construction works is granted, as for example to the public service organizations, there should be more rigorous evacuation plans than the standard.

The immediate result for the real estate in these risky and very expensive areas, not only in Paris, but also in many other European towns and cities, will be the rising of the insurance premiums. Another consequence in short term will be, as surprising as it may appear, higher prices on any real estate in the endangered areas. This will follow the restriction on development, i.e. the restriction on the supply, in the areas where prices are higher than the average level.

--------------------

See also the directory of companies providing real estate services in, and general real estate information of Europe.