Hail Suppression Project: Silver Iodide Generators

The government is launching a large-scale project to combat hailstorms, which includes the construction of a whole network of ground-based generators that work with silver iodide. The first pilot site will be located in the town of Karnobat, Burgas province, and will serve as a model for the other installations in the country. The initiative was made public during a working meeting between the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food, Ivan Kapitanov, and representatives of the Spanish hail protection.

New strategy for protecting agricultural production

Deputy Minister Kapitanov emphasized that the decision to implement ground-based generators was made after a detailed analysis of the state of hail protection in Bulgaria. The study reviewed the successful practices of countries such as Spain and France, where this method is applied successfully. These countries use automatic ground-based generators that are managed remotely. As a result of this analysis, the decision was made to introduce a similar system in Bulgaria.

According to Kapitanov, a key stage of the process is the proper design and construction of the gas installations for the generators. They must comply with strict national regulations, and the experience of Spain will be invaluable in creating a safe and effective network that meets both Bulgarian and European standards.

Expanding the scope and negotiations with local authorities

It was also clarified that the locations for the remaining generators have already been determined. A series of meetings will be held in October with local authorities and agricultural organizations to clarify the specific positions of the installations.

The main goal of the project is to build a modern and reliable system for hail protection in areas where traditional methods – rocket and airplane – cannot be applied. According to Deputy Minister Kapitanov, this will provide peace of mind to agricultural producers and guarantee the protection of their labor.

Spanish experience in the service of Bulgarian agriculture

During the meeting, the Spanish representatives pointed out a number of advantages of the new method for Bulgaria, emphasizing that their experience shows high success rates in applying this type of protection. During their visit to Bulgaria, they will hold a series of working consultations with Bulgarian specialists who will be involved in the construction and operation of the new network.

The meeting was attended by the Executive Director of the Executive Agency "Hail Protection", Eng. Valeri Tsenov, as well as representatives of the General Directorate "Fire Safety and Population Protection", the State Agency for Metrology and Technical Surveillance, and other institutions. The construction of the pilot site in Karnobat is the next step awaiting the approval of national control institutions.