CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTION AND TERRITORIAL DEFORMATIONS: DEFICIENCIES IN POLICIES FOR MANAGING PERI-URBANIZATION IN BULGARIA

Abstract

This article examines the institutional and regulatory deficiencies hindering the prevention of peri-urbanization around major economic centers in Bulgaria. The analysis reveals a profound paradox between the constitutional status of agricultural land as a national wealth and the actual practice, which leads to significant territorial deformations. The author argues that the current regulatory framework, embedded in the Spatial Development Act and the Agricultural Land Protection Act, fails to function as a preventive tool for sustainable spatial planning, acting instead as an administrative and fiscal registrar of spontaneous investment initiatives. The research demonstrates that the lack of synchronization between strategic documents and the flawed practice of "spot zoning" results in an irreversible loss of land resources and infrastructural imbalances. A conceptual legislative shift is proposed to move administrations away from their role as mere registrars, restoring their function as proactive regulators of spatial planning processes that guarantee sustainable environmental development.