The Environmental Protection Agency has issued a ruling requiring the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property to address the concerns raised in the Strategic Impact Assessment Report regarding the Spatial Plan.

This necessitates the Ministry returning the Plan for revision to accommodate the raised objections.

The Government approved the draft Plan on June 12 without consulting the Agency’s report and approval. Two parliamentary committees endorsed the Plan; however, the Parliament’s discussion took place without access to the Agency’s report and ruling. A vote on this matter is anticipated in the coming days.

The Agency delivered its decision three days ago to the Ministry, which has the right to contest this administrative act within a 15-day window.

“The responsible authority for preparing the subject plan, the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property, is directed to execute activities outlined in the Plan in line with the recommendations and environmental protection measures set in the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Report. This includes accounting for all planned activities necessary for effective implementation of the Plan, focusing on protection and mitigation measures aimed at preventing, decreasing, and eliminating any significant adverse effects of the planned activities on human health and the environment. It should also emphasize measures to safeguard the biodiversity of the area, water resources, marine ecosystems, and landscape values at risk during the Plan’s execution, along with a program for monitoring the impacts on the environment and human health,” the Agency’s decision emphasized.

Noteworthy critiques from the Strategy, now highlighted by the Agency, pertain to ongoing projects the Government is advocating for, such as Velje Brdo, Velika Plaza, Buljarica, the Komarnica and Gornje Kruševo hydropower plants, segments of highways and expressways, development of new beaches, and the planning of educational and health facilities, in addition to opening the Bojana River to traffic…

While some of these concerns were included in the January report, none were reflected in the final version of the Spatial Plan sent to MPs.

News