The Initiative Committee of the civic initiative “Majevica – Nature Park, Not a Lithium Mine” has today submitted a petition signed by 6,057 citizens of Bijeljina, Zvornik, Lopare, and Ugljevik, requesting the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska to impose a moratorium on granting concessions for the exploration and exploitation of lithium and other discovered resources in the Majevica mountain area until the process of designating this area as a nature park is completed.
The list of all signatories, along with the necessary accompanying documentation, has been submitted to the protocol office of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska.
It is worth noting that, through amendments to the Spatial Plan of Republika Srpska until 2025, this area is already designated for protection as a nature park in accordance with the Law on Nature Protection. The “Guardians of Majevica” citizens’ association initiated the proposal for protected area designation. This initiative has been accepted by the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction, and Ecology of RS, while the Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical, and Natural Heritage provided a positive opinion on the protection. Currently, scientific research is underway to support the protection of this area.
Over the past 27 days, citizens from the four listed local self-governance units had the opportunity to support the civic initiative by signing the petition.
“The civic initiative conducted under the name ‘Majevica – Nature Park, Not a Lithium Mine’ lasted from December 21, 2024, until January 16, 2025. We collected signatures in four local government units. During the signature collection period, we gathered a total of 6,057 signatures, and today, January 20, the civic initiative, along with all accompanying documentation, has been submitted to the National Assembly of Republika Srpska,” stated Snežana Jagodić Vujić, a member of the Initiative Committee for this civic initiative.
Andrijana Pekić, another member of the Initiative Committee, emphasized that the citizens of Majevica supported the initiative and remain committed, together with them, to fighting for the preservation of their homes, clean air, drinking water, and unpolluted soil. “Majevica Mountain possesses unexplored natural treasures, and the process of obtaining its status as a protected area will continue. Majevica Mountain can and must be a nature park and never a lithium mine controlled by foreigners for a meager mining royalty of 3%,” Andrijana Pekić emphasized.
The Center for the Environment closely monitored the implementation of this initiative and provided legal support throughout the process.
“The civic initiative was conducted fully in accordance with the Law on Referenda and Civic Initiatives, which came into force last year. It is interesting to note that the collection period was shorter than what the law prescribes, yet twice the minimum number of signatures required by law was collected. Given this, it is expected that this civic initiative will be included on the agenda for discussion by deputies at a session of the National Assembly and decided upon in accordance with the law,” stated Sonja Kosanović, a legal expert at the Center for the Environment.
This announcement was made as part of a project funded by the European Union. The content of this announcement is responsibility of the Center for Environment and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.