After the municipality of Sokolac, the Declaration of “Municipality without dams” was signed by Ljubiša Ćosić, the mayor of East Novo Sarajevo, pledging not to issue any concession, permit or recommendation for the construction of a dam or hydroelectric power plant on their territory without consulting citizens.
Last week, representatives of the Aarhus Center from Sarajevo, as a front of the Coalition for the Protection of Rivers of BiH, visited the mayor and on that occasion presented the problems of the small hydroelectric power plant “Podivič” on the Kasindolska river. They paid special attention to the issue of the access road, which was not built in accordance with the project documentation.
The mayor promised to send the communal police to the scene himself and write a letter to the inspection to support the Request for Inspection previously sent by the Aarhus Center.
Noticing the negative result that the small hydroelectric power plant “Podivic” left on the Kasindolska river, the Municipality of East Novo Sarajevo expressed support for stopping the construction of SHPP “Samar” and SHPP “Slapi”, although at the beginning it supported this project and gave a positive opinion.
“It is really commendable to note that eminent representatives of various institutions in the municipalities, as well as the city of East Sarajevo, such as Mr. Miroslav Lučić, willing to support the moratorium on small hydropower plants. Such support is a strong message that the moratorium on small hydropower plants in Republika Srpska must be on the list of political priorities, “said Emina Veljović, executive director of the Aarhus Center in BiH.
The Declaration “Municipalities without Dams” is part of the activities jointly implemented by Arnika (Czech Republic), the Coalition for the Protection of Rivers of BiH and the Center for Environment with funding from the European Union and the Czech Republic’s Transition Promotion Program. It is based on the “Declaration on the Protection of the Rivers of the Western Balkans”, which was adopted last year at an international conference held in Sarajevo.
All municipalities in BiH have the opportunity to join the initiative “Municipalities without dams”, and additional information is available via email: koalicijazazastiturijekabih@gmail.com.