Is the iron factory "draining" the Liverović lake?

Due to the water level, which is a meter below the biological minimum, fishing on Lake Liverovići in Nikšić Župa is prohibited. The low water level has opened up old questions that the locals and the local community of the parish have been warning about for years - that, as they claim, broken valves in the drainage system are to blame for the drop in the water level and that this is the responsibility of the Ironworks.

"Tosčelik", which manages the Ironworks, did not respond to the questions of "Vijesti" about this problem.

A strict fishing ban has been introduced to protect the fish stock and will last until the lake level rises, and the ban was introduced by the freshwater fisheries inspector.

"The water level in Lake Liverović, which is below the biological minimum these days, is a classic example of inadequate management of natural resources. That this relationship is a stepmother's statement is also the response of the owner of Željezara, who is responsible for the state of the Liverovići lake, who ignores initiatives to repair the sluice gates, that we should wait for the water level to drop, so that less water will be lost from the lake," said the president of the Ministry of Health. Dragoljub Radulović Parish.

The local community, as he pointed out, has turned to the Water Administration, in order to remediate the mentioned situation, and expects their reaction. As Radulović points out, they are also dissatisfied with the attitude of the Sports Fishing Club (SRK) "Nikšić", which has a concession for fishing on the lake, which is not more active when it comes to the mentioned problem and which believes "the stories presented to them by the Željezara management at meetings".

Radulović reminds that for the construction of the artificial reservoir, which was built in 1957 for the needs of the then "Boris Kidrič" Ironworks, the most fertile land was taken from the inhabitants of the village of Liverovići, and that in the last few years, due to the non-functioning of the sluice gates, the water level has been at or below the border biological minimum.

"I believe that the Water Administration will have the ear to solve the problem, because this multi-year round and round should come to an end." This kind of non-domestic relationship boils down to calling for rain to raise the lake level, and then expecting the lake level to drop below the biological minimum as soon as possible, so that less water is lost," warns Radulović and adds that the potential of the lake and its catchment area is great and significant for development of the Parish.

The owner of the reservoir is the state, and the users are SRK "Nikšić" and Željezara "Tosčelik". SRK Secretary Vlajko Simović reminded that last year the water level was below the biological minimum, so the hunting season was in effect for two months. Last year, Željezara, after the Club turned to the inspector for freshwater fisheries, repaired the main lock on Laz, where the flow of water is controlled, but the outdated equipment, Simović points out, gave way in other places as well, and the lock located on at the bottom of the lake, next to the dam itself.

"Recently, we had a meeting with the management of the Ironworks. They claim that the shutter rested on a rock and that it cannot be closed, and that it cannot be done by them, but by specialized teams of divers. Another problem is, as they said from Željezara, that the water sinks 50 meters above the dam, and they, as they said, cannot do that for technical reasons. It should be closed like Elektroprivreda did on Salt Lake", said Simović.

The ironworks now uses the potential of the lake to a much lesser extent than it used to, and periodically.

"These days we are having a conversation in the Fisheries Directorate, and although the topic of the conversation is not the Liverović Lake, we will insist that it be one of the topics and that they find a solution to solve this problem," said the secretary of SRK.

Perović: The responsibility lies with whoever manages the lake

"It is very important for the lake ecosystem of artificial reservoirs that the biological minimum is not endangered, and that is the essence of good management. We are of the opinion that the lake and its surroundings must have integral management, which means clearly defined responsibilities of the one who has the most financial profit, and not as is the case now", said Aleksandar Perović, director of the Ecological Movement "Ozone".

According to him, it is fine that the management of the fish stock is done in cooperation with the fishing companies, but that the primary responsibility rests with the one who manages the lake.

"We constantly point out that Nikšić's artificial reservoirs, after several decades of existence, have acquired essential ecosystem importance, almost like natural lakes, because the local population organized their way of life taking into account the fact of their existence".