EPCG claims that the water coming out from under the Maljevac landfill does not have a negative impact on the quality of the water in Vezišnica

The waters coming out from under the Maljevac landfill, where ash and slag from the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant are deposited, have no negative impact on the quality of the waters of Vezišnica, especially not on the quality of the waters of Ćehotina, which was not the case before Paleški Potok was relocated to Borovičko Lake.

This is claimed by the Electric Power Industry of Montenegro (EPCG), referring to analyzes performed by an accredited laboratory.

"From the analyzes in question, it can be clearly determined that the quality of the water in Vezišnica is the same before the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant and downstream, that is, after the inflow of water through the old bed of the Paleški stream," EPCG claims.

The Sports Fishing Society "Lipljen" recently asserted that runoff from Maljevac continues to flow into Vezišnica, thus continuing the pollution of Pljeval watercourses, "even though officially, according to EPCG and the Environmental Protection Agency, Paleški potok has been moved".

Elektroprivreda CG invested more than half a million euros in the relocation of the Paleški stream, which flowed under the Maljevac landfill.

President of the Sports Fishing Club "Lipljen" Vaso Knežević invited the Environmental Protection Agency of Montenegro to perform a technical inspection and determine whether the works were carried out in accordance with the main remediation projects and contracts. In an official letter sent to the Agency, "Lipljen" also requests that all irregularities be eliminated.

"Sports fishing club "Lipljen" was among the first to praise the relocation of the Paleški stream from its source to the Borovičko lake, with the aim of protecting the rivers of Pljevlja and their biodiversity. The Paleški stream flowed through concrete pipes under the ash and slag dump of the Pljeval Thermal Power Plant, and due to the deterioration of the pipes, it absorbed harmful substances from the dump and polluted the Vezišnica inlet and Ćehotina further on. However, today we have to criticize the same, because that activity did not lead to solving the mentioned problem. The Paleški stream continues to flow where it flowed even before its relocation, and in the new bed that should lead the Paleški stream into Borovičko jezero there is almost no water flowing," said Knežević.

He claims that Vezišnica has been a dead river for years from the point where the Paleški stream flows into it, up to its confluence with the Ćehotina river.

Elektroprivreda claims that all works related to the diversion of the Paleški stream, the construction of the pumping station and the electrical infrastructure at the landfill were carried out in accordance with the Agreement on the use of funds for the implementation of the "Industrial waste management and cleaning" project for the remediation of the Pljevlja location.

"All the works have been carried out and the Agency has conducted a technical acceptance. The collection of documentation for the Use Permit is ongoing. In accordance with the technical documentation, the Paleški stream was moved to the Borovičko lake. The main project recognized the intermediate watershed from the route of the stream to the Maljevac landfill. It is planned that the waters of the inter-basin flow into the collector under the Maljevac landfill (the collector of the old Paleški stream) and that at the exit from the stream, they are pumped to the Maljevac landfill in a closed cycle. The pumping plant in question at the outlet of the collector has been built. As it is a complex engineering facility in its entirety, in accordance with the Law on Spatial Planning and Building Construction, it is necessary to carry out a technical inspection of the facility and obtain a use permit before using the facility," EPCG claims.

They add that after the commissioning of the pumping plant, the water at the exit from the old Paleški stream will be pumped into the closed technological water system of the Maljevac landfill and that as such they cannot come into contact with the environment.

"The project envisages that these waters are pumped throughout the year, and in winter the system is shut down and emptied due to low temperatures. In accordance with construction norms, for the Municipality of Pljevlja, the period from November to March is considered the period of low temperatures. In any case, EPCG will try to divert as much of the inter-basin water as possible into free flows upstream of the Maljevac landfill and thus reduce the amount of water that needs to be pumped. If there are any surpluses after the commissioning of the pumping station, EPCG water will take all measures to improve the project", claim EPCG.