Bold and thoughtful decision of the Minister of Tourism, Ecology, Sustainable Development and Development of the North, Vladimir Martinović, to reject the appeal against the decision of the Environmental Agency (EPA), which was filed by the construction company Montenegro Petrol, which carried out the exploitation of gravel and sand in the Second Sanitary Protection Zone of the source of Bolje sisters, we can freely say, is one of the historical ones for the Regional Waterworks.
Zoran Lakušić, president of the Board of Directors of the Montenegrin Coastal Regional Waterworks, said this.
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"This is satisfaction for the long-standing struggle of the Regional Water Supply to prove that the exploitation of gravel and sand is the direct cause of the drop in the yield of the Bolje sestre spring that supplies the Montenegrin coast with water (from 2600 l/su in 2010 to 265 l/s), which caused irreparable damage to not only to the Regional Water Supply, but also to the Montenegrin coast, i.e. Montenegro," he said.
According to him, the regional water supply company has been demanding for years that the exploitation of gravel and sand in sanitary protection zones be prohibited because, as he said, it affects the reduced yield of the Bolje sestre spring.
"This directly affects the possibility of an orderly supply of water to the Montenegrin coast. Numerous scientific analyzes and studies conducted in the organization of the Regional Waterworks unequivocally confirmed the stated claim," they added.
He explained that their claim was also confirmed by the Environmental Agency, which issued a Decision in which, as they stated, it was explicitly stated that "Montenegro petrol is extracting gravel due to the gross negligence of the operator due to the devastation of natural values in the Morača river bed in the stretch from the mouth of Sitnica to the Vukovac bridge, committed damage that has a significant negative impact on achieving or maintaining the favorable status of protected species and natural habitats of the area in question, as well as the abundance of the source of Bolje sestre."
According to him, everyone in Montenegro sees a direct connection between the exploitation of sand and gravel and the decline in the yield of the Bolje sestre spring, except, as they stated, the Expert Team for giving an opinion on the Main Project on the determination and maintenance of sanitary protection zones and zones for the Bolje sestre spring. of the Montenegrin Primorje regional water supply system
"Which was appointed by the Water Administration. Instead of accepting the stated Main Project, which is based on scientific research by the Expert Team, it was contested due to the attitude, i.e. the conviction that the exploitation of sand and gravel in the sanitary protection zones of the Bolje Sestre source does not affect the yield of this sources," he added.
Lakušić stated that the regional water supply expects to soon receive from the Water Administration a Decision on sanitary protection zones of the source of Bolje sestre in accordance with the submitted Main Project.
"It is certain that there will be no further exploitation of gravel and sand in the mentioned area, so there is no need to shorten the sanitary protection zones of the source of Bolje Sestre in order to make it possible," he added.
He pointed out that, among other things, the regional water supply expects that the Protector of Property and Legal Relations of Montenegro will provide not so little compensation for the damage it suffered and which, as he said, it will suffer in the coming years.
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