MORT apologizes for the eco-incident, Ozone: The government must know what the contractor is up to

Landslides on tunnels during construction cannot be predicted, nor can proposals for remediation be made, because they are "natural phenomena that cannot be influenced and adequate measures cannot be taken during design".

This is the answer of the Ministry of Tourism and Sustainable Development (MORT) to the question of "Vijesti" whether the processor of the Elaboration of Environmental Impact Assessment for the construction of the "Njeguši" tunnel, on the section of the Cetinje - Kotor road, was able to predict that a landslide was possible and to describe solutions, including the one related to the use of tires to repair the resulting holes.

The Directorate for Traffic hired the company "Mechanization and Programat" from Nikšić for the works on the construction of the R-1 regional road, a job worth 9,5 million euros. During the execution of works on the tunnel, as was previously confirmed to "Vijesta" from the Environmental Inspection, due to the characteristics of the tunnel, there was a collapse of earth and stone. In order to solve the problem, a company from Nikšić brought waste car tires to the construction site and used them "to protect the primary substructure of the tunnel". The public would not know anything about everything, if foreign tourists had not filmed the "Mechanization" trucks unloading tires in Bukovica.

Due to the use of tires on the construction site, the inspection ordered the Directorate to obtain a decision from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the need for an environmental impact assessment.

MORT claims that the developer of the Elaborate for the construction of the 'Njeguši' tunnel could not foresee the landslide and the technical solution for that situation, stating that other projects received a positive review. cannot influence and adequate measures cannot be taken during the design process", claim MORT.

Aleksandar Perović from the Ecological Movement "Ozone" denies these allegations:

"The environmental impact assessment procedure is carried out precisely in order to analyze and take into account not only facts, but also assumptions, compare alternatives and offer the best solution from the professional and scientific aspect, with the least harmful consequences for the environment. Therefore, it is clear that MORT's explanation that the editors of the Elaborate in question could not have predicted the landslide is unacceptable. It is unacceptable that, when an omission occurs, responsibility is not taken, especially since the competent institutions have the opportunity to obtain additional resources by forming a committee to evaluate the Elaborate in order to implement it in the best way. procedure and by the act of issuing the ecological consent, the environment and the public interest were protected," he said.

According to Perović, knowledge of the terrain is a prerequisite for finding the best solution.

"The question is whether the multidisciplinary team visited the field at all. For a long time, we have been warning about the necessity of checking the capacity of companies that are registered for environmental impact assessments, the networks of their associates, who we suspect do not go to the field but finish their obligations with a copy-paste variant , and they use their handwritten signature, professional title and license of the Chamber of Engineers to give legitimacy to such an approach, which results in low-quality documents that are presented at public hearings," he said.

From "Ozone" they expect that the specific case will serve for the drafting of a better quality new Law on Environmental Impact Assessment, especially in the part of sanctions.

Are other types of waste transported illegally on the roads?

"Mechanization" did not apply to the EPA, and therefore does not have a permit for the collection, transport and storage of waste, specifically waste tires, according to MORT's response.

For Aleksnadr Perović, however, it is disputed how it is possible that three trucks of that company were transporting tires without the police stopping and checking them.

"Can we rightly suspect that other types of waste are being transported on Montenegrin roads in such an illegal manner, and that they are deposited in locations that are not arranged for such a purpose," asks the director of "Ozon".

Impact assessment was done by experts

The environmental impact assessment report for the construction of the "Njeguši" tunnel was, as the Ministry told "Vijesti", prepared by a team formed by the company "S&T SISTEM" from Podgorica. Among the members of the committee for the evaluation of the study are an environmental protection specialist, a graduate engineer in construction, geology, mechanical engineering and technology.

One of the team members, they said from MORT, was a doctor of science who spent his working life on more complex projects than digging a 500-meter tunnel.