Podgorica Mayor Saša Mujović has asked the Government of Montenegro to actively involve the Ministry of Finance in negotiations with KfW Bank, the leading financier of the project to build a wastewater treatment plant in Botun, in order to avoid losing money and to prevent legal proceedings.
Mujović also demands that feasibility studies and other technical documentation be urgently completed for two alternative locations located in the KAP industrial zone, which are indisputably on the territory of Podgorica.
These steps, the Capital City announced, were taken by Mujović after talks with the residents of Botuni and the President of the Municipality of Zeta, Mihailo Asanović, during which they failed to reach an agreement.
On January 14, Mujović spoke with representatives of the residents of Botuni, whose cadastral municipality is partly home to the newly planned facility, which the residents have been opposing for years.
"I must admit that what was said by the locals had a shocking note. The damage caused to them by the Aluminum Plant, especially from a health perspective, is immeasurable. Additionally, the locals were not consulted when defining the location of the plant, their views were completely ignored. All of this created a rebellion and a high degree of unity and determination among the locals not to allow the construction of any new plant that could have a negative impact on their health and the environment," said Mujović.
He presented a new offer to the locals and Asanović at a meeting on February 3rd.
According to the Capital City, it included relocating the treated wastewater discharge point 1.5 kilometers north of the originally planned solution, in order to further mitigate the impact of effluents on the Morača River and significantly increase the green zone, installing additional filters at the sludge incinerator, with the aim of reducing the potentially harmful impacts of exhaust gases, and expanding the sewage network and draining wastewater from the areas of Botun, Cijevna, Mahala and part of Golubovci.
"Since the location of the plant itself remained the same, the locals did not accept this proposal," said Mujović, after which he addressed the Government of Montenegro and proposed urgent action to break the unpleasant stalemate.
"Therefore, I propose: That the Ministry of Finance actively engage in negotiations with KfW Bank, as the leading financier of the project, and with the contractor, in order to avoid the loss of non-refundable grant funds in the amount of 35 million euros and to prevent legal proceedings and claims by the contractor. That feasibility studies and other technical documentation be urgently prepared for two alternative locations located in the KAP industrial zone, which are indisputably on the territory of Podgorica. In this way, with the support of the Government of Montenegro, we can solve a pressing and burdensome problem, while taking into account the needs of all interested parties," Mujović's address states.
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