President of the municipality of Pljevlja Dario Vranes believes that the wastewater treatment collector, built a few years ago in the Pljevlja village of Židovići, is a failed project, even though seven and a half million euros were invested in it.
"I think it's a failed investment and not well done. Seven and a half million were invested in that project, which was carried out by the former government led by the DPS," said Vranes.
He said that only 20 percent of wastewater is treated at the plant, while eighty percent goes untreated to Ćehotina.
As the main reason why this is happening, Vranes cited the lack of separation of atmospheric and fecal sewage, so huge amounts of water are coming into the plant.
The collector is designed for an average flow of 233,22 cubic meters per hour, or for a maximum flow of 350 cubic meters per hour in dry weather and 525 cubic meters per hour in rainy weather.
"The only solution is to separate atmospheric and fecal sewage throughout the city, and we have embarked on that journey," said Vraneš.
Vraneš said that the operation of the wastewater treatment plant in Židovići costs the Municipality of Pljevlja several hundred thousand euros annually.
Last year, the municipality of Pljevlja allocated 386.651 euros for employee salaries alone.
In addition to employee salaries, there are large costs for electricity and various chemicals needed to operate the plant.
In order for the wastewater treatment plant in Pljevlja to function smoothly, it is necessary to invest several million euros in separating atmospheric and fecal sewage and reducing losses in the water supply network. In addition to money, it also takes a lot of time to implement this work.
On April 27.4.2023, XNUMX, the wastewater treatment plant received an operating permit for part of the facility, equipment and machinery on the sludge line and the water line, while the other part of the sludge line and the entire gas line did not receive an operating permit.
"In the previous period, we had problems with the dilution of the SBR pool due to atmospheric precipitation and the inability to activate the sludge line. Also, during low temperatures, ice appears in the sludge line pipeline, which is why we are unable to start the mentioned line. In both cases, strong unpleasant odors occur, which spread around the plant and affect the lives of locals living in the immediate vicinity. In the coming period, the sludge transport pipeline should be thermally insulated and protected, while the separation of atmospheric and fecal sewage is carried out in phases every year. It is necessary to service machines and equipment with an authorized servicer, hire a company to commission the fire protection system, and calibrate all instruments and probes. All these problems must be solved," claim the municipal company Vodovod, to which the Plant has been handed over for management.
They also say that, given the high costs, they cannot carry out these tasks themselves without the support and funding of the Municipality of Pljevlja.
They also claim that the treated wastewater discharged into the Ćehotina River meets European and Montenegrin standards for discharge into the recipient.
The construction of the waste water treatment plant cost six and a half, and the main city collector about one million euros.
The main collector is completely a grant, while the plant is a 3,5 million grant from the European Investment Bank, and the rest is a loan from the European Investment Bank, which the municipality repays.
The capacity of the facility is 42.000 users, with 28.000 users being worked on in the first phase.
Three concrete pools were built, with a total capacity of about 5.600 cubic meters, a technical building was built from which the plant is managed, as well as an administrative building with a water quality testing laboratory, bioreactors, primary and secondary settling tanks, a room for sludge disposal and incineration.
Four bridging drains were made in the event of a breakdown or shutdown of the plant, through which the water would flow into Ćehotina. There is also a return line that returns insufficiently processed water to the beginning of the processing process.
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