After a criminal complaint from locals, Secretary Armin Sijarić was questioned by the ODT: The law was respected for the construction of the "Poda" quarry

Secretary of the Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development of the Municipality of Bijelo Polje, Armin Sijarić, said that in the case of issuing permits for the construction of a quarry in Srđevac, all legal procedures were followed.

He said this at the Basic Prosecutor's Office in his capacity as the responsible person in the case which, as confirmed to "Vijesti" by the ODT, was formed earlier, following a criminal complaint filed by the citizens of Srđevac, namely their representative from the NGO "Euromost", due to alleged suspicions of criminal acts of negligent performance of duties and abuse of official position.

The complaint followed a series of protests by residents of those villages who claim that the company "Imperial", owned by Vojislav Smolović, brother of the Mayor of the Municipality Petar Smolović, illegally obtained concessions and that the Municipality illegally issued a study on the environmental impact assessment.

"Regarding the case of the "Poda" quarry, I emphasize that the Secretariat complied with all legally prescribed steps in the environmental impact assessment procedure. The procedure was conducted in accordance with the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment and applicable procedures. I believe that the filers of the criminal report misinterpreted the provisions of Article 5 of the aforementioned law, which probably led to ambiguities in understanding our competencies and legal obligations. In this case, the urban and technical conditions were issued by the local government body, i.e. the Secretariat for Spatial Planning, so the local government body for environmental protection was competent to issue the consent for the environmental impact assessment," said Sijarić.

The representative of 236 citizens of the Lozna Local Community, lawyer Azra Jasavić, pointed out that the Secretariat could not issue approval for the environmental protection study, which can only be issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, the only one competent for such matters.

Sijarić, however, claims that when a state authority issues the UT conditions, then the Agency gives the consent for the environmental impact assessment.

"However, in this case, the UT conditions were issued by the local government body, i.e. the Secretariat for Spatial Planning, so the local government body for environmental protection was competent to issue the approval for the assessment, as prescribed by law," said Sijarić.

Jasavić said that she expects the investigation to be expanded to the Secretariat for Urban Planning, noting that they expect new witnesses to be heard. The representative of the locals and executive director of the NGO "Euromost" Almer Mekić said that he was pleased with the presence of new prosecutors in the ODT, expressing hope that, unlike their previous colleagues, they would not "resist the pressures related to the fight against eco-crime."

The complaint by the villagers states that it was filed because the Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development conducted an environmental impact assessment procedure related to the project for the surface exploitation of technical and construction stone at the "Poda" deposit, without respecting the positive legal regulations that were necessary to be respected when conducting the impact assessment procedure, thereby jeopardizing the rights of the villagers of the villages of Srđevac, Poda, Gojevići, Bloče, Trubine, Jagoče, Lozna and other villages to a safe and healthy life guaranteed to them by the Constitution, legal regulations and ratified international documents.

They remind that on February 26th of last year, "Imperial" submitted a Request for a Decision on the Need for an Environmental Impact Assessment to the Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development.

“Based on this Request, the Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development issued a Decision No. 09/4-322/24-28-29 of 07.03.2024, ordering "Imperijal" doo to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment Study, for which "Imperijal" doo engaged the legal entity "Paming" doo. "Paming" doo prepared the first version of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study in April 2024, to which the Study Assessment Commission (established by the Decision of the Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development) sent comments and objections for correction in the assessment report dated 4. 6. 2024. After that, "Paming" prepared a corrected Environmental Impact Assessment Study in June 2024, in connection with which the Study Assessment Commission made a proposal in the Assessment Report dated 4.7.2024. 2024. 09. Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development for approval. The Secretariat for Rural and Sustainable Development has approved the revised Environmental Impact Assessment Study from June 322. As stated in the Decision, the Environmental Impact Assessment Study to which approval was given was registered under number 24-59/1-19.06.2024/XNUMX and was dated XNUMX. ", states, among other things, the citizens' criminal complaint.