The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has initiated a procedure to determine environmental damage in relation to works carried out without their consent in a protected area around Rikavac Lake by the manager, the Agency for the Management of Protected Areas of Podgorica (AUZP).
This was told to "Vijesti" by the EPA yesterday.
"The EPA, in accordance with the Law on Environmental Liability, has initiated a procedure to determine the damage... As part of the procedure, on September 11, a visit was made to the location in question together with the environmental inspection and members of the Environmental Protection Agency, and a report was made. In accordance with the Law, the EPA will continue the procedure to determine the damage, and further information and facts will be collected from relevant institutions, all with the aim and for the needs of further conducting the procedure," they said yesterday.
The Environmental Protection Agency, headed by Milan Gazdić, initiated the procedure after locals submitted an initiative for supervision to the environmental inspection, because the manager, AUZP, dug a canal in the immediate vicinity of Rikavac Lake, which is part of the Komovi Nature Park.
During the inspection, as "Vijesti" previously reported, the inspection of the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Northern Development determined that AUZP, in addition to digging a canal without a permit, also began building a public toilet without consent.
The inspection prohibited AUZP from carrying out further work on Rikavac Lake until they obtain a permit from the competent Environmental Protection Agency.
"AUZP did not obtain a permit from the competent authority for the construction of a public toilet and digging a canal on cadastral plot number 2343/1, the environmental inspector issued a decision prohibiting AUZP from carrying out actions, activities and activities - continuing to carry out works on Rikavac Lake in Zone II of the protected area, 'Komovi' Nature Park until a permit is obtained from the EPA, in accordance with Article 40 of the Law on Nature Protection," the environmental inspection report states.
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According to the inspection report, the excavated canal is about 50 meters long and 60 to 90 centimeters deep.
"It was dug from the western side of Rikavac Lake in the lower part of one of the numerous ravines in the brown eroded soil on the flysch to the very shore of the lake. The excavated material was not removed, but a side embankment was formed from the excavated material," the minutes state.
It is also added that, parallel to the canal, on cadastral plot no. 2343/1, construction of a public toilet has begun, and that a 180x150 cm concrete foundation slab was poured at the end of August:
"The director of the AUZP stated that the works were carried out with the aim of providing the best possible conditions for visitors - tourists who come every year, and that the canal was dug to redirect the water so that it would not undermine the toilet."
Acting Executive Director of the AUZP Stojan Sjekloć It is added that he also said that the work was carried out at the time of construction of the infrastructure for the ranger's lodge, using machinery that was on the ground, and that this significantly affected the cost and efficiency of the work.
He also told the inspectors that "the AUZP administration did not effectively monitor the progress of the work, and therefore did not obtain the EPA permit for the public toilet on time."
"That this omission will be corrected and a request will be sent to the EPA as soon as tomorrow to obtain a permit for a public toilet and to request a statement - permission to fill the canal with excavated material as soon as possible, in order to rehabilitate the location in question, which was the request of the residents of that katun," the minutes state, adding that Sjekloća expressed hope that the inspection "will have understanding for this newly created situation, especially since he has been acting executive director of the AUZP since June 2."
The inspection also determined that the AUZP has the necessary approvals for a ranger's lodge at the same location, and according to the annual program for the Komovi Park for 2025, in addition to the lodges, it is also planned that the AUZP will determine the location for setting up a campsite, an open fire pit and a barbecue on Rikavac Lake.
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