Deputy Mayor of Podgorica Boris Spalević said that the development of the Mareza Canal is being carried out in a planned, team-based and responsible manner, that there is no question of spontaneous or ad-hoc action, and that a third phase has been prepared, which will make part of the area along the canal a promenade and have an aesthetic role.
"In order to keep the public accurately informed, it is important to emphasize that the cleaning and renovation of the Mareza canal is being carried out in three clearly defined phases. The first phase aims to establish full flow and basic functionality of the canal and is a key prerequisite for all further activities. The works are being carried out in a planned manner, legally and under constant professional and inspection supervision, with clearly defined goals: protection of the Mareza water source, preservation of this water resource, creation of conditions for irrigation of agricultural areas and protection of the long-term interests of the citizens of Podgorica. After decades of devastation, the canal was partially or completely blocked by silt, vegetation, improvised barriers and illegally constructed structures, which seriously endangered its basic function. Citizens could clearly see this condition in the previous days through numerous media reports," Spalević emphasized in a statement.
Photo gallery - Workers of public enterprises of the Capital City of Podgorica are digging up an illegally filled canal that leads from Mareza to the Morača River next to the DG Arena, whose floodlight was built on the canal - photo: Boris Pejović
The Mareza Canal, about 8,5 kilometers long, represents, as Spalević stated, one of the most important hydrotechnical units in the territory of the Capital City.
"Designed and built almost eight decades ago, its capacity allows the collection of 39.600 cubic meters of water at a filling height of 1 meter and a flow of about 20.5 million liters of water per hour. These data clearly confirm its key role in regulating the water regime, especially during periods of heavy rainfall in the area of Lješkopolje and Tološki lug - the narrower zone of the Mareza source. Precisely because of this importance, the maintenance of the Mareza canal is not a matter of choice, but a legal obligation and a matter of safety, ecology and public health," stated the Deputy Mayor of Podgorica.
Spalević is an agricultural engineer and before his election as Deputy Mayor in 2023 and 2024, he was the head of the Service for Support to Agriculture and Rural Development of the Capital City when he initiated activities to systematically prepare the phased development of the canal, which had not been done for decades.
"Today, the Service dealing with issuing water acts has formed a professional and dedicated team that works in full coordination with the management of the Capital City, the Directorate for Inspection Affairs, professional supervision and the Headquarters for Protection from Harmful Effects of Water for Waters of Importance for the Capital City, which has established a functional system that did not previously exist to this extent and continues with previously initiated processes. This clearly confirms that there is no question of spontaneous or ad hoc action, but of planned, team and responsible work," Spalević stated in a statement.
He says that the second phase involves repairing damage, structures, and hydrotechnical elements on the Mareza Canal, which will eliminate technical deficiencies and ensure the long-term stability and safety of the system.
"The third phase - accompanying and aesthetic, is focused on developing a project for a pedestrian zone from the source of the Trešanica River to the Komanski Bridge. In this area, the citizens of Podgorica will be able to enjoy a well-maintained environment and walk along a clean and functional canal, in an area that will be arranged for the first time in accordance with modern urban and ecological standards, without jeopardizing its basic hydrotechnical function. We can only preserve the Mareza water source through joint and responsible behavior, without looking for excuses, and the citizens of Podgorica, who have only now seen the devastation of the canal, speak best about this, so everyone helps in their own way and cleans the canal to the extent of their capacities and possibilities. The management and societies of the Capital City are grateful to them for that. The Mareza Canal is returning to the citizens of Podgorica - responsibly, professionally and permanently," Spalević said.
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