The decision of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which established the responsibility of the company "Bemaks" for the damage done in the Morača river bed, was annulled for technical reasons, they told "Vijesta" from the Agency, which is headed by Milan Gazdić.
Legal representative of "Bemaksa", lawyer Zoran Piperović, claims otherwise and says that the reasons why the Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism (MEPPU) overturned the EPA's decision are of a "substantial nature", but did not elaborate on the claim.
From the departments she led until recently Ana Novaković Đurović, and now in the ecology part Vladimir Martinovic, and part of urbanism and spatial planning Janko Odović, did not answer the questions of "Vijesti".
On the last day of July, the Environmental Protection Agency issued a resolution that determined that four companies had caused damage to the Morača River bed. The documentation on the devastation of natural values in the Morača riverbed was then submitted to the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT), the protector of property and legal interests, and the inspection.
The Agency, as they said at the time, established that the companies "Montenegro petrol", "Bemaks", "Cijevna komerc" and "Beton Montenegro" caused significant devastation.
In relation to that, the companies were supposed to submit a proposal for remedial measures within 45 days, but they did not do that, they told "News" from the EPA earlier.
The Law on Liability for Environmental Damage foresees a misdemeanor fine of two to 40.000 euros for a legal entity that fails to prepare and submit a proposal for remedial measures within the time limit set by the decision.
"Pobjeda" announced in the middle of the week that the MEPPU accepted the appeal of the legal representative of "Bemaks" and on October 12 annulled the decision of the EPA.
"The Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism annulled the Agency's decision, with the explanation that it was not technically correct, which is why it was sent back to the first-level authority for decision-making by the second-level authority," the Agency told "Vijesti" yesterday.
As they add, "The Agency, both in this and in other cases, acted in accordance with the Law on Liability for Environmental Damage".
"And undoubtedly determined the damage to the environment in accordance with the aforementioned law. In the repeated procedure, the Agency will remove legal and formal deficiencies and bring a new solution," they told "Vijesta".
"Pobjeda" previously reported Piperović's allegations that the director of the Agency "blackmailed and forced the competent inspector to make and sign a decision that was annulled by the Ministry".
The EPA said yesterday that they do not have inspectors in the Agency, that supervision is carried out by inspectors from the Directorate for Inspection Affairs.
They also said that the employees or the decisions of the Agency are sometimes threatened "preventively, putting pressure on decision making, sometimes after the decision has been made".
"For two and a half years since the change of management, the Agency has not been sued, despite enormous pressure, directly or through the media, which indicates that all decisions were made legally. We believe that the years of powerlessness and creative interpretation of the law are behind us. The agency will work exclusively according to the laws of this country and make decisions within the stipulated deadlines. Thus, even the statements of Mr. Piperović will not hinder us in making legal decisions, and the decision determining that environmental damage has occurred will be issued within the legal deadline for all operators recognized by the Law on Liability for Environmental Damage," said the Agency. .
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