Legal steps that Bosnia and Herzegovina could take if nothing changes regarding Croatia’s intention to dispose of nuclear waste at the Trgovska Gora site on the border with BiH and if the institutions do not reach an agreement should be taken in a few days, said the Deputy Chairman of the Legal team for drafting a strategy for legal protection of BiH’s interests in relation to these issues Vitomir Popovic, BHRT writes.
Popovic pointed out that at this moment, it is not even possible to reach a complete legal strategy.
“It is a very complex and demanding job, but a good part has been completed. One aspect is of a political nature, ie that the Ministries of Foreign Affairs in the Council of Ministers and Croatia are talking openly, and if that does not happen, it should be given answer and protect the population, “Popovic told Glas Srpske.
He stated that the possibility of addressing the European Commission is being considered, because Croatia is a member of the EU, and BiH is a signatory to the Stabilization and Association Agreement.
Another option available when experts complete their work on soil testing are lawsuits to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
“It is being considered that citizens will react individually, because it will be a violation of their basic human rights. In accordance with the conventions, they can file individual lawsuits against Croatia, and collective lawsuits are possible. We will see what we decide on,” he said and pointed out that it is generally a very complex job and subject.
Emir Dizdarevic, Chairman of the Expert Team for Monitoring the Status and Activities Related to the Disposal of Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel, confirmed that despite certain announcements that the Krsko Nuclear Power Plant could receive a new permit for a period of 20 years, which could mean that waste disposal will be continued next to that nuclear power plant, there is no giving up.
The text states that the team is currently waiting for details regarding soil research on the part of BiH, which will require about 1.1 million BAM to obtain the necessary data, because they do not believe that their colleagues from Croatia will receive all the data in a timely basis of their analyzes.
“We have information that they have appointed a company that will work on the main project with safety analysis of the construction of the Center for Waste Management, and we asked them to tell us everything they did so we could react,” said Dizdarevic.
He also believes that a period of one year should be used to take samples of land in the Una basin from BiH.
Domestic expert teams formed in order for BiH to better tailor a strategy to combat the intentions of neighboring Croatia to store hazardous waste from the Krsko Nuclear Power Plant near the border are nearing the end of another phase of work, and with soil testing on this side of the Una it is more certain to address the Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Croatia owns half of the Krsko power plant in Slovenia and must take over half of the waste by 2023, which is why it has been conducting serious preparatory analyzes for the storage and disposal of nuclear waste at the site of the former Cerkezovac barracks on Trgovska Gora.
BiH, on the other hand, does not agree with that because of the danger that, according to its representatives, such a move could endanger the lives of about 250,000 inhabitants in the Una river basin, and the natural environment.
