Minister Bojan Vipotnik and the Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Kragujevac, Prof. Dr. Dragan Vujisić, signed a Cooperation Agreement yesterday, May 15, 2024, in Kragujevac. This agreement establishes a partnership between the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction, and Ecology of the Republic of Srpska and the University of Kragujevac. The primary objective is to provide expert assistance in addressing current environmental challenges, with a particular focus on protecting the interests of Republic of Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Trgovska gora case.
The signing of the agreement was preceded by a meeting attended by Nemanja Galić, a member of the BiH Legal Team for monitoring activities related to Trgovska gora, and Dragan Dakić, Ph.D., from the Department of Public International Law at the Faculty of Law in Kragujevac. During the meeting, the Faculty of Law in Kragujevac expressed its readiness to actively participate in defending the interests of Republic of Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their goal is to prevent Croatia from building a nuclear facility—a repository for radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel—in the border zone, just 800 meters from the protected Una River area.
After the signing of the agreement, Minister Vipotnik delivered a lecture to the students of the Faculty of Law titled "Trgovska Gora: An Ecological and Legal Challenge for the Region." He emphasized that Croatia's plan to build a radioactive waste disposal site on Trgovska gora, located in the border area with Bosnia and Herzegovina, sets a global precedent. Minister Vipotnik highlighted that this plan endangers 250,000 people in the Una River basin and noted that there is no such facility in any border zone worldwide without the consent of the neighboring country.
"In implementing this project, there would be mass emigration of the population and the destruction of economic potential in that region and beyond. The area is geologically unfavorable, with very porous and fragile soil. In the event of an accident or a stronger earthquake, a wider area would also be affected by radiation," Minister Vipotnik warned in his lecture. He emphasized that the planned construction of a nuclear facility at this location poses multiple negative impacts, including possible long-term consequences for the lives and health of the population in the Una River basin. Additionally, the area holds significant economic, touristic, and agricultural potential.
He pointed out that the Trgovska gora location was designated as preferable because it faced the least opposition.
"It is estimated that on the Croatian side, fewer than 10,000 people live there, mostly elderly Serb returnees, which is a sensitive topic in Croatia," emphasized Minister Vipotnik. He also reminded that Croatia's strategy for the disposal of such waste lists the Čerkezovac Military Warehouse complex in the municipality of Dvor, on the southern slopes of the Trgovska gora massif, as the preferred location. Currently, demining operations are being conducted around the buildings.
Minister Bojan Vipotnik informed the students and academic staff of the Faculty of Law in Kragujevac that the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction, and Ecology of the Republic of Srpska has been actively working for nine years to protect the interests of the Republic of Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The goal is to prevent Croatia from violating international law by depositing radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel just 800 meters from the Una River, a protected area. In the Federation of BiH (FBiH), this region is designated as a national park, and in the Republic of Srpska, it is a nature park. Minister Vipotnik also highlighted that the Coordinating Body of BiH for addressing the disposal of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel at Trgovska gora, along with the Expert and Legal Team, are working diligently to safeguard the interests of BiH.
He also noted that resolutions opposing Croatia's intentions have been adopted in the parliaments of Republic of Srpska and FBiH, as well as in local parliaments and both houses of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly. He expects similar documents to be voted on at all levels of government in BiH.
"The main problem is that Croatia has conducted this process non-transparently from the very beginning, violating the conventions that it, like BiH, has ratified, along with numerous European directives that, as an EU member, it is obliged to respect," explained the minister. He mentioned that multiple requests for meetings with Croatia on this issue have gone unanswered, reflecting an apparently condescending attitude that is not in the spirit of good neighborly relations. This attitude, he added, is a consequence of the complex political structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He also pointed out that Croatia consistently disregards the views of both entities and institutions at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Additionally, Croatia does not permit experts from Bosnia and Herzegovina to participate in the research conducted during the previous environmental impact assessment procedure, nor in the current ones as part of the preparation of the Impact Assessment.
The minister stated that the geomorphology of the terrain and seismological research conducted on the BiH side indicate that there are arguments suggesting Čerkezovac does not meet the geophysical parameters for the construction of a repository for radioactive and spent nuclear waste. He further mentioned that the Expert Team has developed projects for geological, hydrological, and seismological surveys within BiH territory. These surveys will serve as indicators of the impacts of landfill construction and will be used in the process of considering the study on impact assessment, as well as in BiH's participation as an affected party under the Espoo Convention and in other related procedures.
"The first round of research has been completed, and the results confirm our thesis that Trgovska gora does not meet any criteria for the construction of such a facility. We expect that exploratory drilling, detailed seismological, and pedological research will commence soon," said Minister Vipotnik. He also highlighted that the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction, and Ecology of the Republic of Srpska, as the contact institution for the implementation of the Espoo Convention on behalf of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is in constant communication with the Secretariat of the Espoo Convention. The Ministry points out all violations of procedures by Croatia to ensure compliance with international standards.
"The legal team is implementing the Strategy for the legal protection of the interests of Bosnia and Herzegovina as an affected country. The inclusion of the academic community in these processes is especially important to us, and therefore we are extremely grateful to the Faculty of Law of the University of Kragujevac for wanting to join our fight. Our aim is to activate all legal and professional mechanisms to prevent the construction of a radioactive waste disposal site on Trgovska gora," emphasized Minister Vipotnik.
The lecture, which attracted a great deal of attention from students, was attended by the dean, Prof. Dr. Dragan Vujisić, as well as teachers and staff of the Faculty of Law, and representatives of the Kragujevac city administration.