QUESTIONS OF INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS, INCONSISTENCIES RAISED IN GENEVA

NOVI GRAD, MAY 14 /SRNA/ – The confrontation between BiH and Croatia in Geneva today raised questions regarding violations of international obligations and numerous illogicalities related to Trgovska Gora, and confirmed that the Croatian side collected key data for the impact assessment through improvisation, Mario Crnković from Novi Grad, a member of the BiH delegation, said in a statement to SRNA.

Crnković stressed that particularly concerning was the statement by the Croatian delegation regarding the manner in which data for the territory of BiH were prepared within the forthcoming Environmental Impact Study.

"To say that the data were collected through publicly available information, informal contacts and even through letters of opposition from non-governmental organizations represents a devastating admission regarding the seriousness and credibility of the entire process", Crnković said.

Crnković, president of the "Green Team" association, said that today's confrontation between the two delegations before the Implementation Committee of the Espoo Convention showed the full depth of the Trgovska Gora issue, but also assessed that a good job had been done.

According to him, it is realistic to expect the Implementation Committee to recognize violations of the Espoo Convention.

He pointed out that this is no longer only a matter between BiH and Croatia, but a test for the Espoo Convention itself.

If the convention fails in the Trgovska Gora case, Crnković said, then it will fail in many other projects across Europe, where states will be able to ignore international procedures, neighboring countries and the safety of citizens without any consequences.

He stressed that institutions of BiH, protected areas, the expert community and relevant actors across the border have been ignored for years, and that there is now practically confirmation that key data for the impact assessment were collected through improvisation.

"That is tragicomic, but at the same time very dangerous. Such an approach is a direct consequence of avoiding necessary research on the territory of BiH and clearly warns of serious shortcomings in the Environmental Impact Study, which is reportedly expected to be published by the end of the year", Crnković stated.

If this is how the document meant to guarantee the safety of people and the environment was prepared, Crnković stressed that it is then entirely justified to question how much real professional and scientific value the study will have.

"Geneva has once again heard everything we have been warning about for years. The Trgovska Gora case has long ceased to be only a matter of ecology and radioactive waste. Formally, it is a political issue between two states, created by political decisions from 1997 and 1999", Crnković said.

Croatia plans to store radioactive waste from the Krško Nuclear Power Plant, as well as existing institutional waste, at the Trgovska Gora site in the municipality of Dvor, on the very border with BiH.