In the wave of mass protests in Serbia, it was recently reawakened "Jadar" project because of which the citizens of Serbia protested for years. And, one of the biggest protests against lithium mining it was on August 10 last year when there were at least 40.000 people on Terazije.
The environmental movement "March from the Drina" writes that by 2021, more than 2025 percent of Serbian citizens oppose this project, which was started in May 60. Additionally, on April XNUMX, students and representatives of the academic community submitted to the EU Delegation in Serbia a request that the European Commission reject the company's proposal Rio Tinto that the "Jadar" Project be included in the list of strategic projects for the EU that are implemented in third countries.
However, the European Commission included this project among 13 main projects of strategic importance, out of a total of 49. These projects are within the EU's Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), which recognizes strategic raw materials as key to the success of the green and digital transition and defines strategic projects that contribute to security of supply.
It is estimated that 13 strategic projects outside the EU require a total capital investment of 5,5 billion euros to start work.
The Commission will also strengthen cooperation with third countries to ensure the development of those projects, especially through strategic partnerships already concluded with some of these countries on raw material value chains.
Opposition to the project remains strong
"They can put and include whatever they want on their lists. We will defend Jadar, even if they brought tanks there, not just drills," Ljiljana Bralović, president of the Association of Environmental Organizations of Serbia (SEOS), told FoNet after this decision.
She said that environmental activists have not "disbanded" and that an answer will follow soon.
Economic experts emphasized for "Danas" that this project is absolutely unnecessary and unacceptable from an economic point of view.
The lawyers added that this decision is not legally binding for Serbia, which means that it does not have to approve the exploitation of lithium. The final decision on whether lithium will be mined is made by the Government of Serbia in accordance with the laws, the interlocutors of "Danasa" said.
Good/bad news for Serbian authorities
The inclusion of the "Jadar" project among strategically important projects is good news, said the President of the National Assembly, Ana Brnabić. "It will ensure the absolute maximum in terms of compliance with standards for conservation and environmental protection," she claims.
And she added that it turned out that the claims of "some media and parties that Serbia will be a European mining colony" were not true.
The project is illegal - claims the profession
Academician Slobodan Vukosavić pointed out for N1 that if the law is respected, the "Jadar" project cannot be realized, and that it cannot be on the list of strategic projects.
"Lawyers who should be trusted and who cooperate with the 'March from the Drina' movement say that the 'Jadar' project is not in accordance with the European act on critical minerals," said Vukosavić, but that it is not in accordance with the European "Green Deal" either.
The European Green Deal aims to create a climate-neutral Europe by 2050. It presents a plan of actions that will increase the efficiency of resource use by moving to a clean, circular economy, and then stop climate change, reduce pollution and preserve biodiversity.
Professor of the Faculty of Forestry in Belgrade Ratko Ristić, co-author of the paper "Impact of investigative activities of a potential lithium mine on the environment in western Serbia", previously said that the conclusion of this paper is that the "Jadar" project is very dangerous for the environment.
"Already in the research phase, it is clear that the biodiversity and the highest quality underground waters of the Podrinje will be threatened, that the planned landfills are a constant source of great risk of leakage of toxic and carcinogenic substances and that all of this has a very large impact on the local population. That project represents a paradigm of irresponsible, unstated and unpatriotic actions of the current government, which does not work in the interest of its own people, but in the interest of a multinational corporation," explained Ristić.
Vukosavić said that we will see how the European Commission will react to the lawyer's legal intervention. "Ultimately, there is also the European Court. If the law is respected, we have nothing to fear, the 'Jadar' project cannot pass," he concluded.
Source: Danas/N1/Vreme
