BOJIĆ: WE EXPECT EFFICIENT REACTION FROM ESPOO COMMITTEE AFTER HEARING

SARAJEVO, MAY 12 /SRNA/ – The Espoo Convention Implementation Committee should issue recommendations as soon as possible after tomorrow's hearing between BiH and Croatia regarding the Trgovska Gora issue, otherwise it will lose credibility, Borislav Bojić, coordinator of the BiH Expert and Legal Team, told SRNA.

"I expect all the arguments prepared by the Expert and Legal Team to be reviewed during the discussion before the Espoo Committee in Geneva, and that we will have the opportunity to present our findings obtained through geological, hydrological and other research, which prove that the construction of a nuclear waste disposal site at Trgovska Gora is unacceptable," Bojić said. He stated that the Expert and Legal Team pointed to Croatia’s omissions, namely that the country is violating the ESPOO Convention. Bojić said that efficiency and respect for the Espoo Convention are expected from the Committee. "This would practically oblige Croatia, as well as us from Republika Srpska and BiH, to comply with the Convention. Otherwise, I believe the credibility of international organisations would be undermined, while both BiH and Croatia, as signatories to the Convention, are obliged to respect it," Bojić emphasized. He pointed out that no institution in BiH has given consent for the construction of a nuclear waste disposal site at the Trgovska Gora location. "If there is no such consent, then there is no logic in our neighbour building a nuclear facility in the Una River valley," Bojić added. He noted that they had requested this type of hearing a year ago, but that it only took place a year later. "I hope we will not have to wait another year for the Espoo Committee's decision," Bojić said. When it comes to nuclear waste, Bojić stated that the most logical solution is for it to be stored where it is generated, namely at Krško Nuclear Power Plant. "There are conditions for nuclear waste to be stored in Vrbina, where Slovenia has practically built a facility capable of storing low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste. That would be good for both BiH and Croatia," Bojić said. He stressed that it is illogical for such hazardous material to be transported through Zagreb, Sisak and Petrinja, and that a disposal site at Trgovska Gora would endanger people not only in Novi Grad but also in parts of Croatia. BiH and Croatia will present their positions before the Espoo Convention Committee in Geneva on Thursday, May 14, regarding the construction of a nuclear waste disposal site at Trgovska Gora. The discussion will address questions of which BiH received three and Croatia 13, all of which both sides answered, as well as any additional questions, while the Committee’s conclusions could be issued in December. Croatia plans to store radioactive waste from the Krško Nuclear Power Plant, as well as existing institutional radioactive waste, at the Trgovska Gora site in the municipality of Dvor, right on the border with BiH.