BELGRADE - Toxic spills that killed large amounts of fish have occurred in eight different Serbian rivers this summer alone.
The reason behind the pollution is usually irresponsible behavior on the part of industial facilities located near the rivers.
In order to react in time and prevent environmental catastrophes, inspections will gain in frequency, while producers will receive an integrated ecological license.
In the Timok River, 20 tons of fish died this summer, but there was also pollution in seven...
BELGRADE - The government has forwarded a proposal to the Parliament for an urgent ratification of the Kyoto Protocol.
“The ratification is of immense political, economic, legal and environmental importance for Serbia. It would bring about the increase of the number of foreign investments, affect the employment rate, and enhance the transfer of knowledge and technology in the field of environmental protection,” the government said in a statement.
Political aspect of endorsement of the Kyoto Protocol with simul...
PANČEVO (Serbia) - Air pollutants in Pančevo have reached high levels of concentration Sunday, an official says.
Republic Environment Inspectorate chief Slavica Lekić said that the that boundary benzene levels were overstepped twice late Saturday and Sunday morning to reach 70 micrograms/m³.
She added that according to the latest measurements, the benzene levels went back to normal, noting that the permitted maximum was 9.5 micrograms/m³.
“Environment inspectors will conduct an urgent check in...
PIROT (Serbia) - Despite attempts of dozens of firefighters to contain the blaze on the Stara Mt. in southern Serbia, the fire has not died down.
The fire that broke out four days ago near the village of Krupac has been put under control. Nonetheless, new ones started on other locations in the area. The 100 hectare stretch of pine forest near the Temska village is in danger of a complete devastation.
Attempts at extingusing the blaze have been almost futile due to the thick smoke, since firefighters are not eq...
BUCHAREST - Five Romanians died this week as a heatwave gripped parts of the Balkans where temperatures have hit 42 degrees Celsius (108 Fahrenheit), causing wild fires, power shortages and traffic disruption.
Off the coast of Croatia, even sea temperatures were expected to hit a record 30 degrees in the coming days.
"We have five people who died of heat. The heatwave could last until July 27," Romanian Health Minister Eugen Nicolaescu told reporters.
A previous heatwave in June claimed the lives of 30 ...
KURŠUMLIJA (Serbia) - Ten tons of dead fish surfaced in the last two days on the shores of the Toplica River, southern Serbia.
Officials of the Kuršumlija Association of Sport Fishing stated that the fish were found downstream near Prokuplje.
Besides the local police, the river was visited by Environmental Inspector Dragoslav Đorđević.
“Samples have been taken of the dead fish and the water from the river, and the results will be back in several days,” Đorđević said.
Municipal Inspector for Envi...
BELGRADE - Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic said today that the preparation of the sustainable growth strategy's draft, which is one of the preconditions for the beginning of talks on Serbia's full EU membership, will be completed by mid September this year, and the strategy itself should be adopted by year-end.
Some 300 experts are participating in the preparation of the strategy, which began in 2005, and it is estimated that the public discussion on the strategy's final version should last until the end of...
BELGRADE - The council responsible for monitoring and implementing the plan for restructuring and privatizing Copper Mining and Smelting Complex (RTB) Bor will meet soon.
The meeting was confirmed by Deputy Prime Minister Božidar Đelić, who, however, did not disclose any details regarding the talks.
“Minister Mlađan Dinkić told me that he will organize a meeting regarding RTB Bor. There are several ministers involved, and it is known that the commission has confirmed an ecological strategy must be drafted, so we...
BUJANOVAC (Serbia) - Serbian Minister of Environmental Protection Sasa Dragin said today that the Serbian government invested a total of RSD 113 million in restoration of localities Reljan, Borovac, Pljackovica, Bratoselce, which were contaminated with depleted uranium.
Dragin visited Reljan and Borovac in municipalities Presevo and Bujanovac where cleansing work was done to remove effects of projectiles with depleted uranium which hit these areas in 1999. Following the visit he said that cleaning of the terrain was co...
BELGRADE - Fourteen Danube countries today celebrate the International Danube Day.
On this occasion, Environmental Protection Minister Saša Dragin said during a ceremony held on the Argus laboratory ship, that Serbian rivers suffered because of an insufficient number of water purification plants and the fact that 80 percent of the sewers go directly to waterways.
“Major polluters of the Danube are industrial zones, such as Pančevo and Bačka Palanka,” he said, adding that the plants in these zones required urgen...
SID (Serbia) - Serbia opened its first biodiesel plant on Wednesday, aiming at year-end production of up to 40,000 tonnes from locally sourced raw materials.
The Victoria Oil refinery in Sid, 100 km west of Belgrade near the Croatian border, will produce biodiesel from rapeseed, sunflower and soybean oils.
It has a capacity of 100,000 tonnes of biodiesel, enough to make up for two percent of Serbia's annual consumption of fossil fuels.
"Our basic target is the domestic market -- big transport companies, big ...
LONDON - Toxic, radioactive dust released from armour-piercing depleted uranium shells lingers for decades in the environment and contaminates land far from where it is used, according to British scientists.
The finding raises fears that communities living in or returning to war zones may be forced to live on contaminated ground, in danger of inhaling the substance or consuming it in food or water supplies.
Hundreds of tonnes of tank-busting depleted uranium rounds have been fired by British and American forces in...
NOVI SAD - Jerković Group is set to build biodiesel production plant in Vojvodina worth EUR 48mn.
According to Milorad Savić, director of the Novi Sad-based Jerković Group, the company is negotiating a deal with the Austrian Christof Group to jointly construct plant for the production of biodiesel.
He said that the plant will have the capacity to produce 66,000 tons of biofuel per year and would likely be built in Sivac or Sonta.
Savić said that, according to estimates, the factory would process oleiferou...
CARSKA BARA (Serbia) - From 25th to 27th May 2007 Biology student study and research society “Josif Pančić” and Society of young researchers of institute of geography “Branislav Bukurov”, both from Novi Sad, under partronage of Local Education-ecological Challenge “Stari Begej-Carska Bara” organized research-working camp in Special Nature Reserve “Stari Begej-Carska Bara”. The camp was aiming to study animals and plants (BSSRS) in the reserve, together with nearby village Belo Blato (SYRIG). In total there was 17 people invol...
GENEVA - The preparations for the sixth Ministerial Conference “Environment for Europe” (EfE), to be held in Belgrade on 10-12 October 2007, entered their final phase with the fourth meeting of the preparatory Working Group of Senior Officials(WGSO) at the end of May.
The meeting agreed on the provisional agenda for the Conference and approved documents for action by Ministers as well as background documents for the Conference. The Conference will have the following sessions: Assessment and Implementation, Capacity-bui...
BELGRADE - On the occasion of the World Environmental Day, marked today, the Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Ambassador Hans Ola Urstad (photo), drew attention to environmental hazards in Serbia and called on the authorities and the public to strengthen efforts in protecting the environment.
"The Mission places a lot of emphasis on supporting sustainable development and creation of a sound living environment for all in Serbia," said Ambassador Urstad. "We are pleased that the Ministry of Environmental Protection ha...
GENEVA - World Environment Day (WED), established by the General Assembly in 1972 and commemorated each year on 5 June, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action.
It is hosted every year by a different city and commemorated with an international
exposition through the week of 5 June.
The topic for World Environment Day for 2007 is “Melting Ice – a Hot Topic?” 2007
is the start of the Internation...
PRAGUE - A high-level OSCE meeting focusing on environmental security transformed concerns that environmental factors are threatening global security into actions that will promote stability, said Jose Angel Lopez Jorrin, Ambassador-at-Large for the Co-ordination of the 2007 Spanish OSCE Chairmanship.
Lopez Jorrin spoke at today's closing debate of the OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum, which focused on how the Organization can help its 56 participating States and 11 Partners for Co-operation tackle environmental se...
GENEVA - The Information Society can play an increasingly significant role in promoting sustainable development and a healthy environment. It can also be a tool for empowering the public and strengthening participatory democracy. However, its potential in these areas is not being fully realized, according to the UNECE.
In particular, efforts to close the ‘digital divide’ need to be accompanied by stronger
measures to curb the growing negative environmental impacts arising from increased
usage of information and comm...
VIENNA - The winners of the 2007 OSCE photo contest "Land and water, protecting our fragile environment", which attracted hundreds of entries from many of the Organization's participating States, were announced today.
The main prize was awarded to Shamil Zhumatov from Kazakhstan for a photo series about the Aral Sea.
"The story of the Aral Sea, which has shrunk to less than half its original size and turned salty as irrigation diversion slowly drained what was once one of the world's largest inland bodies of wate...
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