The residents of Donja Bitinja village continue to protest against the construction of a mini hydroelectric power plant on the Lepenac River in the Strpce municipality. Dobrivoje Stevanovic from the village of Donja Bitinja handed over a request to halt the construction – signed by his fellow citizens – to the new Minister of Infrastructure, Lumir Abdixhiku on Wednesday, RTK2 reported.
Both Serb and Albanian residents of Strpce municipality have been protesting against the construction of a mini hydroelectric power plant on the Lepenac River at the Obe Reke site, fearing they would run out of drinking water.
More than 20 mini hydroelectric power plants are being built in Kosovo. Last week, the new Kosovo government decided to suspend work and ban the construction of new MHPPs.
The Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Environment, Avni Zogiani told Radio Kosovo 2 that the previous government did not comply with the law and that in some cases permits for the construction of MHPP on the same location were issued to two different companies.
Zogiani added that there are reasons to believe that the construction of the MHPP is harming the environment. He said that the new Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment would create expert committees to assess the situation on the ground, noting that documentation on the construction of MHPP is confusing.
The locals also complained that contractors had exceeded the authority of the construction permits – he added.
The MHPP at the Obe Reke site is being constructed by the Matkos group, which received a permit to do so from the Strpce municipality, headed by Bratislav Nikolic from Srpska Lista.
The Municipal Assembly of Strpce issued a permit for the construction of a MHPP back in 2013. In 2016, however the same MA decided to suspend the construction indefinitely, after which the Matkos Group once again received a permit for the construction of a MHPP on the Lepenac River.
Following a decision by the relevant Ministry to suspend the construction of the MHPP, the Matkos Group announced that it would send Kosovo to London for arbitration if it continued to disrupt energy investments in Kosovo. Deputy Minister Avni Zogiani said that this reaction by the Matkos Group shows that there is something wrong with the construction of this MHPP.
Strpce residents, however, still fear that the construction of the MHPP will continue soon.
„All the pipes are still there, they are pulling those pipes, preparing to continue construction,“ Radojica Mrdjinac from Strpce told Radio Kosovo 2, adding that they expect a meeting with representatives of the Ministry.
Strpce local, Dobrivoje Stevanovic stressed that residents of the Strpce municipality would continue to try to challenge the construction permit issued by the municipality to the Matkos Group.
Besim Dobruna, an environmental expert and former official at the Ministry of Environment, claims that not a single hydroelectric plant in Kosovo has been built according to the environmental law, which came into force in 2004. Dobruna noted that the construction of the MHPPs is illegal because the companies that build them do not own the property on which the works are performed. He also estimated that mini hydroelectric power plants are unnecessary because they damage the environment, while only producing a small amount of electricity.
There are 14 mini hydropower plants in Kosovo and 21 others at various stages of construction, Koha recalls.
For almost two years now the residents of the Strpce municipality have been actively protesting against the construction of mini hydroelectric power plants in this municipality and the territory of the Shara Mountain National Park. Both ethnic Serbs and ethnic Albanians have been fighting against the construction of MHPPs, describing this issue as a burning problem for Sirinicka Parish.
The residents fear that they will run out of water, which recently happened in one of the villages, when an excavator hit an underground water vein in the multiethnic Donja Bitinja village. They also emphasized that approximately 2,500 Strpce residents are currently using technical water from the Kaludjerka River, which is not suitable „for drinking, despite such a beautiful and healthy environment.“
The beds of the small tributaries of the Lepenac river are being expanded, which causes them to dry up, and MHPPs are not being shut down even when the water levels decrease during the drier months.
Strpce residents fear that their survival is jeopardized, as the construction of the MHPPs continues despite violations of Kosovo laws – all with the support of the former Ministry of Environment and Kosovo Police. Furthermore, according to the testimony of the locals, the Kosovo police have repeatedly used excessive force to disperse protesting locals.
Based on a 2013 decision by the Kosovo Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, the contractor – the Matkos Group – has so far constructed three mini hydroelectric power plants on the Lepenac, and a fourth facility above Strpce – at the very border point of the Shara National Park. The locals claim that, instead of the two initial facilities, there are plans to construct seven of them. They also warned that works are underway on the tributaries of the Lepenac in the Shara National Park, which are also sources of drinking water.
Road construction is underway as well. Apart from the ruined nature, private properties are also under attack.
The Ombudsman recommended the suspension of the construction and recently opened an investigation into allegations of excessive use of force at one of the protests.
A campaign to collect signatures against the construction of MHPPs was also organized throughout Kosovo. Following a petition from locals, which contained approximately 2,500 signatures, a petition launched by CSOs was signed by approximately 27,000 citizens. According to residents, however, the municipality of Strpce remains silent on the issue.
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