Public Debate on the Assessment of the Environmental Impact Assessment Study

On Monday, 31 August 2020, in the local community of Borovica, a Public debate was held regarding the assessment of the "Environmental Impact Assessment Study.

On Monday, 31 August 2020, in the local community of Borovica, a Public debate was held regarding the assessment of the "Environmental Impact Assessment Study for the underground exploitation of complex lead, zinc, barite ore and accompanying mineral components in the Rupice deposit, Vareš municipality." The discussion was attended by representatives of Eastern Mining d.o.o. and the Federal Ministry of Environment and Tourism, as well as consultants from the Mining Institute d.d. Tuzla.

The Federal Ministry of Environment and Tourism has already received a case from Eastern Mining for "Project for the renewal of the plant for exploitation and processing of lead, zinc and barite ore at the location of Veovača I, Tisovci I and Veovača II" on September 30, 2019., after which the company was issued with valid environmental permit for these locations on May 20, 2020. Following the previous example for obtaining an environmental permit, the company has launched similar activities for the location "Rupice".

In his introductory presentation, the representative of the Federal Ministry of Environment and Tourism and also a deputy member of the head of the procedure for issuing environmental permits, Mr. Fetah Muhić, explained to the audience what the legal basis in the procedure for issuing environmental permits is. For the issuance of an environmental permit in the field of mining, the conditions require the preparation of an "Environmental Impact Assessment Study", which in this case was prepared by a consulting group from the Mining Institute d.d. Tuzla.

In the presentation of the "Environmental Impact Assessment Study", experts from the Mining Institute d.d. Tuzla stated that the basis for development was the conceptual design of the exploitation as well as an analysis in order to examine the “zero condition” of the area where underground exploitation is planned. In this case “zero condition” is representing the state of the environment in which it is now, in the present, before the planned exploitation activities have started, so that certain impacts could be predicted.

For more information on the comprehensive Study, the full summary is available here:
https://bit.ly/3gLj7Jx

After the presentations from all attendees, there was a discussion with the local community on which the Project will have the greatest and direct impact. Thus, the residents of Borovica decided to present the requests they made at the recent meeting of the local community in order to protect their rights, which they believe should be taken into account when preparing the  future and additional documentation for the Study. The requirements mostly concern environmental protection with the application of EU standards and the FBiH law that regulates this field of work, issues of private property, protection of existing waters and vegetation, protection of existing and local roads, as well as unhindered participation in future public hearings.

Adnan Teletović, Executive Director of Eastern Mining, addressed the participants of the public debate while appreciating their presence, saying: “The goal we were trying to achieve with the entire presentation was to bring first-hand information from our consultants the Mining Institute d.d. Tuzla, as well as giving the local community a greater understanding of what we are actually doing. As an employer, we are looking to enhance our cooperation with the local community, which is why we are already in the process of establishing the Adriatic Metals Foundation, which will set aside part of the profit when production begins. This income will be invested in education, infrastructure and other aspects of the social life of the local communities.” It was also emphasized that in the future, the local population will have priority when it comes to employment on the project and that funds will be invested by the company in training the young workforce for this type of activity. As for future activities, the company will continue to detail the geological research, while also demonstrating that the studies that are conducted at the international level meet all the highest European and world standards, showing commitment to the adequate implementation of the project.

The Mining Institute d.d. Tuzla was acknowledged by Eastern Mining, for taking all measures to ensure an adequate exploitation process, which is said to be unusual for Bosnia and Herzegovina so far in terms of quality.