Center and locals again challenge legality of the Bistrica mine

(Patria) - The environmental permit issued by the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and Ecology to the investor "DRVO-EXPORT" d.o.o. Teslić for coal ore exploitation at the "Bistrica" deposit near Prijedor has been annulled for the third time, following lawsuits by the Center for Environment and local residents.

The contested permit was first annulled due to significant omissions in determining the "baseline state" of the environment, as well as the lack of a remediation and recultivation plan. After a renewed request and supplementary evidence, the ministry issued a permit to the investor, which, following a lawsuit by the Center, the court annulled for the second time due to unlawful decision-making.

We recall that in the previously conducted proceedings, the court upheld the Center's lawsuit because works at the site in question began before the concession was awarded, before the procedures were carried out, and before the reports used for issuing the environmental permit were obtained. Consequently, the true "baseline state" of the environment, as it existed before the works—and which the environmental permit was supposed to protect—was not established.