Who is to blame for Sarajevans and Zenicans choking on smog?

Members of the Eco Forum from Zenica have requested the assistance of domestic and international legal experts, who will help identify the culprit for the enormous air pollution in Zenica, Sarajevo, and several other cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, after which they will most likely initiate a collective lawsuit against those responsible, because during the autumn and winter months, citizens of these BiH cities are choking on smog, endangering their health, writes the BiH news agency Patria (NAP).

Željko Perić from Eco Forum, a non-governmental organization from Zenica fighting for a healthier environment, confirmed for Patria that the Forum, in cooperation with domestic and foreign legal experts, has been trying for some time to find the main culprit causing the poor air quality in Zenica, which endangers the lives of Zenica residents.

- If one of the polluters is responsible for the poor air quality, then they should be held accountable for negligent work - said Perić.

- If the state is responsible for this situation, then we need to know which level of the state is responsible, or which level of government we should ask to solve the problem of excessive air pollution.

Citizens of Zenica, Sarajevo, Tuzla..., choke on smog during the autumn and winter months, which is often far above the maximum allowed values.

The company Arcelor Mittal Zenica, one of the largest polluters in this city, claims that it operates in accordance with the laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and that it cannot be held responsible for the poor ecological situation in this city. On the other hand, cantonal authorities shift responsibility to higher levels of government, the Federal and state authorities, while the highest legislative institutions in the country believe the opposite, directing citizens to look for those responsible for poor air quality in local authorities.

- We no longer want to hear such things. We have engaged legal experts who will state who is responsible for Zenicans breathing polluted air for a hundred days a year - warned Perić.

On Sunday, members of the Eco Forum will organize a gathering in Zenica, where they will seek citizens' support in finding those most responsible for the poor air quality in Zenica, as well as support for initiating a collective lawsuit against the culprit, writes Patria.

The air quality index for Sarajevo on Tuesday was also worrying, standing at 184, and 159 on Monday.