Kupusović: Jablaničko Lake is Artificial with One Function - Hydro Energy

Jablaničko Lake in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been undergoing major changes over the past month, and many say this is an ecological disaster. The lake has completely disappeared, and with it the entire fish wealth, claim fishermen and the local population, but experts warn that Jablaničko Lake is an artificial water body that currently has only one function - hydro energy.  

Prof. Dr. Tarik Kupusović, director of the Institute for Hydraulic Engineering at the Faculty of Civil Engineering in Sarajevo, points out to Patria that Jablaničko Lake is single-purpose for the time being, until otherwise agreed.

-  Currently, it is an artificial water body; in the ecosystem, there are no longer even approximately natural conditions, but rather those created by the reservoir. And the lake was built to fill and empty. Now, since the winter has been dry and the demand for electricity has increased, Elektroprivreda has more or less emptied it. But it will fill up soon, because for the Neretva River, this is a small lake, not a large one given the flow we have in Konjic. It has seasonal regulation; it can use the rainy season to fill up and in the dry period to empty – says Prof. Kupusović. 

He adds that he does not know how many fish there were, but notes that this too was artificially created and will be again.

- I see that Elektroprivreda has promised to restock the lake once conditions allow. This is indeed a loss, but this artificial water body only has ecological potential; it can host some ecosystems or fish when there is water, but when there is none, they somehow migrate, a part survives, and it recovers again when the water returns – adds Prof. Kupusović.

The professor explains that Jablaničko Lake is managed by whoever holds the permit, which is currently Elektroprivreda BiH.