The Minister of Environmental Protection, Irena Vujovic, stated that this year will be marked by large investments in environmental protection, because the construction of a wastewater treatment plant and a sewerage network in 28 local self-government units will begin.
In an interview for today’s “Vecernje novosti”, she said that the ministry headed by her would deal with illegal landfills, and that the budget of that ministry provided funds for the construction of transfer stations in Nova Varos and Knjazevac, as well as for closing and rehabilitating unsanitary landfills in Cacak, Kraljevo, Trstenik and other parts of Serbia.
Vujovic pointed out that nine new regional centers for waste management will be built, “because we have a clear plan of what we can do in a shorter period of time, and what a longer period requires.”
When asked what the Ministry of Environmental Protection will specifically do to solve the problem of huge air pollution in Serbia, Vujovic pointed out that air quality “is not at an enviable level, but it is a decades-long problem that we must deal with more seriously.”
She stated that the Ministry of Environmental Protection will subsidize the replacement of boiler rooms in schools, kindergartens and health centers in order to enable the transition to more environmentally friendly energy sources, and that the competitions will be conducted through local self-government units.
Vujovic also explained that citizens “will be able to apply for a subsidy to replace home boiler rooms” and that the city heating plant in Kragujevac will be connected to gas, “which will largely solve the problem of air pollution in that city.”
The line ministry, she added, will continue with subsidies for the purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles, “and there are also plans for afforestation and greening of public areas, which will be realized in local self-government units.”
She reminded that the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Mining and Energy agreed to form a joint working group, “which will contribute to closer and more operational cooperation on current projects, but also to defining common goals for achieving European Union (EU) standards in the field of environmental protection.”
Vujovic concluded that Serbia is “strongly determined to accelerate its European path and reach high EU standards, which is not an easy task, since Chapter 27 is extremely complex and requires large financial resources,” N1 reports.
