Environmental Associations Request Cancellation of Special Purpose Plan for Construction of Lithium Mine Near Loznica from Government

The environmental associations “Zastitimo Jadar i Radjevinu” and the Coalition for Sustainable Mining announced today that they are requesting the cancellation of the Spatial Plan of the special purpose area for the Jadar project, concerning the opening of the lithium mine near Loznica, from the government.

– We want the Government of Serbia to cancel the Spatial Plan of the special purpose area for the Jadar project of Rio Sava Exploration, a daughter company of Rio Tinto, and to not pronounce it a public interest, just like any other private mining project – the press release says.

It is added that the Spatial Plan, according to them, was adopted “illegally”, because, at the moment when the request for it was filed, Rio Sava Exploration did not have authenticated mining reserves, nor had a justifiability study been made or consulted.

It is pointed out that “the Justifiability Study is incorrectly called the Feasibility Study, because feasibility studies are done for state projects of public interest, which the Jadar project is not”.

As said, the Justifiability Study is the legal basis for the Spatial Plan to even be on the agenda for the preparation.

– We demand the project of exploitation of lithium in Jadar and Radjevina, or anywhere else in Serbia, to be excluded from the Spatial Plan of Serbia, because that kind of exploitation, as scientifically proven, is fatal to all living beings, ecologically unacceptable and, finally, unnecessary, because an alternative for lithium-ion batteries already exists in the form of natrium-ion batteries – the associations say.

The associations says that “they demand the Government of Serbia to adopted the decision on fulfilling those requests at the next session”.

Udruženje zaštitimo Jadar i Rađevinu

Koalicija za održivo rudarstvo u Srbiji

Rio Sava Exploration d.o.o. Beograd

Rio Tinto Exploration Dunav d.o.o. Beograd

Zaštitimo Jadar i Rađevinu

Coalition for Sustainable Mining

Rio Tinto

Rio Sava

Spatial Plan of the special purpose area for the Jadar project

Rađevina

lithium mine

justifiability study