23.10.2023.
Pursuant to the decision of the Ministry of Economy, the Fund is in charge of solving the issue of landfills, including the ones on Brač island.The Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund and the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development have made every effort to solve the problem of landfilling and remediation of the landfill for the benefit of all stakeholders, especially the citizens of Brač. Mayor Marković visited the Fund several times and based on discussions with her, and with other local self-government units, the method of co-financing was proposed in the Decision amending the Decision on the order and dynamics of landfill closure, which was published in the Official Gazette last week.
As part of its activities, the Fund co-finances the remediation and closure of all official non-hazardous waste landfills in the territory of the Republic of Croatia. Also, through its public calls and calls for proposals, the Fund is co-financing the removal of dumpsites and the purchase of municipal equipment needed for the separate collection, transport, and disposal of municipal waste. In the last few years, the Fund has invested more than 150 million euros of national funds to this end, and plans to further co-finance local self-government units and utility companies, until the establishment of an integral system with built waste management centres.
In accordance with the Decision amending the Decision on the order and dynamics of landfill closure (Official Gazette 120/23), the Fund will co-finance directly to local self-government units the purchase of municipal equipment and waste treatment devices, as well as the programme of remediation and necessary expansion of landfill capacity that will be used until the opening of the appropriate waste management centre. The share of eligible costs of landfill remediation and procurement of necessary equipment to be co-financed by the Fund was increased to 90%.
The Fund has already increased the rate of co-financing of the landfill remediation programme from 50% to 75%, which in total amounts to EUR 454,936.89. Of this amount, the Town of Supetar withdrew EUR 55,606.71 for the preparation of project documentation, meaning EUR 399,330.18 are still at their disposal.
In accordance with the foregoing Decision, this amount will be significantly increased, not only due to increase in the rate of co-financing of remediation and closure of the landfill to 90%, but also for the purchase of all necessary municipal equipment for Supetar, with the final goal of increasing waste separation rate and reducing the amount of waste that is brought to Kupinovac landfill. The Fund will thus co-finance all project and other documentation, works and expert supervision, as well as the necessary equipment to increase the capacity of the landfill and ensure conditions for the disposal of mixed municipal waste until the construction of the county waste management centre.
In addition, the new amendments to the Decision on the order and dynamics of landfill closure introduced additional control of reducing waste disposal for all local self-government units that transport waste to other landfills. The Fund will co-finance the procurement of dedicated equipment and devices, while units must submit annual reports on implemented waste prevention measures and activities, separate collection, recycling and recovery of waste.
In this regard, the professional services of the Fund will forthwith carry out all necessary actions in order to carry out planned activities in a timely manner - as has been done so far – and in accordance with the scope of the tasks assumed by the Fund. The Fund will organise as soon as possible a meeting with all local self-government units on the island of Brač and other stakeholders to discuss this issue and, in addition, provide waste management education to responsible persons in local self-government units.
Regarding all of the above, and the fact that mayor Marković could have requested an additional meeting if she needed clarifications, the Fund considers the decision to suspend the receipt of waste from Brač municipalities to Kupinovac landfill to be inappropriate. Such rhetoric can be interpreted as part of preelection activities and does not contribute to the constructive resolution of waste management on Brač.
