Commenting on the current situation in the town, Pejovic said that opening bids for the tender for new heating sources is scheduled for next week.
“I believe that on December 9th a bidder will be selected who will provide implementing the most important short-term measure, which we planned in accordance with the recommendations of professors from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Montenegro. We expect to start supplying citizens of Pljevlja with these heating sources after December 9th and thus, we believe, reduce the effects of absolutely serious problems we are aware of,” she added.
In addition, she stresses, the plan includes providing €30,000 government’s emergency support to help the municipality to carry out the first concrete action – to use it for control and measuring the way of work and use of heating sources.
She said that everything the competent institutions were committed to was done pursuant to the conclusions of the relevant Parliamentary Committee, with the expectation that an important analysis related to the impact of air pollution on human health and the environment in Pljevlja will be completed soon by the Institute of Public Health. The results of the analysis will be presented to Montenegrin public.
As she said, that document will represent a basis for further implementation of activities, i.e. taking measures against all sources of pollution in Pljevlja.
“Although the civil sector constantly sends messages relating to the implementation of the principle of accountability, recognised through the provision of ‘polluter pays’ principle, all the expert studies that we have done so far have shown that the very individual stokeholes are one of the key pollutants in the Municipality of Pljevlja, in addition to other sources, which we have defined as problematic and which have been continuously controlled by competent national inspection,” Pejovic said.
She said that only the Agency for Environmental Protection could comment on data obtained from the measuring stations. She stressed that the institution, as well as the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism, did not hide any relevant information concerning the operation of the system and data.
“This is supported by the fact that we responsibly and accurately informed citizens of Montenegro and Pljevlja on almost all activities undertaken, including consultative meetings with the Minister of Health in the Government of Montenegro”, Pejovic said.
When it comes to obeying the Law on Public Procurement according to which the two tender calls for the purchase of briquettes and pellets were announced, she said they failed due to formal reasons, i.e. there were no bidders for the first tender call and the only bid submitted at the second one was incorrect.
She noted that in situations where there are failures in the measuring equipment, official explanation of relevant institutions should be waited for instead of allowing manipulation or ignorant interpretation.
