The Commercial Court in Zaječar, following the report submitted by RERI and the Association of Young Researchers Bor, issued a judgment by which the company Zijin Copper was sentenced to a fine of 2 million dinars (aprox. 17.000 EUR), and the responsible person in the legal entity to 150 thousand dinars (aprox. 1.280 EUR) for the construction of a mining facility on the hill above the flotation tailing dump “RTH” contrary to the provisions of the Law on Mining and Geological Research and the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment.
As a rule, the company Zijin builds mining and construction facilities without permits, and in court proceedings initiated due to illegal construction, it defends itself by claiming that the works were urgent because it would otherwise cause the endangerment of people and an environmental disaster. In fact, in no case has the company contested the fact that it constructed without a permit, but it justifies doing so in various, often absurd, ways. For example, in every court proceeding, Zijin particularly emphasizes the fact that the process of obtaining permits before state authorities is lengthy. Apart from the statements of the responsible person, Zijin does not provide any evidence for such claims, so it is clear that the court should not accept such an unfounded defence of the company.
However, it is not surprising that the company defends itself before the court in this way, considering the fact that until now the same court accepted this kind of defence by imposing fines on Zijin below the legal minimum.
In the previous three years, the company Zijin was sentenced six times for illegal construction – without the necessary permits from the Ministry of Mining and Energy, of which five times it was sentenced below the minimum penalty, while once it was sentenced to the minimum legal penalty. Namely, the legally prescribed penalty for the construction of mining facilities and the execution of mining works without approval is from RSD 1.500.000 to RSD 3.000.000 (aprox. EUR 12.800 to EUR 25.600) whereas the company that was convicted for the seventh time for illegal construction was only fined an amount negligibly higher than the minimum legal penalty.
Zijin has been carrying out these “urgent” works for more than a year, and RERI and AYR Bor have unsuccessfully addressed the inspections of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Mining and Energy on several occasions, which to date have not taken any action to prevent the company from carrying out works without the necessary permits and consents.
Although the judgement considers as a mitigating circumstance the fact that the company submitted a request for approval of the environmental impact study, the study itself is of extremely poor quality and does not contain the basic elements prescribed by law. Thus, neither the company nor the Ministry of Environmental Protection at all take into account the specific location and wind flow, and the fact that the landfill is located above the city, due to which the dust from the tailings containing heavy metals is blown over the city, while the settlements in the immediate vicinity are especially endangered.
Excerpt from graphic attachments 1 and 9 of the General Urban Plan of Bor
“The tailing dump was formed in an open pit whose exploitation has been completed. The projects of the former RTB envisaged that the flotation tailings would be deposited up to the level of the surrounding terrain, and then continue at another location, however, the hill is now not only above that level, but also above the sea level of the nearest parts of the city,” explains Toplica Marjanović, environmental protection engineer and former employee of RTB Bor. “The appropriate solution would be the application of new technology for the treatment of flotation tailings and the cessation of its deposition on the surface. The continuation of raising tailings is not for the purpose of protecting the environment, but solely for the benefit of the company, which thereby reduces production costs.”
He also warns of the fact that the depression that should accept the flood wave in the event of an accident (dam burst) no longer exists because most of it is filled with mining waste that was deposited there without a proper environmental impact assessment study and permits. He explains that in the event of spillage of the deposited tailings, it would reach the Borska river and threaten the village of Slatina, which is located downstream.
Excerpt from the study on the environmental impact assessment of the DRP overhang of the RTH flotation tailings pond and a photo from April 2024
“It is worrying that the competent prosecutor’s offices and courts do not consider and do not take into account the danger that the company’s illegal activities cause to people’s lives and health, as well as to the environment. Court proceedings of this kind are of great social importance, and the company must not be made concessions in court proceedings, and especially its penalty should not be reduced. This kind of court practice and inadequate penalties motivates the company to continue violating the laws of the Republic of Serbia”, concludes Ljubica Vukčević, lawyer of RERI.