Animal remains endanger the lives of citizens in Obilic

The family of Bajram Gara, who lives just a few meters from the Mirush warehouse in which she works, is also at risk.

He says that because of the smell of trash, his children are getting sick very often.

The race has told Kosovo Preress that they cannot open windows because of the wind and huge dust.

And we can open the window, but there's dust winding, and it's a normal thing that bothers us... we're used to working there, we're used to no crying, somewhere we need to work... and the kid's normally going that he smells normally, they can't handle it like we do. It depends on how they get sick that it takes one month to send them or two times“, Gara said.

That the situation is alarming and that another resident of this village, Srdjan Ilic, who has indicated that severe winds are present in all seasons, so according to him, it takes finding an adequate solution, including the shift of the village.

This shit that's thrown here is from half of Kosovo, not only us in the village, but also Palaj, Haden and Obilic. We can't open windows in the morning or in the evening because of the heavy wind and garbage powder thrown into the storehouse. Let it be forbidden here to be thrown away or to shift our environment. It is not good for young children to go to the doctor and take injections”, he said.

He says garbage dumps are dumped from half of Kosovo, including animal waste, which is causing even more consequences on these residents.

Ilic says they have also sought help from the municipality of Obilic, but according to him, even municipal officials are failing to offer solutions, though residents cannot endure the smell of waste.

“We residents of our village and Serbs, and Albanians have been in the municipality of Obiliki and have sought by the mayor and vice president to stop throwing garbage in this warehouse and find another location. Even officials from the Obilic municipality do not know how to do it, while we residents of Crkvena Vodica, Serbs and the Serbs of Hada can no longer bear these gases and winds” he said.

All of this is happening because there is still no regulatory in Kosovo, which determines where the byproducts of animals that are slaughtered, although the animal-processing and disposal factory, including the bones that were supposed to end this problem, is built but still not functional.

Regarding this concern from the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, they say they are working to include management of animal byproducts in the national waste management strategy.

And for the animal waste recycling plant, via email, Kosovas has been told that they have given environmental consent.

“MMPH has issued environmental consent as AVUK has applied for environmental consent, and the investor has prepared the report for environmental impact assessment. Currently, the MMPH, is changing/fulfilling the national waste management strategy, in which of course the areas of animal by - product management will also be abandoned, says the Environment Ministry's response.

The ministry says that for the location where animal waste should be dumped it puts the Veterinary and Food Agency, but by AVUK they have said this issue is in MMPH competencies.

The agency's spokesman, Lamir Thaci, for the animal waste recycling plant, says the works have been starting for a while and quickly awaiting its functioning.

For now it's the Ministry of Environment who cares for assignments of animal-born waste treatment sites, but in the future we hope to have a factory that's only working. The factory has started a lot of weather, worked on it, and we expect it to be finalised and issued”, he said.

Kosovapress has also tried to get an answer to this factory from the European Union Office in Kosovo, but it has not been possible.

The cost of the plant for processing and extermination of animal by products is 7.7m euros, out of which 5.7m euros have been separated from the EU, the European Commission, respectively, and 2m euros have been separated from the Kosovo government.

This plant is expected to be the first of its kind in the Western Balkans, and is aimed at protecting public and environmental health by establishing an effective and secure system for treating animal sub-products.

Otherwise, the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning days ago has made a decision since September 15th to launch an environmental cleanup action, which is expected to last 3 months.