Environment
Protests as City of Loznica in Serbia adopts spatial plan for Rio Tinto’s lithium project
29 July 2021 - Hundreds of people protested in Loznica in western Serbia as the local assembly was adopting the spatial plan for Rio Tinto's lithium project
Apply for exchange programme for coal regions in Western Balkans, Ukraine, EU
29 July 2021 - The exchange programme is part of the Initiative for Coal Regions in Transition in the Western Balkans and Ukraine.
Rio Tinto launches controversial Serbian lithium investment before environmental study
28 July 2021 - Rio Tinto keeps buying land in Serbia and getting permits for a lithium mine after the investment decision, but there is no environmental impact study
Earth Overshoot Day is July 29: resource consumption rebounds after pandemic
28 July 2021 - After the pandemic caused a decrease in the use of resources in 2020, the world returned to business as usual and matched the worst result ever.
Montenegro, Republic of Srpska to set up expert team to assess impact of HPP Buk Bijela on Tara river
26 July 2021 - The two sides have agreed to form an expert team of seven members, whose task will be to review the project documentation.
EU Forest Strategy targets 3 billion trees planted by 2030
23 July 2021 - The new EU Forest Strategy includes roadmap to increase the number of trees grown per year from 300 million to 600 million.
Slovenia’s Vizjak proposes referendum on country’s energy future
21 July 2021 - Minister Andrej Vizjak said a plebiscite should be held on Slovenia's overall energy plans and not just on the second nuclear reactor for Krško
Croatia bans single-use plastic products
20 July 2021 - Croatia's parliament has adopted a new law on waste management which bans the sale of single-use plastic products.
Greece sees sharpest coal emissions cut among EU coal-producing countries
19 July 2021 - Greece has achieved a 56.3% reduction in emissions in the sectors covered by the EU ETS, the third best performance among member states.
Plastic Free July: How much plastic waste is dumped into the ocean?
14 July 2021 - While the US is the world’s biggest generator of plastic waste, India is responsible for dumping the largest amounts of plastics into the ocean.
European Parliament wants fossil fuel subsidies phased out by 2025
13 July 2021 - Members of the European Parliament said that all environmentally harmful subsidies should be phased out by 2027.
124,000 sign petition against lithium mine as Rio Tinto mulls project Jadar 2
13 July 2021 - Even though people around Serbia are increasingly protesting Rio Tinto’s plan to open a jadarite mine, the British-Australian miner is in talks with the government on expanding the project.
Coal power stations in Western Balkans emit twice as much SO2 as EU plants
13 July 2021 - The Western Balkans’ 18 coal-fired power plants released twice as much sulfur dioxide in 2019 as all 221 such facilities in the EU.
Serbia enables state agriculture land to be leased for solar, wind projects
12 July 2021 - The Government of Serbia adopted the decree on the leasing of state-owned agricultural land for non-agricultural use.
Serbia’s Ministry of Energy files charges against ex-minister of environmental protection over small hydropower plants
12 July 2021 - Serbia's Ministry of Mining and Energy filed criminal charges against the ex-environment minister and the Director of the Institute for Nature Conservation
Belgrade, Zagreb, Skopje out of race for European Green Capital 2023 as Sofia makes it to final four
08 July 2021 - Sofia is among the finalists for the European Green Capital 2023 award, while Belgrade, Zagreb, and Skopje are out of the race.