“Speculations and falshoods” was the answer that the Ministry of Environment provided for the increased sharing of information, photographs and suspicions on social networks about cases of importin, burning and storing dangerous waste from abroad and connecting these cases with the enormous air pollution that is happening each winter.
According to a widely shared information, a dangerous waste was burned in Skopje and that this was the reason for the enormous air pollution and the increase of malignant diseases.
Yesterday, the political party DOM was the first that issued a press release with which is called upon the authorities to answer whether a dangerous waste is being imported and whether it remains in the country, in order to be stored at the country’s only official sanitary depot “Drisla” or among the many illegal depots.
“We demand that the institutions should conduct internal audits of their documentation and work and to provide a clear answer. As citizens, we demand that the public interest should be protected and urgent measures to be taken” said DOM’s press release.
The Ministry of Environment issued a press released that was also signed by the State Environment Inspectorate.
According to the current legislative, the import of waste in North Macedonia is banned for depositing or storing. We state with full responsibility that not a single license was issued for waste import that didn’t match the characteristics in accordance with the accompanying documents nor a license was issued for importing waste in order to be burned or stored” states the Ministry of Environment.
According to the Ministry, only the import of waste is allowed “that can be safely recycled or processed at an installation that has an appropriate license issued by the Ministry” with an explanation that the waste that is imported was steel, rubber, plastic foil and accumulators for which there are processing capacities in the country that have integrated environmental licenses.
