Representatives of Working Group No. 3 “Environment, Climate Change and Energy Security” of Moldova’s National Platform of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum said that on the pretext of developing navigation on the Nistru and the Prut, attempts are made to extract sand and gravel. The environmental experts make reference to a legislative proposal of MP Vladimir Bolea which, according to them, does not contain the hydrological regime changes witnessed the last decades.
In a news conference at IPN, the president of the Ecological Movement of Moldova Alecu Reniță, a member of Working Group No. 3, said that this is not something new as efforts to obtain control over the Nistru and the Prut for the so-called navigation have been made for several decades. ‘”It seems at least ridiculous to me to speak about a fluvial fleet in the Republic of Moldova without seeing a concept. To speak about an eventual fluvial fleet that needs a sailing line and a particular depth, we want to see how this huge fluvial fleet that someone wants will look like. I repeat, it does not go to navigation, but strictly to the sand, gravel and all kinds of deposits that are to be extracted from the Nistru and the Prut for being sold illegally,” stated Alecu Reniță.
According to him, such a move will lead to the destruction of the two rivers and neither the farmers nor transport will gain, while three-four clans that now exert considerable pressure to obtain ‘navigation’ on these two rivers whose only task is to supply the population with water will stand to gain. “We hope that our voice will not remain without an echo and we will be heard first of all by those who are in power,” stated the ecologist.
Ilia Trombitski executive director of the Eco-TIRAS International Environmental Association of River Keepers, said the bill provides for the wide use of the protection area of the Nistru and the Prut for economic activity – building of temporary piers and access ways for these for exporting crops and other goods, for transport and passengers. In this regard, the bill suggests abandoning the environmental evaluation procedures and environmental impact assessments for all the proposed activities.
“I do not say that it was the intention of Mister Bolea or that he resorts to corruption, but Mister Bolea was used by mafia groups to promote their interests as the main interest is evident – to extract sand and gravel for selling these,” stated Ilia Trombitski.
Lilia Curchi, local coordinator of Working Group No. 3, called on the expert parliamentary commission not to endorse this bill even if three commissions already approved it, and asked the author to withdraw the bill from Parliament as this bill is fully anti-ecological.
In the news conference, there was presented a statement addressed to the senior administration, which says that this draft law cannot be improved by looking for compromises and should be rejected as it is based on false presumptions concerning the possibility of developing full navigation on the Nistru and the Prut in the current hydrological conditions.
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