In the village of Lukavac, near Valjevo (Central Serbia), locals have been protesting again because the Euro Lithium Balkan Company had opened new lithium and boron drill holes, despite an existing court ban.
According to Gordana Jelisavčić, the reason for the protest is the Canadian company Euro Lithium Balkan, which in this, as well as in many other villages in Valjevo and east of the town in the downstream part of the Kolubara River, has drilled several exploratory holes to explore lithium and boron deposits.
Gordana Jelisavčić explained that new exploratory holes have been discovered in two locations in Lukavac. One belongs to the area of Valjevo North, for which the Euro Lithium Balkans had an exploration permit issued by the Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy but which expired in June last year.
However, according to residents of Lukavac, another hole has been drilled in the area where geological research was banned last year by a ruling of the Valjevo High Court.
Euro Lithium Balkan has been conducting lithium and boron research in the Kolubara River district for ten years. The Marš sa Kolubare Movement claims that the company has already caused serious damage to several villages around Valjevo by polluting land and water through leaks from exploration wells. The contamination has been confirmed by analyses carried out by the Faculty of Chemistry in Lukavac and the village of Šušeoka.
The Canadian company stated on its website that during the geological exploration campaign from 2011 to 2019, it drilled 25 holes in the Valjevo area and five holes in the Ljig territory for which they had a relevant permit, and that significant levels of lithium and boron deposits were discovered in the process.
(Blic, 08.04.2022)
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