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SLOVENIA AN EXAMPLE OF MURDEROUS CORRUPTION

SLOVENIA AN EXAMPLE OF MURDEROUS CORRUPTION. ON THE CORRUPTING SIDE OF THE ALPS.

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SLOVENIA AN EXAMPLE OF MURDEROUS CORRUPTION

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  1. SLOVENIA AN EXAMPLE OF MURDEROUS CORRUPTION

  2. ON THE CORRUPTING SIDE OF THE ALPS Slovenia is a small country situated on the southern side of the Alps. Its surface is over 20.000 km2 and its population around 2 millions. The capital of Slovenia is Ljubljana.Slovenia became a sovereign country in 1991 after the disintegration of Yugoslavia.

  3. In the central part of Slovenia there is a region called Zasavje. The area of Zasavje is 250 km2. It has 46.000 inhabitants.Zasavje represents the most polluted area in Slovenia. The main polluter is the cement plant (Lafarge Cement) in Trbovlje. The conditions deteriorated strongly during the 2003 when the French Lafarge Cement took over the local cement plant!

  4. (View from the South Side) ATTENTION: The Cement Plant in Trbovlje is situated in a narrow valley, with weak wind ventilation, where during the temperature inversions a sea of cold air accumulates emissions. Inversions are frequent in Zasavje valleys and may last for days. In this type of landscape the restrictions for polluting should be even more rigorous than elsewhere! TRBOVLJE (The town with 16.000 inhabitants) LAFARGE CEMENT

  5. (View from the North Side) LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE No, it is not fog! According to the data of the periodic monitoring the emissions of Lafarge Cement in Trbovlje contain only 15 % of vapour, 85 % are dust particles, heavy metals, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, NOx, TOC, dioxins and furans ... During the standstills of electrostatic precipitators, the share of vapour is even smaller and the share of pollutants further increases. Of course, the measuringis never carried out during the standstills!

  6. (View from the North Side) Lafarge Cement operates continuously 8.000 hours per year. The pollution is at its worst during the numerous standstills of the electrostatic precipitators which occur approx. 1.000 times a year. And the allowed limits of air pollution (imissions) are in such times transgressed even by ten times! LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  7. (View from the Northeast Side) The management of Lafarge Cement maintain that there are no standstills of the electrostatic precipitators! Only once in an interview for a newspaper, they admitted that they had 200 standstills in the previous year which however is a strongly underestimated data. LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  8. (View from the Northeast Side) The emissions are not continuously monitored in spite of the fact that such monitoring has been a legal requirement for 12 years! LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  9. (View from the Northeast Side) Lafarge Cement and the Inspectorate for the environment and spatial planningclaim that emissions are continuously monitored by the Lafarge Cement but they do not wish to disclose the data. They admit however that the monitoring is not performed by a publicly registered institution but by Lafarge Cement themselves! LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  10. (View from the Northeast Side) Only periodic monitoring of emissions in Lafarge Cement, a few hours yearly, is carried out by publicly registered institution. This monitoring is performed only when all electrostatic precipitators are in operation! LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  11. (View from the Northeast Side) The electrostatic precipitators’ standstills ... LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  12. (View from the Northeast Side) … occur mostly ... LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  13. (View from the Northeast Side) … during ... LAFARGE CEMENT  TRBOVLJE

  14. … the nights! (But this time photos cannot be taken of them!)

  15. LafargeCementKiln = L C K = LargeCitizens’Killer

  16. DIRE CONSEQUENCES The Slovenian institute ERICo found out that people from Zasavje contract more often than in average the diseases of the respiratory systems, of the digestive organs, of the urinary system, of the genitals and of the blood circulation systems, pregnancies are more often complicated, and there are miscarriages, mental disorders, glands diseases and tumours! The map of the cancer incidences in Slovenia shows that Zasavje is strongly leading in all types of cancers (except for the cancer of uterus)! The mortality rate of infants in Slovenia is 3,8 stillborns per 1.000 infants whereas in Zasavje there are as many as 8,2 stillborns in every 1.000 infants!

  17. WHICH ARE THE CORRECT DATA? The case of dust: On the basis of periodic measuring in 2005 Lafarge Cement reported emissions of dust of 6,85 tons. Of course the measuring was carried out at the time of full operation of electrostatic precipitators. However for the Trbovlje cement plant management only the measuring carried out during a minor (!) electrostatic precipitators' standstill in 2002 are relevant. If the measuring results during the minor standstill (2.430 mg/m3 at the flue gas flow 165.000 m3) are multiplied with 200 standstills per year we will get the result of 80.19 tons of dust emissions. If a more realistic number of 1.000 standstills is assumed, the emissions are estimated at 400 tons of dust per year. The figure of 400 tons is valid if the only short standstills are taken into account. For a realistic estimation of dust emissions medium and major standstills should be added to that and besides also the dust emitted during the electrostatic precipitators' regular operation. The results thus obtained are 50 to 70 times higher than those published officially! What does this mean in terms of benzen content? The officially published quantity (without taking into account the periods when electrostatic precipitators were not operating) was 5,30 tons of benzen in year 2005. A realistic estimation however with 1.000 electrostatic precipitators' standstills is 300 tons(linear comparison with dust). Where do these large emissions come from? Lafarge Cement use petrol-coke as fuel and do not seem to have an explicit permit for it! Finally there are heavy metals, NOX, TOC, dioxines and furanes ... which certainly should not to be forgotten!

  18. SLOVENIAN AUTHORITIES = L C K = LyingCorruptKind Bojana Pohar Chief Inspector of the Republic of Slovenia for the Environment and Spatial Planning Bogdan Barovič The Mayor of Trbovlje Janez Podobnik Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Janez Janša The Prime Minister of Republic of Slovenia

  19. Bogdan Barovič The Mayor of Trbovlje Bogdan Barovič the mayor of Trbovlje is publicly among the most fervent advocates of Lafarge Cement. He admits that it is because Lafarge Cement Trbovlje employs some 200 people and because of Lafarge Cement’s donations in the amount of 400.000 EUR yearly to fund sports and cultural events in Trbovlje. But there are indications that personal interests may be involved. Bogdan Barovič is not at all concerned about the electrostatic filters’ numerous standstills, about degraded environment, and about epidemiological picture of the local population. At one particular serious standstill of electrostatic precipitators he even suggested that the public should not worry as he (!) assures them that the emissions from Lafarge Cement are not dangerous. (Perhaps we should note here that he is not adequately educated and had before undertaking the office of mayor been a speaker and journalist on the local radio). Bogdan Barovič has been a mayor in Trbovlje since 2002. All this time Lafarge Cement have not been called to submit the data of continuous monitoring to the local community though the law binds them to do so. This year only but only upon the strong pressure exercised by the public he asked Lafarge Cement to submit the data on emissions for the last five years. Nobody knows whether he received such data as they have not been presented to the public. An example of how Bogdan Barovič deals with the public who are sensitive about pollutions: In 2004 a civil initiative was organized in Zasavje opposing strongly the prospect of introducing hazardous wastes to fuel the cement plant. The public organized as NGO was not welcome in Trbovlje and the NGO had to move its address to the neighbouring municipality (Zagorje ob Savi). After that Bogdan Barovič promptly declared that the NGOs from other municipalities have no business to interfere with Lafarge Cement (though to tell the truth the pollution does not stop on the boundaries of Trbovlje municipality).

  20. Bojana Pohar Chief Inspector of the Republic of Slovenia for the Environment and Spatial Planning - Head of the Inspectorate • Bojana Pohar, as head of Inspectorate for the environment and spatial planning, directly supports the illegal operations of Lafarge Cement. Her following measures are an evidence of it: • She ignores the requirements and even does not respond to questions put by the public concerning Lafarge Cement. • In spite of the provisions of legislature and years of calling her attention to it, she has required that independent continuous monitoring is carried out in Lafarge Cement. Only recently she yielded to the pressure of public and required Lafarge Cement to introduce this year (12 years too late) a credible continuous monitoring of emissions. • She has recklessly believed the unofficial and secret data on measurement of emissions in Lafarge cement and performed by the Lafarge Cement themselves. According to these data the cement plant excessively pollutes the environment with sulphur dioxide (SO2). Therefore they are within the environmental rehabilitation programme presently building a desulphurization plant (for SO2) only. • Following the secret Rehabilitation Programme she publicly adopted the attitude that Lafarge Cement may during the implementation of this programme continue with unrestricted pollution of environment. • Also she claims that Lafarge Cement operation is “in public interest” and the public health “a private interest”.

  21. Janez Podobnik Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning • Janez Podobnik,minister of environment and spatial planning, directly upholds the illegal procedures in Lafarge Cement. His following steps are a proof for it: • He defends Lafarge Cement on the basis of the data from periodic monitoring of emissions, carried out incorrectly during the time when all electrostatic precipitator are in regular operation. • With false data of emissions he is misleading the Slovenian public as well as the European Union. • He believes that the data of continuous monitoring as carried out by Lafarge Cement themselves are plausible but he does not make them available to the public. • He allowed the legalisation of illegal buildings whose aim is to prepare incineration of the hazardous wastes in Lafarge Cement. • He allows the use of illicit fuels in Lafarge Cement. • He ordered elaboration of a programme of rehabilitation for Lafarge Cement. The programme however is secret for the public. • Allegedly aiming at improving situation of air in Zasavje, he appointed a working committee which is pure eyewash: The committee is totally useless and serves actually only to buy time. The local environmental activists who participate in the committee are helpless since the activities of the committee are controlled by the Ministry of Environment. • He too ignores the requirements and even does not respond to questions put by the public concerning Lafarge Cement.

  22. Janez Janša The Prime Minister of Republic of Slovenia Janez Janša, the Slovenian prime minister has been kept informed in the course of the last two years about the disastrous circumstances in the Zasavje region and about the deliberate non-activity of the responsible authorities above all of the Ministry of Environment. Upon pressure by the local population, the prime minister replied once only saying that the question had been conveyed to the Ministry of Environment. Thus he would not tackle the problem and he shifts the responsibility to others. Though it is true that the present Janša's government inherited the issue Lafarge Cement from the previous government (with prime minister Anton Rop and minister of environment and spatial planningJanez Kopač) who even allowed the Cement Plant a test incineration of over 30.000 tons of hazardous wastes the Prime Minister Janša has since 2004 done nothing to solve the situation with the Lafarge Cement. Moreover in spite of the obvious evidences of devastating and even illegal activities of Lafarge Cement the problem has been aggravated in the course of the last two years (e.g. Lafarge Cement built illegally the appliances necessary for incineration of hazardous wastes. They obtained the permits from the authorities ex post and were fined a small penalty payable for usurping the land). Today the Janša's government boast with the construction of desulphurization plant as if the sulphur dioxide were the only culprit for the catastrophic health situation of the region Zasavje. What they are boasting about is the solving of a marginal problem. HYPOTHETICAL QUESTION: What would the French government do if a Slovenian cement plant operated with similar environmental impact on the French territory?

  23. SLOVENIA = L C K = LatentCorruptionKingdom

  24. WHY SLOVENIA? As in 1991 Yugoslavia disintegrated, Slovenia gained not only sovereignty but also changed the political system. On one hand it turned into a democratic society on the other hand the former socialist system was replaced by a rather orthodox capitalism commencing with property transformation and ruthless materialistic competition. Socially safe society with strong middle class has been intensely polarised on poor and rich. The driving power of the system has become: Be resourceful (in terms of “grab what you can but do not get found out”). … To understand the state of mind in Slovenia it is more important to know that there is a public known confidential information that some of the leading politicians were allegedly involved in sale of weapons to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina during the last Balkan war. … In short a small country with uncontrolled social stratification, greed in all social layers (even in political élite), record delays in court procedures … In Slovenia there are excellent conditions for corruption!

  25. STOPLafarge Cement! STOPkilling citizens! STOPcorruption in Slovenia!

  26. Help usat least by transmitting this presentation of our local drama on to other people. Hopefully it may reach those who are willing and capable of taking appropriate measures. While waiting for the slow Slovenian legal procedures to be completed (too) many may fall ill or may even die. ! For more detailed information contact non-governmental organization (NGO) EKO KROG: eko.krog@gmail.com www.eko-krog.org Author of this presentation:

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