Ján Šimún (source: Ján Krošlák)
For years Ján Šimún has been monitoring arsenic leaking into the Orava River from an area with three dumps, located just one kilometre from the town of Dolný Kubín. It is an emergency situation, according to experts. After he spoke about the poisoned water at the Dolný Kubín city council in June, the company responsible for one of the three dumps sued him.
The last straw for former city council member, Šimún was the information that the Environment Ministry, instead of immediately dealing with the contamination, is now deciding whether it will allow more trash to be dumped in the area.
“How can they deal with arsenic at the place, when another layer of the municipal solid waste should be dumped there?” Šimún told The Slovak Spectator.
The OFZ Company is responsible for one of the three dumps, but is currently not using it because it no longer produces construction waste. It recorded Šimún’s speech at the city council and sued him for libel, asking for €8,000.
“It is threatening not only me but also other activists,” Šimún says. “If we back down they will be allowed to do whatever they want.”
Šimún is lying and twisting facts, according to OFZ. The company, with revenues exceeding €118 million, claims that it wants to use the money to support ecological activities in the region.
“We could not remain inactive after the last fabricated accusation which he presented at the city council,” OFY spokesperson Ľuboš Schwarzbacher told The Slovak Spectator. “We have to defend ourselves.”
