A waste dump in Pezinok, the subject of a long-running dispute between locals and government authorities, is just a step from being granted construction approval.
On Wednesday, February 25, the dump was approved by the Bratislava-based environmental inspectorate, the Pravda daily wrote. However, town representatives – who oppose the dump, which is being built close to the town centre - and journalists have not been admitted to the site despite an expert hired by activists fighting the dump warning that the area is unsafe as a result of massive landslides over the weekend in which a worker was almost buried.
Pezinok locals have been protesting against the waste dump for more than a year. Its construction was approved in contravention of the town plan by a government office whose head was the owner of the land on which it was due to be built, wrote the Sme daily. The waste dump is located about 600 metres from the centre of the town, which is in western Slovakia. Pezinok locals fear health risks and the likelihood of bad odours from the dump, and warned that surrounding properties will lose their value. Pravda, Sme
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
