The Environmental Protection and Energy Ministry will issue the necessary permits and the necessary works will be stepped up to connect the two water supply systems, Plenkovic said after a meeting of the Slavonski Brod and Brod-Posavina County civil protection, convened over the pollution of the town's water supply plant.
The two water supply systems are expected to be connected in 10 to 15 days. Plenkovic said about 150 metres of infrastructure had to be built to connect the Sikirevci and Slavonski Brod water supply systems.
He thanked all the services that were doing their best in handling the situation in the Slavonski Brod area, saying the ecological incident would be examined in detail.
The people of Slavonski Brod and the surrounding municipalities who get water from the local supply plant were left without drinking water today as it was established that it is polluted with hydrocarbons and cannot be used even after being boiled.
Mayor Mirko Duspara has linked the water pollution to Wednesday's oil product leakage during the testing of a pipeline between the oil refinery in Bosanski Brod, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Slobodnica location.
The testing was done by the Crodux oil product company, which said today the water pollution in Slavonski Brod could not be linked to the spilling of 150-200 liters of gasoline during the pipeline testing because the ecological incident occurred at Slobodnica, which is 2.8-5 km from the eastern town's water supply plant. Duspara said today he had pressed charges against the company and that it was up to the police to establish what happened.
Based on expert analysis so far, it has been concluded the water should not be used for drinking or cooking at the moment, but can be used for personal hygiene, Plenkovic said after the meeting, adding that the water analysis would continue in Osijek and Zagreb.
The civil defence meeting was attended by Defence Minister Damir Krsticevic, Environmental Protection and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric, Health Minister Milan Kujundzic and Agriculture Minister Tomislav Tolusic.
Tank trucks from the commodity stockpiles have been bringing water to the people of Slavonski Brod today and Plenkovic said the army would deliver another six or seven. Drinking water will be systematically delivered as long as necessary until clean and drinking water is ensured through the supply system, he added.
Plenkovic said the government delegation was informed of the pollution of the Jelas water supply plant and that they would wait for the expert findings of a probe into the causes.
He went on to say that the works on the gas pipeline were a result of a government arrangement with Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Bosanski Brod refinery. Supplying the refinery with gas fuel is expected to step up its modernisation and prevent air pollution in Slavonski Brod, which is across the Sava river from the refinery.
Plenkovic said there were "two fundamental tasks" at the moment, resolving the drinking water situation and then finding a comprehensive solution to prevent air pollution. He asked the local population to be patient and understanding, regretting that there was no drinking water on the eve of Easter and saying that all the relevant services will make every effort to resolve the problem quickly and in a sustainable and systematic fashion.
Asked by the press why should people believe him given that air in Slavonski Brod has been polluted for years, Plenkovic said his was the first government that had found a lasting solution by signing a memorandum with the Bosnian side "because we are concerned about the health of our fellow citizens in Slavonski Brod."
Reporters reminded him that Russia's ambassador to Croatia had said the project to supply the Bosanski Brod refinery with gas might not be carried out. "Some other decisions relating to the wider context of the relations with the Russian Federation have nothing to do with this agreement that was reached earlier. It is firm, essential and clear, and it will be carried out," he said.
Asked to comment on Crodux's denial of any responsibility for the water pollution, Plenkovic said it was undeniable that an ecological incident had occurred outside Slavonski Brod and that it was necessary to investigate the cause of the pollution of the water wells at the Jelas plant. He said that at this time no one could confirm that there was a connection and that one should wait for the findings of additional water analyses.
Minister says Slavonski Brod residents will have lower water bills
Environmental Protection and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric said on Saturday the Hrvatska Vode water utility would start connecting the Slavonski Brod and Sikirevci water supply systems as of Tuesday and that the people of Slavonski Brod would have lower water bills.
Speaking to the press after a meeting of the Slavonski Brod and Brod-Posavina County civil protection teams, convened over the pollution of the town's water supply plant, Coric said the water bills would be lower "first and foremost because of the fact that they won't have drinking water for some time."
He confirmed Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic's announcement that the Slavonski Brod and Sikirevci water supply systems, distant 150 metres, would be connected in 15 days.
He said the control of water quality in the wells of the Slavonski Brod supply plant would continue, after which it would be decided what to do about them.
"If their future isn't bright, further wells will be immediately drilled at the Sikirevci water supply plant, which has some of the best water in Croatia", he said, adding that permanent supply of Slavonski Brod with water from the Sikirevci plant would be ensured by the summer.
Asked by the press what had been done about the spilling of oil products from a nearby pipeline, Coric said inspectors immediately ordered a clean-up and established that there was no more spilling along the pipeline.
The Slavonski Brod city authorities said the water supply system would not be shut down and that the water could be used for personal hygiene. They also asked the Croatian Institute for Toxicology and Antidoping about the effect of the hydrocarbons discovered in the local water on people's health.
The Institute said the consumption of water with such concentrations was unlikely to affect people's health over such a short period of exposure, but that the water should not be drunk or consumed even if boiled.
The Defence Ministry said later in the day that six tank trucks with drinking water had been sent to Slavonski Brod and that the army was helping the people.
Text: Hina