MPs Approved MP's Inspection at Construction of Bratislava Bypass

Bratislava, May 20 (TASR) - Members of the parliamentary economic affairs committee approved on Monday a parliamentary inquiry on the Bratislava bypass, which is part of the construction of the D4 motorway and the R7 expressway, with the committee requiring Transport Minister Arpad Ersek (Most-Hid) to ensure that all relevant persons and respective documents are present, including representatives of water managers and the Environment Ministry, TASR learnt on Monday. The parliamentary economic affairs committee was convened by its chairperson Jana Kissova (Freedom and Solidarity/SaS) after, according to her, Ersek wasn't able to credibly explain and refute all the suspicions about contaminated soil in the embankments of the D4 motorway and the R7 expressway. "It'll be in the interest of us all to see these facts either confirmed or refuted," said Kissova, adding that the bypass is necessary, but it must be built in accordance with the current legislation and without endangering the environment. Members of the committee want to learn at the construction site who the technical representative of the state is and who supervises the entire construction. The parliamentary inquiry should take place between June 3 and June 17. According to a Transport Ministry statement as of Thursday (May 16), tests of soil in the embankments of the emerging Bratislava zero bypass did not confirm contamination that would endanger human health, however, an analysis showed that materials not complying with the building regulations were used. According to the ministry, in order to definitely confirm these results and determine the extent of the problem, it's necessary to carry out additional sampling and more tests. "We provided the analysis results to the police, who are continuing to look into the case and are receiving full co-operation from the Transport Ministry. Any suspicions of environmental pollution will thus be investigated from more sources than one and the public need not harbour any fears that contaminated material would be used in the construction," stated Transport Ministry spokesperson Karolina Ducka. The criticism was also joined by another opposition party OLaNO on Friday (May 17). Its leader Igor Matovic, however, does not consider an MP's inspection to be a sufficient measure and requires resignation of Minister Ersek. am/mcs