Civil Organisations File Lawsuit with Court Regarding Malinec Power Plant

Bratislava, 17 April (TASR) - The civil society organisations Slatinka Association, Klima Fokus, and Via Iuris have filed a lawsuit with the administrative court regarding the Malinec-Latky pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant, with the reason being a violation of the public interest in environmental protection by the Environment Ministry and the government in approving the power plant as a major investment, TASR was told by Via Iuris on Friday. "We consider it to be a mockery that a decision on a project of this magnitude, which threatens the drinking water supply for 63,000 people, was made in a completely non-transparent manner and in violation of the law. Declaring the power plant a significant investment without demonstrating its benefits and thereby immediately blocking the property of people in the region is unacceptable and can be called state arbitrariness," stated representatives of the organisations. The complainants are seeking to overturn the government's resolution, as well as the subsequent certificate issued by the Environment Ministry to the water management authorities stating that the hydroelectric power plant is a significant investment. On the day the resolution was issued, water management authorities acquired a pre-emptive right on the affected land. According to the lawsuit, the ministry and the government acted in violation of the law on significant investments, as they failed to meet the basic legal requirements and didn't demonstrate the existence of a public interest in the implementation of this project. am