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20 clusters · 55 sources · 94 days · First seen · Last updated

Categories: INTERNATIONAL · HEALTH · POLITICS · BUSINESS · CRIME

Central European waste management disputes

Entities: Republic of Croatia · Udbina · Andrija Mikulić · Davor Božinović · Gospić

Overview

The waste‑management crisis that followed the May 2026 emergencies in Croatia continues to shape policy across the region. In Pula, overflowing containers block streets, while a water‑quality failure in Karlovac and reports of roughly one million tonnes of hazardous waste dumped in Lika highlight ongoing illegal disposal problems.

In the Lika region, the situation has escalated following investigations in Gospić. Authorities have identified approximately 37,000 tons of mixed waste, including medical and electronic refuse. Soil and groundwater analyses by the Faculty of Geotechnics have detected high concentrations of heavy metals—such as lead, copper, and antimony—as well as PFAS "forever chemicals." Further allegations have surfaced regarding a second illegal waste site on state-owned land in Udbina. This has triggered political tension, with Most party leaders accusing the government of criminal links and criticizing the slow pace of remediation, while local officials warn of potential protests in Zagreb.

Bosnia‑Herzegovina has lodged formal complaints against Croatia’s plan to store low‑ and intermediate‑level radioactive waste on Trgovska Gora, prompting a Geneva hearing and civil-society protests led by activists such as Mario Crnković.

In Slovenia, the Ljubljana municipal council debates a €430 million waste‑to‑energy incinerator. Czech towns are weighing post‑2030 waste‑disposal options, and Prague has approved a major ZEPO modernization. Balkan sites continue to draw health alerts, including a former swimming‑complex dump in Mostar and the Red Mud pond in Montenegro. Parallel health monitoring shows low microplastic levels in Croatian drinking water and continued warnings about bacterial contamination in reusable containers.

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.

Timeline

  1. about 10 hours ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 17 sources
    Croatia illegal waste crisis: Hazardous dumping in Gospić and Udbina

    Illegal hazardous waste dumping in Gospić and Udbina has sparked political outcry and investigations into potential groundwater contamination and institutional corruption in Croatia.

  2. 17 days ago

    [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Croatia halts illegal waste dumping in Mičevec and Lički Osik

    Croatian inspectors stopped illegal construction waste dumping in Mičevec and investigated hazardous waste alleged in Lički Osik, including PFAS and cyanide, prompting calls for cleanup and possible criminal on

  3. 21 days ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    Czech courts review hazardous‑waste incinerator and wind‑farm disputes

    Czech courts are reviewing two environmental disputes: the Supreme Administrative Court will hear AVE CZ’s appeal over a halted hazardous‑waste incinerator in Rybitví, while the Constitutional Court has undone

  4. 21 days ago

    [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Croatia reports low microplastic levels in drinking water and links to heart attacks

    Croatia's water monitoring shows low microplastic levels, while a study links blood microplastics to heart attacks in most patients.

  5. 23 days ago

    [HEALTH] 3 sources
    Reusable plastic bottles and shopping bags can harbor bacteria, experts warn in Croatia

    Experts warn that reusing PET water bottles and unwashed shopping bags can spread harmful bacteria; regular washing and proper reusable containers are advised.

  6. 24 days ago

    [HEALTH] 6 sources
    Croatia Reports Low Microplastic Levels in Drinking Water

    Croatia’s Institute for Water reports an average of 0.144 microplastic particles per litre in drinking water, a level comparable to or lower than European averages, and notes a 94.7% reduction during treatment.

  7. 29 days ago

    [BUSINESS] 2 sources
    Czech Opatovice Power Plant Secures Permit for Waste‑to‑Energy Facility

    Czech authorities have granted the Opatovice power plant final permits for a CZK 7 bn waste‑to‑energy plant at Čeperka, slated for 2029‑30, funded 60 % by the Modernisation Fund and opposed by local referendums

  8. about 1 month ago

    [HEALTH] 4 sources
    Croatia confronts dangerous gas leaks and growing plastic waste

    Greenpeace finds high methane and toxic gas levels near Croatian gas sites, urging stricter EU rules, while a fish in the Adriatic was found with a plastic bottle, underscoring Croatia’s plastic waste problem.

  9. about 1 month ago

    [CRIME] 4 sources
    Croatia’s Draganić Forest Site Reveals 40 Tons of Hazardous Waste Barrels

    Hundreds of barrels with paint‑lacquer sludge, totalling about 40 tons, were found in a Draganić forest, prompting police and inspectors to remove them and investigate the illegal dumping.

  10. about 1 month ago

    [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Bosnia and Croatia waste incidents raise food safety and environmental health alerts

    Fire at Bosnia’s Uborak dump and mysterious barrels near Karlovac, Croatia, trigger food‑safety and environmental warnings over possible contamination.

  11. about 2 months ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    Czech municipalities dispute waste incinerator projects

    Litvínov rejects a hazardous‑waste incinerator while Prague invests 850 million CZK to modernise its ZEVO plant, highlighting Czech debates over waste‑management policies.

  12. about 2 months ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 2 sources
    Litter Accumulation Plagues Široki Brijeg and Poklonci Recreation Areas

    Street waste in Široki Brijeg and litter on Montenegro’s Poklonci lakeside reveal persistent Balkan waste‑management problems and calls for stronger enforcement.

  13. about 2 months ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 3 sources
    Mario Crnković vows to block nuclear waste depot on Bosnia‑Croatia border

    Mario Crnković will join a Zagreb round‑table to oppose a proposed nuclear‑waste site at Trgovska Gora on the Bosnia‑Croatia border, citing legal, environmental and health concerns.

  14. about 2 months ago

    [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Balkans waste sites spark health alerts in Bosnia and Montenegro

    Waste sites in Vrapčići (Bosnia) and Zeta (Montenegro) raise health concerns, prompting inspections, remediation plans and debated government funding.

  15. about 2 months ago

    [BUSINESS] 3 sources
    Hazardous‑waste incinerator plan near Litvínov, Czech Republic

    A hazardous‑waste incinerator plan near Litvínov, Czech Republic, proposes a 50k‑tonne/year plant to power‑generate from waste, with public comment open until 8 July; former rail chief Petr Žaluda is linked to

  16. 2 months ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    Bosnia‑Herzegovina challenges Croatia over planned radioactive waste storage at Trgovska Gora

    Bosnia‑Herzegovina files legal challenges to stop Croatia’s planned radioactive waste storage at Trgovska Gora, citing risks to 250,000 residents and seeking a temporary halt via the ESPO Committee.

  17. 2 months ago

    [BUSINESS] 3 sources
    Czech towns weigh waste disposal sites and heat‑network plans

    Strakonice explores post‑2030 waste options, including a new landfill, while Czech experts discuss municipal heat networks as a path to low‑emission heating.

  18. 2 months ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    Ljubljana waste incinerator plan sparks health and environmental controversy

    Ljubljana's proposed €430 million waste incinerator faces opposition over health risks, lack of impact studies, and concerns it may lock the city into a costly, polluting energy system.

  19. 3 months ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 5 sources
    Bosnia‑Herzegovina challenges Croatia over Trgovska Gora radioactive waste storage at Geneva hearing

    Bosnia‑Herzegovina contests Croatia’s plan to store radioactive waste on Trgovska Gora, bringing the dispute before the Espoo Committee in Geneva.

  20. 3 months ago

    [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Croatia faces mounting waste problems in Pula and Karlovac‑Lika regions

    Waste piles block Pula streets while hazardous waste and polluted water plague Karlovac and Lika.

Sources

24sata.hr · 24ur.com · 6yka.com · aktuelno.me · bedaromano.blog.ilsole24ore.com · capital.ba · dalmacijadanas.hr · dan.co.me · dnevnik.ba · dnevno.hr · dulist.hr · edgesports.com · ekolist.cz · fns.org · glas-slavonije.hr · glasistre.hr · gyereketet.hu · hip.ba · iDnes.cz · impulsportal.net · index.hr · jcted.cz · kronikevg.com · likaclub.eu · litera.lt · m.24sata.hr · metro.cz · metropolitan.si · monitor.hr · mostecky.denik.cz · n1info.hr · narod.hr · nova.rs · novilist.hr · oenergetice.cz · officetourism.hu · opavsky.denik.cz · oslobodjenje.ba · otvoreno.ba · politika.rs · poslovni.hr · prigorski.hr · radio.ognjisce.si · sarajevo-x.com · seznamzpravy.cz · telegram.hr · tportal.hr · tvsa.ba

This summary has been updated 2 times: see revision history