Every heavy rainfall in some part of Bosnia and Herzegovina causes floods, often with great consequences for people and property.
Problems generally occur in the same places, and until the next flood, little or no attention is paid to the causes, or preventive action. In the coming days, meteorologists are announcing new large amounts of precipitation, and the question is whether we are ready for them.
At the beginning of this year, large floods were recorded along the course of the Drina river in the town of Karakaj. Locals are desperate because they have been repeating the same scenario for years. They call on the authorities to solve at least some of the problems.
“We have one 200 meters to connect from here to the Karakaj bridge, to the river Hoča to connect. We are asking the president, we are asking the state,” said Milisav Popović, a resident of the Karakaj settlement in Zvornik Municipality.
“This is the fourth flood for us so far. Here, it entered the neighbors’ house. We hope that it will not be a bigger disaster than it is,” said Slađan Garić, a resident of the Karakaj settlement in the Zvornik municipality.
They also have huge problems with the flooding of the Drina in Bijeljina and the surrounding settlements. Environmentalists warn about the human factor.
“Huge amounts of gravel that was illegally extracted in places that are not intended for it. The flows of those underground waters are changing, the flows of those above-ground Drina islands are changing, and this is changing every day,” explained Snežana Jagodić Vujić, president of the “Eko put” Association.
These are just some examples of the consequences of the relationship towards nature and the government towards citizens. Professor Nedim Suljić points out that each area of Bosnia and Herzegovina is specific to itself, and therefore the causes of floods.
“The fact is that we have very outdated drainage and sewage systems that have not been maintained for years, especially when it comes to storm sewers. We have very bad connections, blocked drainage systems, and on top of all that, we also have illegal logging. And to ourselves, to the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, not to throw waste on the banks of rivers, not to throw especially solid, solid, large waste, because that way we prevent the flow power, especially when a flood wave comes.” explained Nedim Suljić, an expert in the field of hydropower.
Professor Suljić points out the inadequate response of the authorities and their weak coordination at all levels as a key factor in solving all the mentioned causes of floods.
“The essence of everything in our country is that there is no state ministry for water management, but it is reduced to entity levels. We have water laws in both entities that are more or less similar. However, neither watercourses nor floods know any natural or administrative boundaries between municipalities and entities, and this is where the basic problem lies,” said Suljić.
If the politicians, as well as the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, do not realize their own responsibility, it is certain that the scenarios from previous years, when it comes to floods in BiH, will be repeated, he writes. BHRT.
