The city of Gospić continues not to revoke the building permit for the Lithium Plant, even though the deadline for its cancellation expires at the beginning of December. After that, the issue becomes moot due to statute of limitations. The citizens' initiative "Gospić is our home" has been seeking an answer since March, while mayor Darko Milinović has avoided responding for months.
Instead of an answer, Milinović accuses members of the initiative of inciting violence against him personally. The initiative rejects this and states that violence, threats and insults have never been part of their activities. They condemn calls for violence and abuse, regardless of who they are directed at, and emphasise that members of the initiative do not write, share or support offensive messages.
On social media, Milinović attacks the initiative and its members by name with accusations and slander, insinuating their connection to those who brought waste to Gospić. The latest attack followed the initiative's warning that the investor had built a liquefied gas tank within the plant's perimeter, which was not provided for in the disputed building permit. The initiative states that an investor building outside the permit is not the subject of the mayor's posts, but rather citizens pointing out illegality.
The initiative is requesting a written answer on whether the city will revoke the building permit. The party Javno dobro (Public Good) also raised the same question, sending an inquiry to the City Administration asking why the permit has not yet been cancelled. Head of the Department for Spatial Planning Ivana Fabijan replied that the decision on cancellation is in progress, in cooperation with the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and State Property and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition. She also noted that the plant cannot start operating because it does not have a use permit, which is within the city's jurisdiction.
Javno dobro responded with a new letter, stating that the building permit was also within the city's jurisdiction and was therefore issued, meaning that the fact that the City Office issues the use permit does not guarantee the legality of the decision in advance. They also ask why the head of the department sent a letter to the Ministry of Spatial Planning requesting a decision from them. They note that the object was incorrectly classified as 2b, that the Ministry of Environmental Protection cancelled the decisions on which the building permit issued by the city was based, and that it is illegal to "legalise" a permit by subsequently preparing an environmental study when the Spatial Planning and Construction Act prescribes a prior one.
Javno dobro believes that the city's administrative department was aware of the terms of the sale of the land for the plant (parcel 2509/24) sold by the city of Gospić. The investor selected as the most favourable clearly stated that they were building a plant falling under the chemical industry and specifically mentioned lithium. They conclude that there was no oversight but a huge failure in the city administration, and perhaps intentional, as seen from the object's classification which does not require an environmental impact assessment. The initiative deserves credit for the Croatian public learning about the case in Gospić, where thousands of tonnes of hazardous waste were illegally dumped.
