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Bratislava-Schwechat Pipeline Possibly to Change Petrzalka's Land Use Plan
Wednesday 17 March 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, March 17 (TASR) - The planned construction of the oil pipeline set to be built between Bratislava and Schwechat, Austria might change the Land Use Plan of Bratislava-Petrzalka district, Petrzalka mayor Milan Ftacnik informed journalists at a press conference on Wednesday.
The original draft has planned for some part of the oil pipeline construction to take place in environmentally protected areas. Thus Ftacnik intends to meet with Bratislava Governor Andrej Durkovsky for further discussions. "I'd like to consult (with Durkovsky) whether he plans any changes of the Land Use Plan," said Ftacnik, adding that his own decision is the product of meeting with 'Nie Ropovodu cez Zitny Ostrov' (No to the oil pipeline through Zitny Ostrov) civic association representatives.
In the current Land Use Plan, the oil pipeline is supposed to go through protected areas. However, no protected areas existed in the vicinity when the original plan was drawn up a decade ago - hence, it was drafted with no such restrictions in place. "These days, it's clear that the area in question is protected even under law, so the pipeline shouldn't be included within the Land Use Plan," said Ftacnik.
According to the activists, Zitny Ostrov represents the biggest supply of drinking water in Central Europe. The purpose of their petition is to draw public attention to the fact that construction works in Zitny Ostrov might threaten the health of people. The activists have gathered 25,000 petition signatures so far, protesting against the planned pipeline route.
They promote a different path for the pipeline, one that leads around Bratislava through Male Karpaty.
The Economy Ministry will have the final say in the matter, with its decision to be announced about June 30, 2010.
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