The official opening of the reconstructed and extended waste water treatment plant and newly-constructed sewerage network took place in Ljubuški on 13th July.
This important event is the result of the excellent partnership and cooperation established between the EU, BiH, FBiH, Ljubuški Municipality and the World Bank, in their efforts to improve water quality and contribute to a cleaner environment in Ljubuški Municipality.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of authorities from various levels of BiH government and representatives of international organisations.
In his opening remarks, Martin Schieder, Head of Operations Section for Economic Development, Natural Resources and Infrastructure in the EU Delegation to BiH, praised all of the partners in the project for their work and emphasised that this project will result in substantial reductions in the level of pollution discharged into the environment in this area.
“The European Union has developed high standards in the area of water management, including water and sanitation infrastructure development, and it therefore seeks to see the same from any country aspiring to apply for EU membership”, added Mr Schieder.
Nevenko Barbarić, Mayor of Ljubuški, pointed out the importance of this project to Ljubuški’s residents.
“The infrastructure built in this project is not only very important for the citizens of Ljubuški and the environment but it also opens the door for future investments in this sector and hopefully job creation”, concluded Mr Barbarić.
During the project, a waste water treatment plant (WWTP) was reconstructed, and its capacity increased from 5000 to 6000 PE, and preconditions for further extension to 12,000 PE have been also created. The total length of the newly constructed sewerage network is 15.2 km.
The project has also resulted in improved quality of the WWTP effluent, bringing it in line with EU and BiH standards, and increased efficiency of the WWTP operation from a previous 50-60% to 95%.
The construction of the new sewerage system in Ljubuški was funded by the EU to the amount of 2 million EUR from IPA 2010 grant funds, which was administered by the World Bank. The reconstruction and extension of the waste water treatment plant in Ljubuški was financed by Ljubuški Municipality, GEF funds and the BiH Federation Government to the total amount of approximately 1 million EUR. Both sub-projects were implemented under the auspices of the project “Neretva and Trebišnjica Management”, supported by the World Bank.
