Podgorica, (MINA) – Montenegrin protected areas should be managed by public institutions rather than commercial companies, as their primary purpose is nature protection, which is an activity of public interest, said Zoran Mrdak, president of Parks Dinarides.

 

He said that they expect the new Law on Nature Protection, which has been in preparation for six years, to be adopted in the next month or two.

 

 

“It is important to stress that the protected areas management and we (Parks Dinarides) have been active over the past months, that the doors of the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Development of the North (MERS) were open for us and that the managers presented to Minister Damjan Culafic everything we believe can be improved in the draft law”, said Mrdak to the MINA News Agency.

 

He stressed the importance of clearly defining the legal status of protected areas management, adding that they should be managed by public institutions.

 

“Nature protection is an activity of public interest. Montenegro does not have a law on public institutions, but through a systemic law, such as the Nature Protection Law, as is the case regarding health or education, the protected areas management should also be entrusted to public institutions”, said Mrdak.

 

According to him, the advantages of establishing public institutions instead of commercial companies are significant.

 

Mrdak emphasized that the issue of zoning of protected areas needs to be better addressed in the Law.

 

“Each protected area has three zones. The first zone is a zone of strict protection, the second and third are zones of less or more resources use. We believe that the current regime proposed by the draft law unifies all protected areas”, said Mrdak, adding that this is one of the reasons why there is dissatisfaction among local communities.

 

As he stated, the issue of national parks should be a matter of national identity because Montenegro is an ecological state and a country of extraordinary natural values.

 

Speaking about the EU negotiations process, Mrdak said that the position of Minister Culafic and Montenegrin Chief Negotiator Predrag Zenovic is that Chapter 27 will be closed in the last quarter of this year, adding that the real work awaits Montenegro only when the EU accession agreement is signed.

 

“Then the possibilities for financing everything that we are adopting today through laws and strategies will become available. In my opinion, Montenegro can significantly improve only within ten years of joining the EU”, stated Mrdak and added that projects should be prepared now so that they are already ready for funding once the EU resources become available.