Dzmitry Savich: We Use ‘Electoral Campaign’ To Close harmful Plant In Svetlahorsk

Who needed an enterprise which makes the residents of the town suffocate?

Many cities in Belarus are preparing to launch or are already operating production facilities that pose a threat to the environment, pollute the air and cause harm to human health. In Brest, this is the battery plant, in Svetlahorsk - the bleached pulp plant, in Mahiliou - Omsk-carbon, in Navapolatsk - the Polymir, and in Homel - the Gomeloboi and TsBK-Consult.

Eco-activists and residents are protesting against these enterprises. In Brest and Svetlahorsk, people gather in the central squares every Sunday and demand the closure of the plants, in other cities they collect signatures, file complaints with the court, and disseminate information about the threats posed by such manufacturing facilities.

Activist of the European Belarus civil campaign from Svetlahorsk Dzmitry Savich shared his experience of dealing with a harmful enterprise, with the telegram channel “Basta”:

- The environmental situation in our town is horrible. All the city-forming enterprises of the chemical industry that have long worked in Svetlahorsk, polluted the environment for decades. However, this didn’t seem enough, recently we had a bleached pulp plant. So far, it is undergoing commissioning, but thousands of residents are suffering from this already. People complain of nausea, poisoning, chemical burns. The air around the plant is terrible. Children feel sick, adults have a metallic taste in their mouths. But the plant has not yet reached full capacity. Young people are trying to leave the city. It seems that we were simply written off.

- For several months, every Sunday at 12:00, residents of Svetlahorsk have been gathering in the central square, protesting against the opening of the plant. How are such meetings held?

- This is a platform that brings together active residents. Today there are dozens of people, and tomorrow there may be several hundred of us. People understand that they are being deceived when top officials say that “the environmental situation is normal.” And then again, this intolerable smell! Even the fishermen will confirm to you that fish is no longer found in the Biarezina river. This government has only one goal: to fill own pockets at the expense of the population, but no one thinks about our health.

In addition, activists write to all kinds of authorities: ministries of nature and industry, the regional executive committee, file lawsuits in court.

More and more residents understand that if they do not leave, they will have to live next door to the factory. Yes, someone will say that new jobs are needed, but health is more important. People need to live, not die slowly.

- Will you take part in the “parliamentary campaign”?

- The Belarusian National Congress, which includes the European Belarus, recently announced its main goals: changing the government, ensuring decent labor for Belarusians in their homeland, and closing nuclear power plants and other dangerous enterprises. The latter is the most important for us, because the question is about our survival. Both the bleached pulp plant, and the enterprises in Brest and Homel pose a direct threat to human health and life. I'm not talking about nuclear power plants, during the construction of which glaring violations of technological standards were made. We will seek to close them, using the opportunities offered by the “election campaign”.

- Today you will again have a protest against the launch of the bleached pulp plant. What would you like to say to the residents of the town?

- We need to more actively fight against the arbitrariness of the authorities. In our case, we are not even talking about the rights that may seem abstract for some, but about health and life. If we are silent, Svetlahorsk will simply die out after a few decades.

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