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Lukavačka Rijeka Landfill, Lukavac
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Lukavačka Rijeka Landfill

Above remediation value

Lukavac Landfill Site ID: BiH-FBIH-33 Report date: 2025-09-02

Note. This is a preliminary assessment. The general conclusion of the report is that the location requires further detailed analysis. The data shown is not a final risk determination.

Media tested

  • Subsoil
  • Sediment
  • Water

Summary

The non-sanitary municipal Lukavačka Rijeka landfill, also known as Potočari, sits within the boundaries of a former coal surface mine near Lukavac and has received municipal waste for decades although it is no longer permitted to. Preliminary testing revealed more serious contamination: in the deeper soil layer and in the sediment of a nearby channel, nickel reached the level indicating that cleanup is needed, and so did selenium in the deeper soil. The site has a leachate lagoon and a constructed-wetland treatment system that, according to the city, is not fully functional. The leachate sample nonetheless met the prescribed limits.

Assessment findings

Findings of concern

  • In the deeper soil layer and in the sediment of a nearby channel, nickel reached the level indicating that cleanup is needed — the most serious finding at the site.
  • In the deeper soil layer, selenium too reached that level indicating that cleanup is needed.
  • Cadmium and cobalt were above the level at which land is no longer considered clean in the deeper soil and in the sediment, and chromium in the sediment.
  • This is a non-sanitary dump within a former coal mine, with a leachate lagoon and a treatment system that is not fully functional, so leachate and runoff can carry contamination toward the shallow groundwater, the seasonal Lukavci stream and Lake Smoluća.

Positive findings

  • Oil-related pollutants were within limits in the soil and sediment.
  • Pollutants associated with combustion were within limits in the soil and sediment.
  • The leachate sample from the site met the applicable discharge limits.
  • Copper, lead, zinc and molybdenum were within limits in the soil and sediment, and selenium was within limits in the sediment.

Photo gallery

The project results have been submitted to the competent institutions as a basis for improving regulation and for strategic planning of further activities.

Legal basis

  • Decree on the conditions for the discharge of wastewater into the environment and public sewerage systems (Official Gazette of FBiH No. 26/20, 96/20, 01/24)
  • Rulebook on limit and remediation values of polluting, harmful and hazardous substances in soil (Official Gazette of RS No. 82/21)

Due to the absence of reference values for soil and sediment in the Federation of BiH, the Republika Srpska rulebook is applied as a reference framework to ensure methodological consistency between the entities.

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The Catalysing the Green Transition in Bosnia and Herzegovina Portfolio (GTP) is a joint initiative of the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, led by UNDP, and co-chaired by the UN Resident Coordinator and the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH, with the support and strategic partnership of Sweden and the Government of Switzerland. It brings together UN agencies, including FAO, ILO, UNECE, UNEP, UNODC and UN Women, along with national institutions and authorities at all levels, to drive the country’s green, inclusive, and sustainable transition across four key areas: decarbonization, depollution, biodiversity and nature, and circular economy.