Bern Convention confirms that the government of Novi Sad has failed to respect the law and environmental standards

The Bern Convention Bureau has officially confirmed that local authorities in Novi Sad violated national laws and international environmental conventions by ignoring obligations to protect Novi Sad’s natural habitats during the construction of the Šodroš Bridge, the NGO “World and Danube” has announced.

“The final verdict has not yet been delivered, but after three years of active appeals and four applications filed by the NGO “World and Danube”, it is now clear that all activities related to the construction of the fourth and fifth bridges were illegal or carried out with major irregularities,” the statement said.

The statement by the organisation’s president, Danijela Stojkovic Jovanovic, said that the Bern Congress Bureau, at a meeting from 8 to 10 April, had found, among other things, that the environmental impact study (EIS) had not taken into account the protected bird and amphibian species recorded so far in the area.

“The high level of corruption in most state institutions has led to wrong conclusions about the importance and vulnerability of this area and beyond,” Stojković Jovanović reported on the Bern Congress Bureau’s statements.

It was stated that the SPU study was published one year after the work started.

It is added that a number of national laws, including the Water Act, the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, the Planning and Construction Act, the Aarhus Convention and the Environmental Protection Act, which should have required the study to be carried out prior to the commencement of works, were not consulted.

Recall that Novi Sad was awarded the status of “Ramsar wetland country” in January 2025, but without a clear explanation of how further planned urbanisation will comply with environmental standards.

The statement says that the Berne Convention is now formally requesting clarification from the Ramsar Convention on the legal basis for this decision.

“This is more than suspicious for us and for everyone else, precisely because of the internationally known illegal activities,” the NGO “World and Danube” stresses in a statement.

Stojković Jovanović warned that the decision of the Berne Convention Bureau could have serious international implications for Serbia, as it confirms, she said, a disregard for environmental standards and a violation of international obligations.

Serbia may, among other things, lose its right to certain international funding for sustainable development and its status in the Ramsar Convention may change.

“European and global environmental organisations may take legal action against Serbia for non-compliance with its environmental obligations,” said Stojković Jovanović.

Almost all activities related to the construction of the bridge over the Šodroš River are fully consistent with the irregularities, disregard for the law and high level of corruption that took place during the reconstruction of the Novi Sad railway station, she assessed.

The Bern Convention, or the Council of Europe Convention on the Conservation of European Wild Fauna and Flora and Natural Habitats, is a binding international legal instrument in the field of nature protection, which Serbia ratified in 2007.

The Bern Convention covers all the natural heritage of the European continent, as well as some African countries./Beta/