Fees paid by companies reduced, calculation of eco fees to change - Polluter pays principle to be implemented

At the initiative of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia and companies from the industry sector, the Government of Serbia has adopted a regulation on the criteria for defining activities which affect the environment per the amount of pollution, which marks the first push for the “polluter pays” model in Serbia.

As the CCIS says, this model entails the calculation of the compensation by the actual amount of the pollution made, not as a percentage of the income.

The estimate is that around RSD 2 billion will be saved annually this way.

– This regulation is very useful for companies, citizens and the community. It introduces the most important principles for companies' operations, predictability, reduction of waste, care for the local community – says Sinisa Mitrovic, the head of the Circular Economy Department at the CCIS.

As he says, everyone will benefit from the regulation, as the money will be centralized and put into improving the quality of life in the local community.

– Companies and future investors will be able to calculate their financial obligations with precision and invest more in green technologies – Mitrovic explains.

The high environmental fees that local self-governments implemented in line with the Law on Fees for the Use of Public Goods were one of the key problems for companies.

The fee for the protection and the improvement of the living environment used to be up to 0.4% of the annual income, which was a high expense for companies.

In order to solve this problem, the CCIS was addressed by companies from the industry sector, aiming to come up with a new model of calculating the fee.

The internal team formed at the initiative of the CCIS proposed for the calculation to be based exclusively on the actual pollution made, in line with the “polluter pays” principle and sent the initiative to the Ministry of Environmental Protection.

At the session of April 18, the Government of Serbia adopted the said regulation, keeping all the key requests from the CCIS initiative, the Chamber says in its press release.

Privredna komora Srbije

Vlada Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo zaštite životne sredine Republike Srbije

Siniša Mitrović

environmental fee

polluter pays principle

ecology

pollution