WHILE DELIBLATO SANDS WAS BURNING: Authorities adopt law allowing construction on burned forest land!

Transparency Serbia and RERI informed the public that on August 31, 2026, the Serbian Parliament adopted amendments to the Planning and Construction Law, allowing construction on forest land where the forest has been destroyed or damaged by fire. The amendments were adopted in a joint procedure covering as many as 59 agenda items and without a prior public debate.

Among other things, according to the statement, the adopted amendments change Article 88 of the existing law, stipulating that forest land on which the forest has been damaged or destroyed by fire retains the purpose established by the planning document that it had before the fire occurred.

However, it is added, the following paragraph of the same article introduces an exception to this rule, providing that a change of purpose is possible if it is necessary to implement a project for which, in accordance with the law, the public interest has been established, or to construct public infrastructure facilities.

“Not only did the Ministry fail to organize a public debate on these amendments to the Law, but the provisions concerning the use of forest land were not even included in the original proposal of the Government of Serbia submitted to Parliament on August 7, 2026. It can only be indirectly concluded that the cited amendments were included in the final version of the amendments to the Law through an amendment proposed by the Parliamentary Committee on Spatial Planning, Transport, Infrastructure and Telecommunications at a session held on August 26, 2026. At that same session, the amendment received the approval of the relevant minister of the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, Aleksandra Sofronijević, and was unanimously adopted by the 12 members of the Committee who were present,” the two organizations explain.

They particularly point out that the website of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia did not make available the text of the amendment, its explanation, or any information as to why these amendments were not included in the original text of the proposed amendments to the Law, which concerned other issues related to capital projects (solar power plants, waste management and similar matters).

“All of this took place during the terrible and unprecedented fires that engulfed the largest sandy area in Europe — Deliblato Sands, which is an invaluable reservoir of biodiversity and represents a protected area of exceptional (Category I) and national importance, as well as a special nature reserve. The lack of transparency in the authorities’ handling of these legal amendments, instead of calming an alarmed and concerned public, creates room for new suspicions regarding the future of land affected by the fire,” they emphasize.

Namely, when claims emerged during the fires in the public discourse that the fire could be used to meet the needs of potential investors, the relevant ministers for environmental protection, Sara Pavkov, and energy, Dubravka Đedović Handanović, denied them.

“The adopted amendment seemingly protects burned forest land (in Deliblato Sands or anywhere else) from a change of purpose. However, at the same time, it significantly facilitates the procedure through which forest land could become construction land for a very broad range of projects that may be approved by the Commission of the Government of Serbia. Moreover, there is no obstacle to a proposal for the implementation of such projects appearing only after a catastrophic fire,” the statement warns.

Given the lack of transparency surrounding these legal amendments, the unavailability of an explanation, and the public concern, Transparency Serbia and RERI believe that it is necessary to initiate a new procedure in which all risks would be identified and eliminated.

“To begin with, the Ministry of Construction and the members of parliament who voted for this proposal would have to provide the public with a reasoned explanation for their decision, including a detailed explanation of the procedure that would have to be followed to change the purpose of forest land in the event that the forest was preserved and in the event that it burned down,” the statement says.

Transparency Serbia and RERI state that until a convincing explanation is presented and public consultations are organized to assess the motives, consequences and risks of these legal amendments, the National Assembly should urgently adopt additions that would postpone the implementation of the new legal provisions.

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