Možemo MP Dušica Radojčić has called for maximum sentences for those responsible for the illegal dumping of hazardous waste in Gospić, where experts estimate 37,000 tons of waste were buried.
Dušica Radojčić, an MP from Možemo and chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Environmental and Nature Protection, has demanded that all those responsible for the illegal dumping of hazardous waste in Gospić receive the harshest prison sentences. She also highlighted the need for political accountability from the relevant institutions.
"There was no doubt that the soil and groundwater around the illegally dumped and buried hazardous waste site in Gospić were contaminated. It was enough to see the withered trees around the landfill, a chilling sight with a clear message about the impact of that waste on the environment," Radojčić told Zagreb.info.
According to findings by experts from the Faculty of Geotechnical Engineering, prepared at the request of USKOK, approximately 37,000 tons of waste have been buried and scattered in the Gospić area. Among it are residues from electronic waste processing, medical waste, plastics, and RDF. Experts have determined that this is ecotoxic waste that poses an immediate or long-term risk to the environment.
Extremely high concentrations of lead were also measured at the site, reaching 1,051 milligrams per kilogram of soil, which is ten times the permissible level. Real impacts on nature were also observed, such as the transfer of harmful substances to plants, the disappearance of vegetation over approximately 17,796 square meters, and the destruction and degradation of habitats.
At the center of the investigation is the married couple Josip and Monika Šincek. According to investigators, Josip Šincek is considered the main organizer of the entire scheme; he designed a system in which money was made from waste precisely by not properly disposing of it. His wife Monika, as USKOK suspects, was key in the business and family network through which deals were arranged, companies were managed, and field workers were coordinated.
The scheme worked by the Šinceks offering lower prices than competitors for waste disposal. Instead of expensive and proper treatment, waste brought to Croatia was crushed, covered with soil and gravel, or mixed with construction material. The difference between the charged disposal fee and the cheaper burial remained with them.
According to Europol estimates, the Šincek couple illegally earned around 4 million euros through the illegal disposal and burial of approximately 35,000 tons of hazardous waste. USKOK charges them with around 466,000 euros in direct illegal gains, solely through reduced tax liabilities and unlawful fees in Croatia.
The waste arrived in Croatia mainly from Italy, Slovenia, and Germany, with some medical waste also coming from Croatian hospitals. In Gospić, it was brought to the site of the former PPK Velebita, where silos, open areas, and surrounding land were used. When space ran out, part of the forest was also cut down.
Findings have shown high concentrations of hazardous PFAS compounds in groundwater downstream from the landfill, and the site represents an active source of spreading contaminated water into the environment. Although Gospić's water supply system is not known to be threatened based on available information, Možemo warns that the potential impact on other water supply systems that use groundwater downstream from the site should be urgently checked.
Part of the groundwater from the Lika karst basin naturally feeds springs in the Velebit foothills and on the islands, so the party is calling for targeted and continuous testing of potentially affected springs and systems. In June 2026, Možemo's Member of the European Parliament, Gordan Bosanac, sent seven residents from the Gospić area to Brussels for testing for the presence of PFAS compounds in their bodies. The results of the analyses will be known in September.
