In 2013, the European Commission-backed Energy Community backed a series of projects of hydro-power plants and coal plants for the production of electricity in the candidates countries (known as Projects of Energy Community Interest (PECI)). If one looks into projects' details, it becomes clear how the EU-backed body has prioritized projects that directly conflict with EU goals. According to Bankwatch, "The selected 'Projects of Energy Community Interest' will be fast-tracked and prioritized for financing over the coming years, in particular by the EBRD and EIB. Yet several of the projects are aimed at exporting electricity rather than meeting local needs, while others will perpetuate the region's addiction to lignite power." [1] The construction of the HPP Dabar implies rerouting of the underground water from the catchment basins of the River Neretva to the basin of river Trebišnica in order to fill the reservoir.

This represents a great threat to the Hutovo Blato Nature Park, one of the largest Ramsar habitats (7400 ha) of migratory birds in the Balkans, which could dry up. It will also affect the Nature Park Neretva Delta in Croatia as well as reservoirs of fresh drinkable water and vast agricultural lands in lower Neretva valley, both in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia.

Moreover, the government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity has unveiled plans to build three more hydroelectric power plants with large dams (as over 150.5 meters in height) upstream from the existing plants, beginning with HPP Glavatičevo nearby Glavatičevo village, then going even more upstream HPP Bjelimići and HPP Ljubuča located near the villages with a same names [2]. The WWF International and its Bosnian branch together with local environmental and ecological NGO and scientists actively oppose this project. The construction of HPP Dabar started in 2013 and was announced to be completed in 2016. However, only the access roads were built in 2015. In December 2015, the Government of Republic of Srpska and China International Water & Electric Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding for construction of HPP Dabar. The Federal Ministry of Ecology and Tourism of B&H demanded judicial revision of the approval decision of EIA study for HPP Dabar issued by the Ministry of Physical Planning Civil Engineering and Ecology of RS. In 2016, the Supreme Court of RS confirmed the legality of such decision. The HPP Dabar construction is ongoing but at slower pace than expected. 

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