PRIBOJ – Trucks and building machines are parked on a river dam in southwest Serbia but not for construction work.
Instead, huge cranes are being used to clear tons of garbage crammed at the foot of the power plant. Serbia and other Balkan nations are overwhelmed by communal waste after decades of neglect and lack of efficient waste-management policies in the countries aspiring to join the European Union.
Burning rubbish dumps can be seen from the roads, plastic bags are hanging from trees and islands of waste are floating down the region's rivers.
The problem usually comes into focus in winter, when swollen waters sweep over landfills, pushing the garbage toward hydropower dams.