The town hall in Zličín disagrees with the design of the crematorium for animals

Prague - Prague's Zličín disagrees with the form of the animal crematorium. The local council is concerned that the facility is to be built in a populated area next to a park and a children's playground. They are also worried about odor and increased traffic. If the construction receives all necessary permits, the district intends to appeal to the European Court. The mayor, Marta Koropecká, told reporters today. The construction was presented by the company Benefit Development for the EIA proceedings, which assesses the impact on the environment.

The development project is named Memorial Park for Animals Kept in Hobby Breeding in Prague-Zličín. "It is an euphemistic name for an animal incinerator. It is located in a place of a park and city-wide greenery, where citizens gather and social events take place. Moreover, it would be in a protective zone of a water source, one of which is active and supplies residents, while the other is a backup that is to be included in the system in case of a crisis situation,” the mayor said.

The district is preparing a statement to be submitted within the construction proceedings. It must be submitted by March 8. In case the construction is approved, the local council intends to turn to the European Court. "It is not possible for someone to destroy the lives of nearly 10,000 people,” the mayor said. In the past, people have signed petitions against the construction, with about 6,500 signatures on the latest one.

According to the original plan, there were to be three incineration furnaces on the premises, a ceremonial hall, technical facilities, a 25-meter chimney, cooling facilities for one hundred dead animals, and a columbarium. Restaurants with an information center were also part of the plan. In February 2015, however, the authorities returned the documentation to the developer for revision. "It can basically be said that the garden restaurant and information center have disappeared from it. Otherwise, it remained as it was,” Koropecká said.

The council is also afraid of the odor that already troubles Zličín. According to the local authorities, the smell is coming directly to the housing estate from the animal feed production facility and from improperly connected sewage from Beroun. "At the incinerator, there is no guarantee that there will be no odor,” said councilor Pavel Kovařík.

Benefit Development wants to build the crematorium on private land near residential houses. It plans to incinerate 945 kilograms of dead animals per day.

An animal crematorium opened in mid-2015 in Běchovice. Unlike Zličín, the facility is located among industrial companies. In 2013, an animal crematorium that accepts orders opened in Prague's Strašnice. The cremation furnace is located in Zápy near Čelákovice.