Croatian President Zoran Milanović has asked parliament to hold an extraordinary session over an illegal hazardous waste dump near Gospić, calling for its urgent remediation and greater state oversight after tests indicated contamination of groundwater.

The request follows growing concern over around 30,000 tonnes of hazardous waste illegally dumped at an industrial site in Gospić, in central Croatia's Lika-Senj county. The government has said it is preparing to remove the waste and export it because Croatia lacks a suitable facility for its disposal.

Milanović's request, submitted on August 18 to parliament speaker Gordan Jandroković, calls for the government to begin permanent remediation immediately and report to parliament within 15 days on measures taken and findings on groundwater pollution. Further reports would be required every 30 days.

The president also wants the government to meet representatives of local residents and civic groups within three days and provide regular public updates on the site.

Milanović cited an expert assessment by the Faculty of Geotechnics at the University of Zagreb, saying chemical and hydrogeological analyses, including tests for PFAS compounds, had found a local impact on groundwater quality. The assessment concluded the landfill was a likely source of PFAS migration into the underground aquifer.

"it can already be justifiably claimed that the harmful impact of illegal hazardous waste on groundwater and the environment is also harmful to the health of people in Gospić and Lika-Senj County," Milanović said.

The government has disputed suggestions that drinking water is unsafe. Environment Minister Marija Vučković said on August 17 that additional sampling and monitoring were under way and that water supplied for human consumption in Gospić and surrounding areas remained safe.

Authorities are seeking a company elsewhere in Europe to remove and dispose of the buried waste. Construction Minister Branko Bačić said the government had contacted about 70 companies capable of handling it, while a tender for the removal of waste dumped openly on the site is due to close on August 25.

The president also called for the appointment within 15 days of a new chief state inspector and an immediate inspection of all Croatian waste sites where there are reasonable grounds to suspect hazardous or illegally dumped material.

The State Inspectorate has been without a chief since the government dismissed Andrija Mikulić in November 2025. Mikulić was later arrested on suspicion of corruption linked to illegal waste disposal, allegations he denies.

Milanović said the absence of a permanent head was unacceptable given the discovery of other suspected illegal waste sites.

His intervention follows an August 17 meeting of the parliament's environmental committee that was interrupted without agreement on measures to accelerate the Gospić clean-up.

The government has said prosecutors and anti-corruption investigators are examining responsibility for the illegal dumping. Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Anušić has called for those responsible to face severe punishment, saying the offence "borders on terrorism”.