A campaign group named "Gospić is our home" has been formed by residents of Gospić, a town in central Croatia, to protest against the illegal dumping of waste. Between 2022 and 2024, an estimated 35,000 tonnes of waste, some of it hazardous, was illegally abandoned and buried at several sites in the town, including one 50 metres from resident Željka Šikić's home.
Residents documented lorries transporting waste to a nearby industrial site, an activity they say went largely unnoticed by local authorities. A report from the Croatian Institute of Public Health revealed the detection of Pfas "forever chemicals" in groundwater samples and elevated concentrations of copper and lead in the soil near the site. Pfas are synthetic chemicals linked to serious health conditions.
In February 2025, 13 people were arrested on suspicion of being part of an environmental criminal network involved in the dumping. The main suspects, two Croatian nationals, were believed to have orchestrated the illegal import of hazardous waste from Italy, Slovenia and Germany, generating an estimated €4m (£3.4m) in profit. Despite these arrests, the waste site remains.
Frustration over the lack of action led to the formation of the "Gospić is our home" movement. The campaign has gained national attention, with other affected communities reportedly contacting the group. On 5 September, tens of thousands of people, estimated at upwards of 40,000, marched through Zagreb to protest the issue.
The group is demanding a comprehensive remediation of the site, urgent removal of the buried waste, and the inclusion of all known waste hotspots in Croatia in a national waste strategy. While the government has opened two public procurement procedures for waste removal, the group plans to protest at the European parliament in Brussels, citing a lack of clear action and deadlines.