Agriculture holds the backbone of society and ensures the sustenance of communities globally. It is with this in mind that we stand against the multinational company Rio Tinto and their proposed plans to exploit agricultural lands for lithium extraction in Serbia. This act poses a serious threat not only to Serbian lands, but also to multiple countries such as Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria as contamination can potentially flow down from rivers Jadar, Drina, Sava, all the way to Danube, and eventually to the Black Sea.

The proposed lithium extraction will undeniably cause unprecedented pollution and significant harm to the surrounding ecosystems. The nonexistent boundary of water means that the risk of contamination is high, especially as fish and other aquatic wildlife from Danube could become polluted and further spread the pollution all the way to the Black Sea. This would detrimentally harm the marine ecosystems and the livelihoods of local fishers and communities around these bodies of water.

Given that the Danube starts from Germany and goes through seven countries, any ecological disruption caused by toxic spills would ripple across Europe, affecting millions of people. This would be a gross violation of environmental laws and the rights of people to a clean and safe environment.

To prevent an ecological disaster, it is of utmost importance that we curb the destructive activities of multinational corporations like Rio Tinto in mining and extraction industries, which up until now, have been conducted at the expense of our environment and biodiversity.

Join us in our fight against this life-threatening issue. Sign this petition and let us tell Rio Tinto and other companies that our agricultural lands, our rivers, our seas, and our lives matter. Let's protect our environment, our wildlife, and in doing so, our future. Sign today.