News - Albania

Protests for Shushica continue

Vjosa Wild River National Park is under threat as construction works on Shushica persists for the water supply of the tourist coast! Despite relentless opposition from locals, activists, and scientists, the construction goes on. The fate of over 30 villages hangs in the balance, but our community's resolve is unbreakable. Find out more about the Shushica case and the local resistance in the video by Joshua David Lim:

Protest on the Albanian Shushica River: Vjosa National Park in danger

12 mayors and numerous other residents of the Shushica Valley and other regions of the Vjosa National Park, activists, lawyers and scientists gathered this morning in the village of Kuç on the banks of the Shushica River. They are protesting the plans of the government in Tirana to take the water from the Shushica and channel it to the Mediterranean

Study: Reforestation proposal for the Vjosa catchment

 04.10.2023

This study defines clear steps and locations to start an afforestation project in the Vjosa catchment. The authors propose ten pilot areas to start the afforestation. As there is no autochthonous planting material available on the market, it has to be grown from diaspores / mother plants from the region in a forest garden to be

Skavica mega dam: Albanian court to scrutinise special law for U.S. contractor Bechtel

 25.09.2023

Nature conservation and human rights organisations have secured an important first milestone in the fight against the planned 210 MW Skavica hydropower plant in the Albanian municipalities of Kukës and Dibër: a constitutional complaint submitted

Growing opposition to Albanian airport

 19.09.2023

Bern Convention calls on Albania to stop airport construction near Narta Lagoon. Project in Vjosa Delta endangers thousands of migratory birds. Conservation organisations filed lawsuits against destructive and illegal construction.

Major success: River Vjosa becomes National Park

At a formal ceremony in Tepelena this morning, Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama and his Minister of the Environment and Tourism Mirela Kumbaro declared the River Vjosa a Wild River National Park. As from today, the entire River Vjosa in Albania from its border with Greece to the Adriatic sea and its free flowing tributaries – a river system totalling more than 400 kilometres in length – have the very high level of protection.

Vjosa Wild River National Park: vision, roadmap, and feasibility study

 24.01.2023

The feasibility study is the result of six months of extensive fieldwork and in-depth analysis by a team of over 30 experts in areas such as eco-tourism, geomorphology, ecology, planning and management of protected areas, sustainable financing of national parks, legislation, and social and environmental impact assessment.

New study on the forest situation in the Vjosa basin

This pilot study provides a general overview of the forest situation in the Vjosa basin, discusses problems and defines areas where pilot reforestation projects are to be implemented soon.

BREAKING NEWS: Albanian PM Rama reacts – Kalivaç will not be built

 25.09.2020

In a reaction to the statement of Albanian President Ilir Meta, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced to the media today that he also is in favor of establishing a Vjosa National Park and that the Kalivaç dam has been rejected by the Minister for Environment. We highly welcome todays statement of Albania's PM Edi Ramas, that the Vjosa river will be saved and the Kalivaç dam will not be build. Following the PM’s message, this is the right time to start a dialogue about the future of the Vjosa.

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