The World Bank has made public the details of a new project worth $80 million designed to clear up Albanian coast and waterways of pollution while promoting a circular approach to their protection, which will include the Vjosa River, which in March was granted the status of National Park.
The Clean and Sustainable Environment for a Blue Sea (CARE4BlueSea) project will last six years and funds will be divided into several components focusing on the southern coast and the Vjosa.
“The Ionian coastline and the southern interior that includes the Vjosa River offer an attractive proposition of touristic value in terms of pristine coastlines, rivers, mountains, protected areas and cultural heritage. However, for the tourism product to remain attractive in terms of providing ‘blue seas’ and ‘clean rivers’, public services such as waste management and sewage treatment must be provided to help preserve the quality of the region’s assets,” a government statement said.
The project will apply an integrated approach to investments in Solid Waste Management, taking into account the principles of the circular economy. This includes better solid waste management at a municipal level and changes of behavior with the aim of moving towards improved methods.
As for the Vjosa River, “this component will support activities to reduce the negative impacts of pollution from sources of untreated municipal wastewater and stormwater runoff as well as pollution from non-defined points that pose significant threats to aquatic ecosystems and the environment.”
The interventions proposed within this component will help the Albanian government in achieving the objective 6.3 of the SDGs, to “improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing the release of hazardous chemicals and materials, by halving in 2030 the proportion of untreated wastewater and significant increases in recycling and safe reuse globally.”
All investments will take into account the risks associated with climate change to ensure the climate resilience of the infrastructure.
The Vjosa River, dubbed “Europe’s last wild river” stretches from Greece, through Albania and into the Ionian Sea. Considered a key environment for flora and fauna species as well as having significant value to the communities that live along its banks, it was subject to a years-long international campaign to see it awarded the status of National Park.
Earlier this year, the government, following pressure from international and local NGOs, the brand Patagonia, and even Hollywood actor Leonardo di Caprio, granted the status, protecting it from hydropower plants and development, while laying down a strategy to make it a center of sustainable and community-led tourism.
