The environmental crisis in the city of Durres, in regards to the mismanagement of waste disposal, has been a direct consequence of the government’s actions.
A series of unclear actions undertaken by the government in recent years, left Durres covered in waste, in the middle of the tourist season.
In January, the government made the decision to shut down the only landfill in the city found in the neighborhood of Spitalla, which is 6 km away from the city, in order to start work on the construction of a park costing 15 million euros, to be built at this same location.
With the closure of Spitalla, the city that produced around 207 tons of waste a day, was left with no designated space, for waste disposal.
Time and time again, residents of Durres have expressed their indignation regarding the situation that has emerged in their city.
With waste found on the streets, in the middle of the tourist season, the Municipality of Durres declared a state of environmental emergency, on June 11th 2020.
In order to deal with the issue of waste management, a temporary yet unclear agreement was reached, which foresaw the disposal of Durres’s waste, in the landfill of Sharra. The deadline given to the municipality by the company in question, to find a solution regarding Durres’s waste problem, is July 15th.
The private company confirmed for Euronews Albania that the disposal of waste in Sharra, is currently being conducted free of charge.
With the aim of alleviating the deteriorating situation, on September 1st 2020, the Municipality proposed a set of 3 possible alternatives to the waste management problem in their city, to the central government. Two of them included treating them in Durres, by building a landfill in Sukth at a cost of 11 million euros, or in Gjepalaj, at a cost of 5.2 million euros. The third alternative was sending them in Sharra’s incinerator, but the cost for that would reach a staggering 50 million euros.
The government ignored all of these proposals, didn’t respond to any of them but ordered a new study through the National Agency of Water Supply Canalizations and Waste Infrastructure. This proposal included 3 scenarios and this time around, the management of waste in Durres didn’t cost 5 or 11 million euros, but a whopping 110 million euros for 15 years.
The two other alternatives were: sending them in Sharra at the cost of 51 million euros for 15 years, or recycling them at a cost of 72 million euros.
Under these circumstances, the only solution became compulsory. Through its proposal, the central government demanded that the Municipal Council of Durres accept their proposal to send the waste to Sharra, at a cost of 51 million euros.
However, even though this option, which was proposed by the government and accepted by the Municipal Council, the company Integrated Energy BV SPK Shpk, confirmed for Euronews Albania that none of the two public institutions hasn’t taken any steps in providing a solution to the current situation.
Integrated Energy said the following, “We inform you that to date, we haven’t see any official reaction by the Municipality or other government authorities, in regards to the finalization of an agreement on the disposal of waste. In any case, we are open to proceed with an agreement between the involved parties”.
The cost of 51 million euros, proposed by the government’s study, includes the investment and tariffs for the gate weighing 40.57 tons. However, it is not clear how this figure was estimated, seeing that the company Integrated Energy denied to have been informed regarding this tariff.
“In regards to your question on the cost of the gate, for the waste of Durres, amounting to 40.57 euro/ton, we inform you that we have not been made aware of any such tariff, nor do we know where or how it has been achieved,” said Integrated Energy.
Consequently, the Municipal Council has chosen a tariff suggested by the government, but not negotiated with the company.
In addition, this tariff is around 140% higher than the 29 euros/ton that the Municipality of Tirana pays for this same service.
In regards to the tariff of 40.57 euros/ton, we have asked the National Agency of Water Supply Canalizations and Waste Infrastructure, the Ministry of the Environment and the Municipality of Durres, who have yet to give us an official response.
It’s a fact, that the incinerator has received the waste at 29 euros/ton, even though the only operation that is being conducted at this time is the burial of waste, not their incineration because the incinerator hasn’t been constructed yet.
To date, the value of the transactions to the company that is also expected to take over the service of waste management in Durres, is 32 million euros.
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