A Patagonia Europe poll showed that 94% of Albanians support the Vjosa being designated as a National Park and therefore protected from the construction of hydropower plants.
In an interview with Exit, CEO of Patagonia Ryan Gellert said that hydropower is not green, is not sustainable, and contributes to the extinction of flora and fauna and the displacement of humans.
He added that the concept of HPPs being environmentally friendly is outdated and “the negatives outweigh the benefits 100%.”
In April 2017, the winners of the tender for the Pocem hydropower plant were announced. They were two Turkish companies, with no experience in the field of energy and little in the way of capacity. Everything about the project was done in a non-transparent and arbitrary way by the government.
In 2016, the three environmental organizations EcoAlbania, Riverwatch, and EuroNatur, and 38 activist citizens sued the government for the construction of the Pocem hydropower plant in Vjosa in the Administrative Court.
The European Commission has repeatedly expressed its opposition to the construction of hydropower plants.
The EP adopted in April 2016, a resolution on Albania, which talks, among other things, about the destruction of national parks by hydropower plants.
In September 2020, Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote that HPPs in Vjosa would not be built. Three months later, the National Council of the Territory (KKT), chaired by him, approved the new boundaries of the protected areas. The decision paved the way for the construction of HPPs in Poçem and Kalivaç despite his promise. They have not been constructed yet as the cases are still in court.
Patagonia has called on the government to lead the way globally in fighting back against hydropower and declaring the Vjosa as a national park. They said this is a chance for them to leave a unique legacy and set an outstanding example to the rest of the world.
So far, the government has not responded to Patagonia or the other organizations.
But the construction of the plants on the Vjosa, will also come at a significant financial cost to the country. It’s estimated they will cost some EUR 500 million while bringing little in the way of return.
Currently on the Vjosa, eight dams are planned along with 23 small HPPs. The large dams of Pocem and Kalivac however will create significant flooding in the surrounding area, risking 140 protected and 40 endangered species and potentially changing the course of the Vjosa forever. It will also have a significant impact on the economic activity of the area and the tourist potential.
In the ecosystem of the Vjosa valley we can find:
- 84% of known mammal species in Albania.
- 80% of aquatic life species known in Albania
- 86% of reptile species registered in Albania
- 80% of the bird species known in Albania
More than 70 species of bird are present in the area surrounding the Vjosa.
The Kalivac Dam is planned to be more than 47 meters high and displace 1700 hectares/17 square kilometers. The Pocem HPP will have a 30-meter high dam that will displace 2,000 hectares/20 square kilometers.
The Canadian Institute for Sustainable Development conducted a 2020 study on the Vjosa where it compared the costs vs benefits of the two HPPs. It found that Pocem will cost EUR 233 million more than its benefits whereas the Kalivac will cost EUR 321 million more than its benefits. The damage to agriculture alone is estimated to be EUR 174 million.
Besjana Guri from EcoAlbania told Exit that the Vjosa Valley doesn’t enjoy any protection from the government and it must be declared as a National Park.
“We have been campaigning for the protection of the Vjosa for years and fortunately many voices have joined us, from scientists, international and Albanian artists as well as international organizations. Albanian politicians are in control of the fate of the Vjosa, so we have launched the ‘Vjosa national park now’ campaign, during the election campaign because it is the key point where decisions can be made that would ensure the future of the Vjosa valley”, she said.
Guri added “we are asking the main political candidates to make a promise, what they plan to do with Vjosa and who will later have to keep this promise.”
She also highlighted the decision of the National Council of the Territory that endangers the Vjosa as it seeks to declare “managed nature reserves which mean lower protection than that of the National Park, and does not include the tributaries of the Vjosa River and leaves the door open for construction of HPPs. ”
“For this we have opened a page, an electoral promise on the website of EcoAlbania, it is a dedicated page where politicians who want to express their will to protect the Vjosa can sign it and as a promise that will be documented. We invite any politician who intends to preserve this valley to sign this and give his support. Citizens should spread this call by ‘tagging’ politicians to do something for Vjosa,” said Guri.
