Large amounts of hospital waste including syringes, medicine packets, and other items have been found in the Erzen River and Arbana basin in Albania.
The river, located in central Albania stretches over 109km through Tirana and Durres, before depositing into the Adriatic sea between Durres and the Cape of Rodon.
The presence of such items in the river has led to the pollution of surrounding farmland, putting livestock and their ability to use the water for irrigation of agricultural land. In addition to this, the dam of the Erzeni is congested with waste meaning that the river sometimes overflows and further pollutes crops and agricultural land.
One resident told the media: “We do not irrigate the land, the main canal used for irrigation is ruined. Filth damages our land, there is a lot of hospital waste and it all comes up on our land.”
