On 4 October 2022, the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia delivered a very important and potentially revolutionary decision to revoke seven concessions for small hydropower plants in the newly proclaimed National Park Shar Planina.
With this decision, the Government stepped towards protecting the critical locations for the aquatic and riparian biodiversity of Shar Mountain.
“This government decision shows that we can’t ignore the scientific knowledge about the huge negative impacts of the small hydropower plants in the protected areas. However, this is only the first step. In NP Mavrovo, there are issued concessions that must be revoked as soon as possible in order to enable sustainable and integrated management of the park”, stated Gjorgji Mitrevski from Eko-vest.
“This could also be the turning point in our approach to protecting nature and, above all, rivers. In our legislation, but also through the international conventions that we have ratified, we have strong mechanisms at disposal that, if properly applied, can help us to have clean and free-flowing healthy rivers throughout the country. They can be protected for various reasons – for their significance to the local communities, the importance for preserving biodiversity, or because of the unique landscapes that the rivers have created over millennia”, added Ana Colovic Lesoska from Eko-svest.
Civil society welcomes the decision for the National Park Shar Planina and calls on the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning to make the same decision and to revoke the concessions for the small hydropower plants in NP Mavrovo.
Such a decision will be the first and most crucial step in initiating the process of re-proclamation of the oldest national park, in which for more than ten years, because of unsustainable management, we are witnessing massive damage to the ecosystems, the biodiversity and the values of the park.
Small hydropower plants cause irreparable damage to the rivers and ecosystems and therefore must not be built in protected areas. Clean, free-flowing rivers are one of the most essential elements for healthy ecosystems. National parks and protected areas are crucial to protecting and preserving biodiversity and play an invaluable role in maintaining and improving drinking water quality, protecting the groundwater, and improving the air quality.
